Hindi
Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...
writer of short stories and novels. Some of his works have also been translated in English. He was a prolific writer, penning over 20 novels, 30 collections of short stories and scores of radio plays in Urdu, and later, after
partition
Partition may refer to:
Computing Hardware
* Disk partitioning, the division of a hard disk drive
* Memory partition, a subdivision of a computer's memory, usually for use by a single job
Software
* Partition (database), the division of a ...
in 1947, took to writing in
Hindi
Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...
as well. He also wrote screen-plays for Bollywood movies to supplement his meagre income as an author of satirical stories. Krishan Chander's novels (including the classic: ''Ek Gadhe Ki Sarguzasht'', 'Autobiography of a Donkey') have been translated into over 16 Indian languages and some foreign languages, including English.
His short story "Annadata" ( ''The Giver of Grain'' – an obsequious appellation used by Indian peasants for their feudal land-owners), was made into the film ''
Dharti Ke Lal
''Dharti Ke Lal'' ( ''Children of the Earth'') is a 1946 Hindustani film, the first directorial venture of the noted film director Khwaja Ahmad Abbas (K. A. Abbas). It was jointly written by Khwaja Ahmad Abbas and Bijon Bhattacharya, based on ...
'' (1946) by
Khwaja Ahmad Abbas
Khwaja Ahmad Abbas (7 June 1914 – 1 June 1987) was an Indian film director, screenwriter, novelist, and journalist in Urdu, Hindi and English. He won four National Film Awards in India. Internationally, his films won the Palme d'Or (Golden ...
– which led to his being offered work regularly as a screenwriter by
Bollywood
Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (fo ...
, including such popular hits as '' Mamta'' (1966) and ''
Sharafat
''Sharafat'' is a 1970 Hindi romantic drama film, directed by Asit Sen, starring Ashok Kumar, Dharmendra, Hema Malini in lead roles. Hema Malini plays the role of a feisty courtesan Chanda in search of her father, in this satire about society' ...
Rajasthan
Rajasthan (; lit. 'Land of Kings') is a state in northern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the largest Indian state by area and the seventh largest by population. It is on India's northwestern si ...
where his father worked as a doctor. The family originally belonged to
Wazirabad
Wazirabad (Urdu/ pa, ) is a city in Punjab, Pakistan. It is the capital of Wazirabad District.
Famous for its cutlery products, it is known as the city of cutlery and is also quite famous for its foods.
Wazirabad is situated on the banks of th ...
District
Gujranwala
Gujranwala ( ur, , label=none; ) is a city and capital of Gujranwala Division located in Pakistan. It is also known as "City of Wrestlers" and is quite famous for its food. It is the 5th most populous city proper after Karachi, Lahore, Faisala ...
, of undivided
Punjab
Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...
, India. Chander spent his childhood in
Poonch Poonch, sometimes also spelt Punchh, may refer to:
* Historical Poonch District, a district in the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir in British India, split in 1947 between:
** Poonch district, India
** Poonch Division, in Azad Kashmir, Pakistan, ...
, in the state of
Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir may refer to:
* Kashmir, the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent
* Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), a region administered by India as a union territory
* Jammu and Kashmir (state), a region administered ...
, where his father worked as the physician of
Maharaja
Mahārāja (; also spelled Maharajah, Maharaj) is a Sanskrit title for a "great ruler", "great king" or " high king".
A few ruled states informally called empires, including ruler raja Sri Gupta, founder of the ancient Indian Gupta Empire, an ...
Poonch. His novel ''Shakast'' (Defeat) is related to Kashmir's partition. ''Mitti Ke Sanam'' one of his most popular novel is about the childhood memories of a young boy who lived with his parents in Kashmir. His another memorable novel is "Gaddar", which is about the partition of India and Pakistan in 1947. In this novel, he brilliantly picturised the sufferings of the people during that time through a selfish young man's feelings, who himself was a gaddar (betrayer). His short stories are the stories of Kashmiri villages, as well as those of displaced expatriates and rootless urban man. He used Pahari (dialect of people living in Poonch) words while writing in Urdu.
In the 1930s, he studied at
Forman Christian College
Forman Christian College is an private liberal arts university in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan. It was founded in 1864 and is administered by the Presbyterian Church. The university follows an American-style curriculum.
