Bhai Vir Singh

Bhai Vir Singh Biography

Vir Singh, fondly called Bhai Vir Singh was an eminent scholar and writer of British Punjab who played a significant role in the renewal of Punjabi literary tradition. A theologian of the Sikh revival movement, he became canonized as Bhai, an honorary prefix given to Sikh saints. As a literal he contributed to Punjabi literature in the form of poems. Sri Guru Nanak Chamatkar and Sri Guru Kalgidhar Chamatkar are his religious works. Sundari (1898), Bijay Singh (1899), Satwant Kaur (in two volumes) etc are his noted novels of romantic genres. Baba Naudh Singh and Rana Surat Singh are novels belonging to other genres while Dil Tarang (1920), Tarel Tupke (1921), Lahiran de Har (1921), Matak Hulare (1922), Bijlian de Har (1927) and Mere Sayian Jio (1953) are his poetry works.

Through his works Vir Singh has advocated for the equality of sex and has given birth to numerous powerful female characters through his works. His first novel ‘Sundari’ featured Sunder Kaur, a woman who led adventurous life in jungles. He criticized religious fanaticism. Indian government honoured him with Padma Bhushan Award in 1956. He was also a recipient of Sahitya Akademi Award one year earlier.

Vir Singh was born in Amritsar in 1872. He had two younger siblings. He married Chatar Kaur at the age of 17 and had 2 daughters. He learnt both traditional Sikh learning and English education. He also learnt Persian, Urdu and Sanskrit. He set up a lithography press soon after completing education and took writing as his career. Through his illustrious literal journey he authored stories, poems, and epics. He also contributed books to Sikhism. He was also an active member of Singh sabha movement. He was one of the founders of The Punjab & Sind Bank. He passed away on 10 June 1957 aged 84.

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Updated: January 28, 2016