Creating art through alphabets

Sarabjit Singh, head teacher, Government Elementary School, Thatha (Beer Baba Budha Sahib), in Tarn Taran has been blessed with a talent in calligraphy which has made him popular among intellectuals and society. His calligraphy creations have earned him much respect from various arenas. He joined the Punjab Education Department in 2001 as an ETT teacher with just a high school qualification degree and ET Training.

He didn’t always have this skill, rather it was acquired over time. His wife, who was also in the Education Department, had good handwriting, revealed Sarabjit Singh. The department started organising calligraphy competitions for students and teachers, which made him want to improve his handwriting. In a short span, he was interested in calligraphy. His students also started to win prizes in the handwriting competitions at the block and state level.

He also pursued further qualifications of MA, MEd. Singh said after school hours, he remains busy with his family and invests his free hours for creating calligraphy. In the last five years, he has more than 600 creations to his credit. He has won several prizes for his skill — his elegant penmanship. He has been awarded by the Punjab School Education Department for his works.

He is often invited by educational institutions to organise exhibitions of his calligraphy works. His exhibition held at Khalsa College of Education, Amritsar, garnered widespread acclaim. On International Mother Language Day, a district-level function was organised at Guru Gobind Singh Khalsa College, Sarhali (Tarn Taran), wherein his works were highly appreciated and he was honoured with a special award. He said each and every creation he delivers holds some special message. He collects detailed knowledge of the subject and its history to express his views before creating something. He has read books on history, language, political science, even science too to gather information of the topic concerned. He has been honoured by the Education Department and by the Language Department (Bhasha Vibhag, Punjab) for his contributions.

He said that to enrich the Punjabi language and Sikh history, mature Punjabi writers and poets are his pet subjects to express. He added that he has been working to deliver a healthy message to the young generation, instead of a desire for award or acclaim.

He mostly uses pen, ink brush, old traditional wooden (of kana) kalam to design and execute lettering. He has also studied the history of calligraphy, Indian calligraphy, significant transformations, adapting to regional preferences, linguistic changes and cultural influences, besides Islamic calligraphy.

His son Gurnadar Singh is a student of Class VII. Motivated by his father’s work, he is also inclined towards calligraphy. He has created around 30 creations in a year.

He said that his students have started taking interest in calligraphy. He urged the Punjab School Education Board to introduce calligraphy in the syllabus.