Founded in 1864 by American ...
, Lahore and edited the English section of the college house magazine, and was at that time interested in English writings. As the then editor of the Urdu section of the magazine,
Mehr Lal Soni Zia Fatehabadi
Mehr or Mihr may refer to:
Persian names
* Mehr, an alternative name for Mithra, a Zoroastrian divinity
* Mehr (month), the seventh month of the year and the sixteenth day of the month of the Iranian and Zoroastrian calendars
* Mehr's day, or ...
was instrumental to his career in having got published, in the year 1932, Chander's first Urdu short story, "Sadhu".
Career
His literary masterpieces on the Bengal famine and the savagery and barbarism that took place at the time of the partition of India in 1947 are some of the finest specimens of modern Urdu literature, but at other times, too, he continued relentlessly to critique the abuse of power, poverty and the suffering of the wretched of the earth; but above all he never stopped protesting casteism, fanaticism, communal violence and terror. He was a humanist and a cosmopolitan.
Books written by Krishan Chander
He has been described as the "author of more than 100 books including novels, collections of short stories, plays, fantasies, satires, parodies, reportages, film-scripts and books for children",''Advance'', Volume 26 (1977), Public Relations, Punjab, p. 17 which include:
Novels:
# Jamun Ka Peid
# Shikast
# Jab Khet Jagay
# Toofaan Ki KaliyaaN
# Dil Ki Waadiyaan So GayiN
# Aasmaan Roushan Hai
# Bavan Patte
# Ek Gadhe Ki Sarguzasht (The Life Story a Donkey)
# Ek Aurat Hazaar Deewanay
# Ghaddaar
# Jab Khet Jage
# Sarak Wapas Jaati Hai
# Dadar Pul Ke Neechay
# Barf Ke Phool
# Borban Club
# Meri Yaadon Ke Chinaar
# Gadhay Ki Wapasi
# Chandi Ka Ghaao
# Ek Gadha Nefa Mein
# Hong Kong Ki Haseena
# Mitti Ke Sanam
# Zar Gaon Ki Raani
# Ek Voilon Samundar Ke Kinare
# Dard Ki Nahar
# London Ke Saat RangBooks By Krishan Chander on rekhta.org website Retrieved 8 March 2021
# Kaghaz Ki Naao
# Filmi Qaaida
# Panch Loafer (1966)
# Panch Loafer Ek Heroine
# Ganga Bahe Na Raat
# Dusri Barfbari Se Pahlay
# Gwalior Ka Hajjam
# Bambai Ki Shaam
# Chanda Ki Chandni
# Ek Karor Ki Botal
# Maharani
# Pyar Ek Khushbu
# Masheenon Ka Shahr
# Carnival
# Aayine Akelay Hain
# Chanbal Ki Chanbeli
# Uska Badan Mera Chaman
# Muhabbat Bhi Qayamat Bhi
# Sone Ka Sansaar
# SapnoN Ki Waadi
# Aadha Raasta
# Honolulu Ka Rajkumar
# Sapnon Ki Rahguzarein
# Footpath Ke Farishtay
# Aadhe Safar Ki Poori Kahani
Short Story Collection
# Tilism E Khayal
# Ekk Tawaef Ka Khat
# Nazaray
# Hawai Qilay
# Ghunghat Mein Gori Jalay
# Tootay Hue Taaray
# Zindagi Ke Mor Per
# Naghmay Ki Maut
# Purane Khuda
# Ann DaataBooks by Krishan Chander on goodreads.com website Retrieved 8 March 2021
# Teen Ghunday
# Hum Wahshi Hain
# Ajanta Se Aagay
# Ek Girja Ek Khandaq
# Samunder Door Hai
# Shikast Ke Baad
# Naye Ghulam
# Main Intezaar Karunga
# Mazaahiya Afsaanay
# Ek Rupiya Ek Phool
# Eucalyptus Ki Daali
# Hydrogen Bomb Ke Baad
# Naye Afsaanay (1943)
# Kaab Ka Kafan
# Dil Kisi Ka Dost Nahi (1959)
# Muskuraane Waaliyan
# Krishn Chander Ke Afsaanay
# Sapnon Ka Qaidi
# Miss Nanital
# DaswaaN Pul (1964)
# Gulshan Gulshan Dhundha Tujhko
# Aadhe Ghante Ka Khuda
# Uljhi Larki Kaalay Baal (1970)
# Kaloo Bhangi
Filmography
* ''
Dharti Ke Lal
''Dharti Ke Lal'' ( ''Children of the Earth'') is a 1946 Hindustani film, the first directorial venture of the noted film director Khwaja Ahmad Abbas (K. A. Abbas). It was jointly written by Khwaja Ahmad Abbas and Bijon Bhattacharya, based on ...
