Nirupama Dutt

Lal Singh Dil (1943-2007) was born in Ghungrali Sikha village near Samrala, a small town in Punjab in a chamar family that had neither land, money nor education. He was the first in his clan to complete school and join college for a basic teachers’ training course when he was drawn towards the Naxalite movement. Dil’s was a life of immense struggle and his poetry made him a legend well within his lifetime. His works include three collections of poetry, Satluj di Hava (The Satluj Breeze), Bahut Saare Suraj (A Million Suns) and Naaglok (City of Snakes); an autobiography called Dastaan; and a narrative long poem called Billa Aj Phir Aaya (Billa Visited Again Today).