Eminent Punjabi Dalit icon Des Raj Kali passes away

Tribune News Service

Aparna Banerji

Jalandhar, August 27

Eminent Punjabi Dalit writer Des Raj Kali is no more. He breathed his last at PGI Chandigarh at 3 am this morning, after a two-month long battle with liver disease.

Hailing from Mithapur in Jalandhar, the acclaimed author, journalist, historian and social/political commentator was best known as a Punjabi crossover writer who took the region's Dalit ethos to the world.

Des Raj Kali, 51, is survived by his wife, and three children--son Karan and daughters Shivalika and Zunish.

His literary works were celebrated on platforms ranging from the Jaipur Literature Festival (2010) to special sessions at Nottingham Trent University in England, Montpellier University, France and Monash University, Australia, among others.

Kali's short story collections include “Kath-Kali”, “Phaqiri” and “Chup Kitey”, "Yahan Chai Achhi Nahi Banti" and his novels include “Parneshwari”, “Antheen”, “Paratham Pauran”, “Shanti Parv”, “Nar Natak”, Shehar Vich Sahn Honn da Matlab", “Thumri". An avid analyst of the contemporary status quo, he also shared his insights on his Youtube channel Barqtan WebTv where he spoke on wide ranging issues - the status of state's education, Punjab floods, Dalit consciousness and the political future of Punjab.

Despite being an author who celebrated Dalit identity, Kali constantly rejected the linear political narratives surrounding Dalits, celebrating the rich cultural and artistic traditions which the community has been rooted in. His writing offered glimpses of Sufi and Nath traditions he grew up observing, and sought inspiration from the poetry of Lal Singh Dil, Sant Gulabdas and Sant Wazeer Singh.

Desh Bhagat Yadgaar Committee member and Historian Chiranjii Lal Kangniwal said, "Des Raj Kali's demise is a huge loss to the Dalit community and to literature in the state. A robust and vocal Punjabi writer is lost. He was among the few individuals concerned deeplyabout the cultural scenario and Dalit identity of Punjab. He was much younger to me but was a great friend. We often talked about the treatment of Dalits and he was often angered at past injustices. In his short and eventful life span, he gained a vital spot on the list of state's literary luminaries."

Kali's last rites will be conducted at Harnamdaspura (near Workshop Chowk) in Jalandhar on Tuesday afternoon.

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