Born in Punjab?s Hadali village (now in Pakistan) in 1915, Khushwant Singh was among India?s best-known and most widely read authors and journalists. He was founder editor of Yojana and editor of the Illustrated Weekly of India, National Herald and Hindustan Times. His first book, the Mark of Vishnu and Other Stories, was published in 1950. He published six novels?Train to Pakistan, I shall not hear the nightingale (retitled the Lost Victory), Delhi: A Novel, the Company of Women, Burial at Sea and the Sunset Club. Among his other books are an autobiography, Truth, Love and a Little Malice and a two-volume history of the Sikhs. In addition, he published translations of Hindi and Urdu novels. Khushwant Singh was a member of the Rajya Sabha from 1980 to 1986. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 1974, which he returned in 1984 to protest the siege of the Golden Temple by the Indian Army. In 2007, he was awarded India?s second-highest civilian honour, the Padma Vibhushan. Singh died in 2014. He is survived by his son, Rahul Singh, daughter, Mala Dayal and granddaughter, Naina Dayal.
Humour is something very subtle and therefore eludes precise definition, it is not hurtful. On the contrary, it is an antibiotic against hate. That?s as close as I can get to defining a sense of humour.