'' (1946) story
* '' Andolan'' (1951) screenplay and story
* ''
Tamasha
Tamasha ( mr, तमाशा) is a traditional form of Marathi theatre, often with singing and dancing, widely performed by local or travelling theatre groups within the state of Maharashtra, India."Tamasha", in James R. Brandon and Martin Banham ...
'' (1952) dialogue
* ''
Dev Anand in Goa
''Faraar'' (), also known as ''Dev Anand in Goa'', is a 1955 Indian Hindi-language film directed by Phani Majumdar. The film stars Dev Anand and Geeta Bali.
Plot
Set just before the Partition of India, Gora (Dev Anand) is an idealist who le ...
'' (1955) screenplay and dialogue
* ''
Do Phool
''Do Phool'' () is a 1973 Indian Hindi-language comedy film directed by S. Ramanathan. The film stars Ashok Kumar, Vinod Mehra and Mehmood. It is a remake of the Tamil-language film ''Anubavi Raja Anubavi'' which inspired another Hindi film ' ...
Sharafat
''Sharafat'' is a 1970 Hindi romantic drama film, directed by Asit Sen, starring Ashok Kumar, Dharmendra, Hema Malini in lead roles. Hema Malini plays the role of a feisty courtesan Chanda in search of her father, in this satire about society' ...
Do Chor
''Do Chor'' () is a 1972 Hindi romantic drama film produced by Raj Khosla and directed by Padmanabh. It stars Dharmendra, Tanuja, Shobhana Samarth, K.N. Singh, Trilok Kapoor and Jalal Agha. The music is by R.D. Burman and the lyrics by Majrooh S ...
'' (1972) dialogue
* ''
Manchali
''Manchali'' is a 1973 Hindi romantic drama movie produced and directed by Raja Nawathe, starring Sanjeev Kumar, Leena Chandavarkar, Nazima and Nirupa Roy. The title track was very catchy and popular. It was one of the best known films with ...
'' (1973) dialogue
* '' Hamrahi'' (1974) story and dialogue writer
* '' Ram Bharose '' (1977) dialogue
Death and legacy
Krishan Chander later married
Salma Siddiqui
Salma Siddiqui (18 June 1931 – 13 February 2017) was an Indian novelist in the Urdu language and a prominent member of the Progressive Writers' Movement.
Biography
Salma Siddiqui was born in 1931 in Varanasi. Her father Rashid Ahmad Siddiqui ...
as his second wife. He died working at his desk in
Mumbai
Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...
on 8 March 1977. He had just started to write a satirical essay entitled Adab baray-e-Batakh (Literature for a duck), and wrote just one line ''Noorani ko bachpan hi se paltoo janwaron ka shauq tha. Kabootar, bandar, rang barangi chiriyaan…'' (''since childhood Noorani was fond of pet animals such as pigeons, monkeys, multi-coloured birds…'') but before he could complete the sentence he succumbed to a massive heart attack.
A Fountain Park in
Poonch Poonch, sometimes also spelt Punchh, may refer to:
* Historical Poonch District, a district in the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir in British India, split in 1947 between:
** Poonch district, India
** Poonch Division, in Azad Kashmir, Pakistan, ...
of
Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir may refer to:
* Kashmir, the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent
* Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), a region administered by India as a union territory
* Jammu and Kashmir (state), a region administered ...
(India) has been renamed to ''Krishan Chander Park, Poonch'' in his memory. His statue has also been erected in the middle of the garden.
Krishan Chander Chopra had married twice. His first wife was Vidyawati Chopra. They had a total of three children from this marriage, two daughters and one son. His second wife was Salma Siddiqi, the daughter of Rasheed Ahmed Siddiqi, Urdu's noted satirist and academic.