The entire Punjabi literary world plunged into grief when the news of the death of the legendary playwright and thespian, Dr Harcharan Singh, in a hospital this morning reached it.The entire Punjabi literary world plunged into grief when the news of the death of the legendary playwright and thespian, Dr Harcharan Singh, in a hospital this morning reached it.
An epoch-making actor who actively participated in theatre and literary activities even at the age of 91, Dr Harcharan Singh was a pioneer in the propagation of Punjabi theatre.
Born on December 10, 1914, at Chakk number 576 in Shekupura district (Pakistan), Dr Harcharan Singh emerged on the arts scene in 1937. With his arrival, the Punjabi theatre acquired a new dimension at a time when staging plays on contemporary themes was a nightmare.
Dr Harcharan Singh dared to set a revolutionary trend by introducing the first female actor in his play 'Anjode' staged at the YMCA hall, Lahore, way back in 1942. The female actor playing the protagonist on the stage for the first time was none other than his own wife, Dharam Kaur, who won three medals for her performance later.
There was no looking back for the academician-cum-thespian. He is credited with 52 publications, mostly plays, which are known for both excellence in content and for the treatment of the subject concerned.
Almost all his plays were staged at different venues in India and abroad like 'Maharani Jindan' and 'Chamkaur di Garhi' (shot as a film, ' Sarvans Daniya'). Other notable plays are 'Puniya da Chann', 'Hind di Chadar', 'Jafarnama' and 'Kmagatmaru'.
His adroit skill at scripting the multimedia sight and sound panoramas like '500 years of Sikh history', 'Sher-e-Punjab', 'Guru Manyo Granth' and others and their production embellished by the directorial elegance of his illustrious filmmaker son Harbaksh Latta and his wife Pramjit Latta had won credence for the whole family, especially from viewers in foreign countries.
Dr Harcharan Singh had a long association with Punjabi University, Patiala, from where he retired in 1975. The Punjabi Department of the university held a condolence meeting where Dr Dalip Kaur Tiwana described him as a fatherly figure, who saved Punjabi literature from 'lachchar sabyachar'. Young director Dr Sahib Singh, who had staged most of his plays, paid rich tributes to the thespian. Actor Neelam Man Singh called him a crusader par excellence.