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Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Keki N. Daruwalla, the Indian poet, fiction writer and former senior public servant, died in Delhi on 26 September 2024, aged 87. His career joined a substantial body of English-language writing with decades of service in the Indian Police Service and government.
Who was Keki N. Daruwalla?
Daruwalla was born in Lahore on 24 January 1937. After Partition, his family moved first to Junagadh and later to Rampur. He studied at Government College, Ludhiana, before joining the Uttar Pradesh cadre of the Indian Police Service in 1958. Contemporary reports place him in work connected with Prime Minister Charan Singh and in intelligence roles; he retired in 1995 as chairman of the Joint Intelligence Committee.
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The poetry of Keki N. Daruwalla: A critical study (Indian writers series) | $26.11 | Buy on Amazon |
| 2 |
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Landfall | $35.00 | Buy on Amazon |
| 3 |
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Fire Altar: Poems on the Persians and the Greeks | $9.99 | Buy on Amazon |
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Night river: Poems | $27.19 | Buy on Amazon |
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Naishapur and Babylon: Poems (2005-2017) | $5.99 | Buy on Amazon |
His literary work included poetry, short stories, novels and nonfiction prose. His public-service career and writing were distinct parts of his life; one should not be treated as proof of the other.
What did he write?
Poetry
Daruwalla’s first poetry collection, Under Orion, was published in 1970. His collection The Keeper of the Dead followed in 1982. It received the Sahitya Akademi Award in 1984—the publication and award years are separate milestones.
Landscapes received the Commonwealth Poetry Prize in 1987. Landfall: Poems, published by Speaking Tiger Books in 2023, was identified in contemporary coverage as his final book.
Fiction and nonfiction
Daruwalla also wrote short fiction, novels and nonfiction prose. His work therefore extended beyond the poetry for which he is best known; accounts of his career describe multiple genres rather than a single-book or single-form achievement.
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Recognition and the 2015 award protest
In addition to the Commonwealth Poetry Prize, Daruwalla received the Padma Shri in 2014. In 2015, he returned the Sahitya Akademi Award in protest at what he viewed as the Akademi’s response to violence against writers. In his letter, as reproduced by Writers Workshop India, he said the Akademi had not stood up boldly enough for “freedom of expression,” the rights of marginalised people, and resistance to superstition and intolerance.
How colleagues remembered him
Poet K. Satchidanandan, a friend of Daruwalla, described his influence as a mentor, saying he “must’ve mentored at least three generations.” The Indian Express also reported Daruwalla’s reflections on language in poetry, including his view that he and Kamala Das had used literal textual language because he “didn’t see a way out,” while younger writers might find another approach.
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1Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems2Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches3Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsWhat is established about his death?
Contemporary reports state that Daruwalla died in Delhi on 26 September 2024, aged 87. Those reports establish the date and age; they do not establish a cause of death.
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Rank #4
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