Kanwar Ram Sahib

A commemorative postage stamp on Bhagat Kanwar Ram, an Indian Sindhi singer and Sufi poet :

Issued by India

Issued on Apr 26, 2010

Issued for : India Post is happy to issue a commemorative postage stamp on Kanwar Ram Sahib.

Credits :
Stamp & FDC, Cancellation : Alka Sharma

Type : Stamp, Mint condition

Colour : Multi colour

Denomination : 500 Paise

Stamps Printed : 0.4 Million

Printing Process : Wet–offset

Printer : India Security Press, Nasik

Name : Kanwar Ram

Born on Apr 13, 1885 at Jarwar, Sukkur, Sindh, British India [now in Pakistan]

Died on Oct 31, 1939  at Sukkur, Sindh, British India [now in Pakistan]

About : 

• Kanwar Ram Sahib was born in April 1885 in a small village Jarwar of Sukkur District in Sindh (now in Pakistan) to devout and pious parents. His name Kanwar Ram, in Sindhi denotes ‘LOTUS’.
• Kanwar Ram Sahib went on to become a luminary of Sindhi people. He advocated peace, nonviolence and communal harmony. He was endowed with a divine voice which he effectively adopted for “Bhagat“, a folk-art form of storytelling, with a fusion of song, dance and drama. He radicalized devotional singing and gave a new thrust to Sindhi Sufi lyrical folk music. His divine message of love, unity and peace touched the souls of countless people irrespective of caste, color, creed and religions. His was a universal message of love and peace.
• A pious and humble man, he loved the poor and the destitute. He believed that God existed in the poor and down-trodden. People used to offer a lot of money and jewels while he sang, but he distributed all the offerings he received from the devotees to the poor, needy destitute and disabled people. For his own upkeep he sold the cooked grams. He lived a simple life, generally sleeping on the ground on coarse sheet of cloth.
• An integral part of Kanwar Ram Sahib‘s religious life was his love for music and singing. He mediated often. At times, he would spend several days in seclusion and mediate. During that period he would go into a trance, forgetting his surroundings, and tears would flow from his eyes.
• He was a disciple of Sant Satramdas. He put Sindh on the Multi-lingual music scene. People were so moved by his melodious voice that a famous professional singer from Kolkata came all the way to Sindh to hear his ‘Aalap‘ of Sindhi Lolhi (Lullaby). What he sang has come down to people of Sindh as a priceless heritage that lives in their hearts and minds.
• He always spoke the truth and inspired people to speak it too as he believed that if a person is honest to himself and to society, he can achieve success in his work and can get closer to the Almighty. He brought Sindhi Hindus & Muslims together and opposed the British Rule. He was assassinated on 31^st October 1939 inside a train compartment at RUK Railway Station. Many heart-rending elegies were composed as a tribute to this saint martyred to the cause of freedom.
• Text : Based on material provided by the proponent.