Amrita PritamFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search Amrita Pritam Born Amrita Kaur August 31, 1919 Gujranwala, British India October 31, 2005 (aged 86) Delhi, India Novelist, poet, essayist Indian 1936-2004 poetry, prose, autobiography partition of India, women, dream Died Occupation Nationality Writing period Genres Subjects Literary movement Romantic-Progressivism[1] Amrit Lehran (Immortal Waves) was published in 1936. as compared to her contemporaries like Mohan Singh and Shiv Kumar Batalvi. and besieged by loneliness following her mother's death. and essayist. in which she created her memorable character. Confronting adult responsibilities. and changed her name to Amrita Pritam. in 2004. 2005) (Punjabi: ਅਮ੍ਰਿਤਾ ਪ੍ਿੀਤਰ. one of India's highest literary awards. loss of humanity and ultimate surrender to existential fate.[10] Amrita's mother died when she was eleven. Punjab."Ode to Waris Shah". who is equally loved on both the sides of the India-Pakistan border[2][3] She is most remembered for her poignant poem. and in the same year she was honoured with India's highest literary award. the novel was made into an award-winning film.[8][9] Besides this. Hindi: अमत ृ ा प्रीतम. Pinjar in 2003. given by the Sahitya Akademi (India's Academy of Letters). an epitome of violence against women. she migrated from Lahore. the Sahitya Akademi Fellowship given to the "immortals of literature" for lifetime achievement.[7] [edit] Biography [edit] Formative Years Amrita Pritam was born in 1919 in Gujranwala. a poet and a scholar of Braj Bhasha. an elegy to the 18th-century Punjabi poet. though she remained equally popular in Pakistan throughout her life. novelist.[2] the only child of a school teacher. Padma Vibhushan. considered the first prominent woman Punjabi poet. As a novelist her most noted work was Pinjar (The Skeleton) (1950). Soon after. Known as the most important voice for the women in Punjabi literature. an editor to whom she was engaged in early childhood. India's second highest civilian award.[11] Half a dozen collections of poems were to follow in as many years . 1919 – October 31. and the leading 20th-century poet of the Punjabi language. she became the first woman to win the Sahitya Akademi Award for her magnum opus. Aj Aakhaan Waris Shah Nu (Today I invoke Waris Shah .[4][5] When the former British India was partitioned into the independent states of India and Pakistan in 1947. Puro. The Padma Shri came her way in 1969 and finally.[6] later she received the Bhartiya Jnanpith. Sunehray (Messages). where she lived till her migration to India in 1947. now in Pakistan. amrtā prītam) was an Indian writer and poet. she began to write at an early age. a long poem. she and her father moved to Lahore. Her first anthology of poems. he was a pracharak – a preacher of the Sikh faith. the year she married Pritam Singh.Notable work(s) Pinjar (novel) Aj Akhan Waris Shah Nu (poem) Suneray (poem) Amrita Pritam (August 31. Kartar Singh Hitkari. in 1982 for Kagaz Te Canvas (The Paper and the Canvas). amritā prītam. who also edited a literary journal. an expression of her anguish over massacres during the partition of India. at age sixteen. in 1956. to India. kiton kabraan vichchon bol.[6] and became part of the Progressive Writers' Movement and its effect was seen in her collection. cry to you. which she ran together with Imroz. though after Partition she wrote prolifically in Hindi as well. The first of Amrita Pritam's books to be filmed was Dharti Sagar te Sippiyan. this poem was to later immortalize her and become the most poignant reminder of the horrors of Partition. she turned to Osho and wrote introductions for several books of Osho. and travelling from Dehradun to Delhi. rise! look at your Punjab Today. Hindus and Sikhs died from communal violence that followed the partition of India in 1947. today. Te aj kitab-e-ishq daa koi agla varka phol Ik roi si dhi Punjab di. She also worked at Lahore Radio Station for while. 1970) was made into an award winning Hindi movie by Chandra Prakash Dwivedi. a million daughters. Danish. A number of her works have been translated into English. producing works like Kaal Chetna (Time Consciousness) and Agyat Ka Nimantran (Call of the . tun likh likh maare vaen. author of the tragic saga of Heer and Ranjah and with whom she shares her birth place. the book of love‟s next affectionate page Once. a monthly literary magazine in Punjabi for several years. a daughter of Punjab cried and you wrote a wailing saga Today. including her autobiographical works Black Rose and Revenue Stamp (Raseedi Tikkat in Punjabi). because of its humanism: "Amritaji has portrayed the suffering of people of both the countries. Though she began her journey as romantic poet. 1976). and blood fills the Chenab[17][18] Amrita Pritam worked until 1961 for All India Radio.between 1936 and 1943. followed by „Unah Di Kahani‟. Lok Peed (People's Anguish) (1944).