Books
Going Full Steam at 98:
Khushwant Singh Releases New Book
PRESS TRUST OF INDIA
The indomitable Sardar Khushwant Singh has comeup with another book on his 98th birthday in which he offers his views on subjects as diverse as old age and the fear of death; on the joy of sex, the pleasures of poetry and the importance of laughter; on politics, politicians and the future of India; on how to cope with retirement and live a long, happy and healthy life.
At
a private ceremony to celebrate his birthday at his residence here
on Saturday, February 2, 2013, the veteran writer-columnist presented the first copy
of "Khushwantnama: The Lessons of My Life" to Prime Minister Manmohan
Singh's wife, Sardarni Gursharan Kaur.
The book, published by Penguin Books
India, is dedicated to India's First Lady who is a close friend of the author. It
will hit book stores next week.
In "Khushwantnama: The Lessons of My Life", the author, who has over the
years enlightened and outraged his readers in equal measure, be it with
his humour or his sharp insights and observations, reflects on a life
lived fully and the lessons it has taught him.
"Penguin Books India has had a long and wonderful
association with Khushwant Singh. He has delighted generations of
readers, and we are immensely proud to present 'Khushwantnama' on his 98th birthday," Hemali Sodhi, vice president
(Marketing and Corporate Communications) of Penguin (Group) India, said.
Khushwant Singh is India's best-known writer
and columnist.
Born on February 2 in Hadali, now in Pakistan's Punjab,
he was the founder-editor of Yojana and editor of The Illustrated Weekly
of India, The National Herald and The Hindustan Times. He is the author
of classics like "Train to Pakistan", "I Shall Not Hear the
Nightingale" and "Delhi". He wrote the novel "The Sunset Club" when he
was 95. His non-fiction includes the classic two-volume "A History of
the Sikhs", a number of translations and works on Sikh religion and
culture, Delhi, nature, current affairs and Urdu poetry. His
autobiography, "Truth, Love and a Little Malice", was published by
Penguin Books in 2002.
"The Sunset Club" is an exploration of
friendship, sexuality, old age and infirmity; a joyous celebration of
nature; an insightful portrait of India's paradoxes and complexities.
Khushwant Singh was a Member of Parliament from 1980 to 1986.
He was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 1974 but returned the decoration in 1984 in protest against the storming of the Golden Temple in Amritsar by the Indian Army.
In 2007, he was awarded the Padma Vibhushan.
February 5, 2013
Conversation about this article
1: Gurmeet Kaur (Atlanta, Georgia, USA), February 05, 2013, 12:15 PM.
He's Fauja Singh #2. Wish you many more years of writing and joy. Keep inspiring.
2: Harinder Singh 1469 (New Delhi, India), February 05, 2013, 11:12 PM.
Only man on this earth who has had the guts to mirror India and its political leaders as they truly are. Be honest, Be natural, has been his policy, from start to finish. And the last best friend of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
3: Bikramjit Singh (London, United Kingdom), February 09, 2013, 3:04 AM.
Khushwant Singh is a person who went from running for his life from Hindu mobs and sheltering in the Swedish embassy in 1984, to supporting the murder of thousands of innocent Sikh youth by the Indian authorities, to 'save' his beloved Punjab in 1992. Question to Harinder Singh from Delhi, how much has Khushwant Singh done to publicize the lack of justice for the victims of the pogroms in 1984? Sorry but the word 'guts', 'honesty' cannot be used to describe Khushwant Singh. To be honest his only contribution to Sikhi has been the two books on Sikh history he wrote in the 60s. After that it is all been downhill from there, from his espousal of Sardarji jokes to his support for genocide to stopping the breakup of India.
4: N Singh (Canada), February 09, 2013, 4:32 PM.
Wow! Bikramjit Singh ji: finally someone who has the courage to speak to truth and tell it like it is.
5: Bikramjit Singh (London, United Kingdom), February 18, 2013, 2:47 PM.
Thank you, N Singh ji. Unfortunately we have a tendency to beat the drums when we see a Sikh reach a high position without seeing whether that person has actually used his position to do something to help the Sikhs. It seems so unbelievable to me that some Sikhs still do not understand who Khushwant Singh is and what damage he has wrought on the Sikh nation. For someone who is such a prolific writer, his silence on the '84 pogroms and the 1984-1995 killings of the Sikh youth in Punjab is deafening!