Devendra Satyarthi (28 May 1908 – 2003) was an Indian folklorist and writer of Hindi, Urdu, Punjabi literature.[1][2][3]
Born at Bhadaur (Barnala)[4] he did not complete his education and started travelling from 1927[5] collecting folk songs which he published in his first folk song anthology in 1935 under the name Giddha,[6] which is considered by many as a seminal work.[5]
Image of Devendra Satyarthi, his wife and daughter published in Modern Review (1942)
Satyarthi published over 50 books composed of novels,[7] short stories,[8] poems, essays and folksong anthologies in Urdu, Hindi and Punjabi languages, but reportedly on advice from Rabindranath Tagore, he wrote mostly in Punjabi language towards the end.[5]Mere Saakshatkaar,[9]Miss Folklore,[10]Meet My People - Indian Folk Poetry,[11]Pañjābī loka-sāhita wica sainika,[12]Lanka Desa hai Kolambu,[13]Brahmaputra,[14] and Rath ke Pahiye[15] are some of his notable works.
A winner of the Hindi Sahitya Sadhna Samman,[16] Satyarthi was awarded the fourth highest Indian civilian award of Padma Shri by the Government of India in 1977.[17] He died on 12 February 2003, at the age of 94, succumbing to old age illnesses.[5]Pancham, a monthly magazine published from Lahore, brought out a 300-page special issue on him in April 2003 and his life has been documented in a biography, Satyarthi – Ik Dant-katha, written by Nirmal Arpan.[5]
