Singh was born in a village called Khiala Kalan in the East Punjabi city of Mansa. Born in 1991, he finished his tenth from Baba Jogi Peer Public Senior Secondary School and then graduated from a nearby college. He then started working as a primary school teacher in a government school. His father was a vet. His elder sister and mother are homemakers.
“On the side, I had this passion,” he adds. Then he relates his creative journey as follows: “My home had this environment. My father was fond of reading and writing. We had a library at home. Some of it is natural. The rest was in the family. I became friends with literature. I wanted to write. I used to paint earlier. I then quit painting. I don’t know where it went. Then I started writing. I read and wrote. Then I became obsessed with writing songs and work in the industry. Then the songwriting took a backseat and gradually I moved towards writing a book Rani Tatt. The book was published. Then my original wish of writing songs for films came true!”
As a child, he used to paint scenes from nature, especially trees, until he reached class four or five. Singh graduated in English Literature, Political Science and History from Guru Nanak College, Budhalada.
He started writing songs in the industry. But people discovered him through his bestselling book.
“Amrinder Gill’s film was due to release,” he explains. Amrinder Gill is an actor, singer and film producer who has made films like Lahoriye and Angrej.
“They got me to write the songs of the film Sarvann in 2016. I wrote the song ‘Rajya’ for it. Then the film Lahoriye was due to release. I wrote the song ‘Paani Ravi Da,’ ‘Gutt ch Lahore’ and ‘Mitti Da Putla’. And then films continued coming by. I also wrote the song ‘Kali Jota’ by Ammy Virk. Then I wrote the song ‘Laung Laachi’ for the film with the same name. “
He writes mostly in Punjabi but occasionally in Hindi as well.
Singh is now in talks with filmmakers in Bollywood and wants to switch over.
“No matter how passionate you are about your work, a job binds you down,” he says. “I often feel that I get very little time to write. But I write dialogues, poetry and other things. I will extend my writing in Bombay. But I will also continue writing books.”
“Punjabi cannot die while we have Guru Granth Sahab and Heer. It is just that the connection is weakening – but not dying!”
Had he ever, in his wildest dreams, imagined that Laung Laachi would be such a hit?
“We had some idea but not this much,” he confesses. “This song had been written three or four years ago and one or two people in the industry had rejected it as well. The team of Amrinder and Ainnie Virk – all of them had heard the song from me or my friends. They called me out of the blue. They said they want this song and wanted to name the film after it too. I said that I had no objection. The girl sang it very well. Basically, she is from Kashmir – Mannat Noor. It was also shot very beautifully. Everything came together very well.”
‘Laung Laachi’ was a huge success in Punjab, Bihar, Gujarat, and Delhi. It obviously created waves on this side of the border, too, in Pakistan.
“I had certain words in my mind,” says Singh. “For example ‘sandali’. I had been meaning to write a song on the word. I was very conscious. It’s not like an idea came to me in full form or I suddenly came up with the idea. Sandali is an old word but I wanted to use it differently. It is beautiful and feminine. The entire song came to me gradually.”
“When you use a word in the verse, it also has a symbolic meaning,” he says. “Sandal is a color – the aura, and purity of the Sandalwood tree. This doesn’t have just one meaning. Sandali is an orange or red color. One can also call something scented or beautiful ‘sandali’. The intention was to give the song an aesthetic boost. Sometimes we don’t understand a reference but enjoy it nevertheless. So, for instance, some Dharmic texts are not easy to understand but leave us in tears. I chose words by their sound quality. How does it echo? Is it a light or heavy word? What is its texture like – soft or not?”
The composer of the song, Aman, is his friend. He is currently doing a Ph.D. in Musicology from Punjabi University.
Which poets does Harmanjeet admire?
“I follow the flow of literature that came before our times.”
Singh enjoys the poetry of Waris Shah. He loves Heer and considers it supreme. He thinks it is important to read when writing.
Among modern poets, he likes Afzal Sahir. “I sometimes talk to him. I particularly admired his poem called ‘Gallian Babul Walian’ and a lengthy poem about ‘Wand’ (the 1947 Partition).”
His next book is called Sarbat which means “everything” – i.e. whole, holistic. The book is set to feature both poetry and prose.
Singh doesn’t like traveling to big cities, reciting his work to live audiences or meeting people. He likes going to the mountains, though – mostly Himachal.
“I have a spiritual bent,” he says. “I want to do something in the spiritual domain. I want to unite some of the things in my writings. Or write about my experiences or Punjab. Or write about our unity. I feel that a lot of vibrancy has been erased from Punjabi poetry and it has been polished. In my book, I mention the soil and words like ‘torh’ and ‘mitti’. I like these things and want to talk about them. I love ‘roorian’. These things need space too. I use them in my verses.
Does he feel that Punjabi is a dying language?
“No,” says Singh. “It is changing with time. New techniques are developed. Many terms and words are not used over time. We should create new words or join together the older ones. Punjabi cannot die while we have Guru Granth Sahab and Heer. It is just that the connection is weakening but not dying. The basis of Punjabi is very strong and Punjabis don’t need to worry. If you pick up Punjabi books that are 60 years old, you will read about the same problem. Scholars were complaining that Punjabi will be extinct in another ten years. But it has been 70 years and that has not been the case.”
The writer is based in Lahore and tweets as @ammarawrites. Her work may be accessed on www.ammaraahmad.com