A NEW literary publishing company was born last week. Penguin Canada’s former boss and author David Davidar and Rupa Publications India Managing Director Kapish G. Mehra announced the birth of the Aleph Book Company, a joint venture. Aleph will have its headquarters in Delhi.
The following are excerpts from Roopinder Singh’s exclusive e-mail interview with David Davidar:
Since [...]
Continue reading “Scripting a new beginning” »
Bhai Harbans Singh Jagadhari Wale had carved a niche among the raagis as a person who explained the shabads using simple idioms. His bhog ceremony, which took place in Ludhiana on Sunday, was attended by people from all walks of life, including SGPC president Avtar Singh Makkar and Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Gurbachan Singh.
He died [...]
Continue reading “Melodious singer of Gurbani” »
LONG after he was assassinated, Mahatma Gandhi lives — in the hearts of those who regard him with awe; in the minds of those who read his works and seek to follow his path; on the lips of politicians of all hues, who profess to be his followers; and in the pages of writers and researchers who mine his teachings and life as a part of their literary pursuits.
Continue reading “Road to Greatness” »
Marshal of the Indian Air Force Arjan Singh, DFC, reached the pinnacle of his career as the only living Field Marshal in India. My tribute to Teji Arjan Singh, who was the wind beneath his wings
Continue reading “The wind beneath his wings” »
SANT Singh Sekhon (1908-1997) taught English, yet it was his writing in Punjabi that earned him great name and fame. One of his twelve full-length Punjabi plays, Mittar Piara, won the Sahitya Akademi Award in 1972. It is only fitting that India’s premier literary body has now published a translation of his plays in English.
Continue reading “Dialogues with a historical backdrop” »
ਅੱਜ ਦੁਨੀਆਂ ਦਾ ਸਭ ਤੋਂ ਵਿਸ਼ਾਲ ਵਿਸ਼ਵਕੋਸ਼ ਵਿਕੀਪੀਡੀਆ ਹੈ, ਐਨਸਾਈਕਲੋਪੀਡੀਆ ਬਰਿਟੈਨਿਕਾ ਨਹੀਂ, ਜਿਸ ਨੂੰ ਕਈ ਸਦੀਆਂ ਤੱਕ ਇਹ ਸਥਾਨ ਪ੍ਰਾਪਤ ਸੀ। ਵਿਕੀਪੀਡੀਆ ਕਈ ਬੋਲੀਆਂ ਵਿੱਚ ਹੈ। ਇਸ ਵਿੱਚ ਅੰਗਰੇਜ਼ੀ ਦੇ 35 ਲੱਖ ਲੇਖ ਹਨ। ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ਵਿੱਚ ਲੇਖਾਂ ਦੀ ਗਿਣਤੀ ਦੋ ਹਜ਼ਾਰ ਤੋਂ ਵੀ ਘੱਟ ਹੈ।
Continue reading “ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ਦਾ ਕੰਪਿਊਟਰੀਕਰਨ” »
Politics, diplomacy and cricket will all converge as the President of India, the Prime Ministers of India and Pakistan, captains of industry, Bollywood stars, bureaucrats and politicians come here to watch the super-charged India-Pakistan cricket World Cup semi-final at the Mohali stadium on March 30,2011. The Tricity, comprising Chandigarh, Mohali and Panchkula, will practically be [...]
Continue reading “Cricket mania sweeps Chandigarh” »
A group of bright PhD researcher at the School of Oriental and African Studies, London, aided and abetted by their teachers, hosted a conference in 2007. The collection of papers presented then has come out as a very interesting book, “Indian Mass Media and the Politics of Change”,
Continue reading “Tossed, diced and examined” »
प्रतिबद्ध वार्ताकार, ज्ञानशील, जोशीला व प्रशंसनीय - इनमें किसी भी एक गुणवाला युवा फूलकर कुप्पा हो सकता है। लेकिन अगर किसी एक व्यक्ति में ये सभी, बल्कि इनसे भी कहीं बहुत ज्यादा गुण हों तो क्या होगा? निस्संदेह वह एक गाथा होगा - शहीद।
Continue reading “भगत सिंह का इंकलाब, जिंदाबाद” »
ਪ੍ਰਤੀਬੱਧ, ਵਿਚਾਰਸ਼ੀਲ, ਮੋਹ ਭਿੱਜਿਆ….ਜਦੋਂ ਇਹੋ ਜਿਹੇ ਵਿਸ਼ੇਸ਼ਣ ਕਿਸੇ ਨੌਜਵਾਨ ਨਾਲ ਜੁੜ ਜਾਣ ਤਾਂ ਉਸ ਦੇ ਪੈਰ ਜ਼ਮੀਨ ‘ਤੇ ਲੱਗਣੇ ਮੁਸ਼ਕਲ ਹੋ ਜਾਂਦੇ ਹਨ ਪਰ ਇਹ ਤੇ ਇਹੋ ਜਿਹੇ ਕਈ ਹੋਰ ਵਿਸ਼ੇਸ਼ਣ ਜਦੋਂ ਕਿਸੇ ਇਕੋ ਵਿਅਕਤੀ ਦੀ ਹਸਤੀ ਦੀ ਪਛਾਣ ਬਣ ਜਾਣ ਤਾਂ ਉਹ ਇਕ ਸ਼ਹੀਦ ਬਣ ਜਾਂਦਾ ਹੈ। ਉਸ ਸ਼ਖ਼ਸ ਦੀ ਦੇਣ ਹੀ ਇਹੋ ਜਿਹੀ ਹੈ ਕਿ ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਦਾ ਨਾਂ ਸ਼ਹੀਦ ਅਗੇਤਰ ਤੋਂ ਬਿਨਾਂ ਸੱਖਣਾ ਜਾਪਦਾ ਹੈ। ਆਜ਼ਾਦੀ ਦਾ ਪਰਵਾਨਾ ਭਗਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਅਮਰ ਸ਼ਹੀਦ ਬਣ ਗਿਆ।
Continue reading “ਭਗਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਦਾ ਇਨਕਲਾਬ, ਜ਼ਿੰਦਾਬਾਦ” »