[15] the Punjabi national epic: Aj aakhan Waris Shah nun. "Aaj Aakhaan Waris Shah Nu" (I ask Waris Shah Today).[20][21] Later in life. Subsequently in 1948. uth takk apna Punjab Aj bele lashaan bichhiaan te lahu di bhari Chenab Today.[19] Her novel Pinjar (The Skeleton. “Speak from your grave” And turn. soon she shifted gears. directed by Basu Bhattacharya. Waris Shah Rise! O‟ narrator of the grieving. fields are lined with corpses. before the partition of India[12] [edit] Partition Some one million Muslims. for 33 years." Pinjar was shot in a border region of Rajasthan and in Punjab. I call Waris Shah. She edited “Nagmani”. tainun Waris Shah nun kaehn Uth dardmandaan dia dardia.[22] and also started writing on spiritual themes and dreams. after the Bengal famine of 1943. which openly criticized the war-torn economy. Japanese and other languages from Punjabi and Urdu. including Ek Omkar Satnam. and left Amrita Pritam a Punjabi refugee at age 28. After her divorce in 1960. French. Aj lakhaan dhian rondian. when she left Lahore and moved to New Delhi. as „Kadambar‟ (1965).[14] The poem addressed to the Sufi poet Waris Shah. while she was pregnant with her son. Many of her stories and poems drew on the unhappy experience of her marriage. as Daaku (Dacoit. her work became more clearly feminist. she expressed anguish on a piece of paper[13] as the poem. and Aksharon kay Saayee (Shadows of Words)[24][8] [edit] Acclaim The first woman recipient of the Sahitya Akademi Award in 1956 for Sunehray (Messages). She received the Padma Shri (1969) and Padma Vibhushan. But Sahir then had a new woman in his life. after a long illness. she penned 28 novels. daughter-in-law.[23] She had also published autobiographies.[27] She was involved with him when she asked her husband for divorce.Unknown). Aman and Shilpi. she was awarded by Pakistan's Punjabi Academy. Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (Officier) by the French Government (1987). from many universities including. daughter .Alka and her grandchildren Taurus. Kala Gulab (Black Rose) (1968). India's second highest civilian award. son. 18 anthologies of prose.. Rasidi Ticket (The Revenue Stamp) (1976). Unchas Din Sagar aur Seepian Rang ka Patta Dilli ki Galiyan .[26] She died in her sleep on 31 October 2005 at the age of 86 in New Delhi. Towards the end of her life. honorary degrees. Delhi University (1973). [edit] Works In her career spanning over six decades.[20] She was nominated as a member of Rajya Sabha 1986-92. Amrita Pritam received the Bhartiya Jnanpith. whom she had known for many years and they were together for the rest of her life. and also Punjabi poets of Pakistan. Amrita Pritam left her husband. Amrita grew closer to Imroz. India's highest literary award. and lived the last forty years of her life with the renowned artist and writer. [edit] Novels Pinjar (The Skeleton) Doctor Dev Kore Kagaz.Litt. Her story cannot be completed without the name of Sahir Ludhianvi. Bade dino baad mere maike ko meri yaad aayi. Amrita Imroz: A Love Story”. also in 2004. She received D.[2] [edit] Personal life In 1960.Kandlla.Navraj. and fellow Sufi mystic poets Bulle Shah and Sultan Bahu. five short stories and 16 miscellaneous prose volumes. sent her a chaddar. in 1982 for Kagaj te Canvas (Paper and Canvas). She survived by her partner Imroz. from the tombs of Waris Shah. Noor. to which she had remarked. and Sahitya Akademi Fellowship. Their life together is also subject of a book.. India's highest literary award. Jabalpur University (1973) and Vishwa Bharati (1987)[25] She also received International Vaptsarov Award from the Republic of Bulgaria (1979) and Degree of Officer dens. titled. who also designed most of her book covers. Imroz. Terahwan Suraj Yaatri Jilavatan (1968) [edit] Autobiography Rasidi Ticket (1976) Shadows of Words (2004) [edit] Short stories Kahaniyan jo Kahaniyan Nahi Kahaniyon ke Angan mein Stench of Kerosene [edit] Poetry anthologies Amrit Lehran (Immortal Waves)(1936) Jiunda Jiwan (The Exuberant Life) (1939) Trel Dhote Phul (1942) O Gitan Valia (1942) Badlam De Laali (1943) Lok Peera (The People's Anguish) (1944) Pathar Geetey (The Pebbles) (1946) Punjabi Di Aawaaz (1952) Sunehray (Messages) (1955) .Sahitya Akademi Award Ashoka Cheti (1957) Kasturi (1957) Nagmani (1964) Ik Si Anita (1964) Chak Nambar Chatti (1964) Uninja Din (1979) Kagaz Te Kanvas (1981).Bhartiya Jnanpith Chuni Huyee Kavitayen .