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{{EngvarB|date=August 2016}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2015}}
{{Infobox writer
| name = Khuswant Singh
| birth_name = Khushal Singh
| image = Khushwantsingh.jpg
| image_size = 200px
| caption = Khushwant Singh at a reading in New Delhi
| birth_date = {{Birth date |df=yes|1915|2|2}}
| birth_place = [[Hadali]], [[Punjab Province (British India)|Punjab Province]], [[British Raj|British India]] (now in [[Punjab, Pakistan|Punjab]], Pakistan)
| death_date = {{Death date and age|df=yes|2014|3|20|1915|2|2}}
| death_place = [[New Delhi]], India
| nationality = Indian
| alma_mater = [[Government College University, Lahore|Government College, Lahore]] (B.A.) [[University of London]] (LL.B.)
| other_names =
| known_for =
| occupation = Lawyer, journalist, diplomat, writer, politician
| relatives = [[Sobha Singh (builder)|Sir Sobha Singh]] (father)
}}

'''Khushwant Singh''' (born '''Khushal Singh''', 2 February 1915 – 20 March 2014) was an Indian author, lawyer, diplomat, journalist and politician. His experience in the 1947 [[Partition of India]] inspired him to write ''[[Train to Pakistan]]'' in 1956 (made into [[Train to Pakistan (film)|film]] in 1998), which became his most well-known novel.<ref name=sengupta>{{cite news|last1=Sengupta|first1=Somini|title=Khushwant Singh, provocative Indian journalist, dies at 99|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/21/world/asia/khushwant-singh-provocative-indian-journalist-dies-at-99.html|access-date=25 February 2018|work=The New York Times|date=20 March 2014}}</ref><ref name="dna">{{cite news|last1=Subramonian|first1=Surabhi|title=India's very own literary genius Khushwant Singh passes away, read his story|url=http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report-india-s-very-own-literary-genius-khushwant-singh-passes-away-read-his-story-1970779|access-date=7 May 2015|work=dna|publisher=Diligent Media Corporation Ltd.|date=20 March 2014}}</ref>

Born in Punjab, Khushwant Singh was educated in [[New Delhi|Modern School, New Delhi]], [[St. Stephen's College, Delhi|St. Stephen's College]], and graduated from [[Government College University, Lahore|Government College, Lahore]]. He studied at [[King's College London]] and was awarded [[LL.B.]] from [[University of London]]. He was [[called to the bar]] at the London [[Inner Temple]]. After working as a lawyer in [[Lahore High Court]] for eight years, he joined the [[Indian Foreign Service]] upon the [[Independence of India|Independence of India from British Empire in 1947]]. He was appointed journalist in the [[All India Radio]] in 1951, and then moved to the Department of Mass Communications of [[UNESCO]] at Paris in 1956. These last two careers encouraged him to pursue a literary career. As a writer, he was best known for his trenchant secularism,<ref name=timesofindia>{{cite news|last=TNN|title=Khushwant Singh, journalist and writer, dies at 99|url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Khushwant-Singh-journalist-and-writer-dies-at-99/articleshow/32352917.cms|access-date=21 March 2014|newspaper=The Times of India|date=20 March 2014}}</ref> humour, sarcasm and an abiding love of poetry. His comparisons of social and behavioural characteristics of Westerners and Indians are laced with acid wit. He served as the editor of several literary and news magazines, as well as two newspapers, through the 1970s and 1980s. Between 1980-1986 he served as [[Member of parliament, Rajya Sabha|Member of Parliament in Rajya Sabha]], the upper house of the [[Indian Parliament|Parliament of India]].

Khushwant Singh was awarded the [[Padma Bhushan]] in 1974;<ref name="Padma Awards">{{cite web|url=http://mha.nic.in/sites/upload_files/mha/files/LST-PDAWD-2013.pdf |title=Padma Awards |publisher=Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India |year=2015 |access-date=July 21, 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151015193758/http://mha.nic.in/sites/upload_files/mha/files/LST-PDAWD-2013.pdf |archive-date=15 October 2015 }}</ref> however, he returned the award in 1984 in protest against [[Operation Blue Star]] in which the [[Indian Army]] raided [[Amritsar]]. In 2007 he was awarded the [[Padma Vibhushan]], the second-highest civilian award in India.<ref>{{cite news|last1=TNT|title=Those who said no to top awards|url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/sunday-times/deep-focus/Those-who-said-no-to-top-awards/articleshow/2714586.cms|access-date=7 May 2015|work=The Times of India|date=28 January 2008}}</ref>

==Early life==
Khushwant Singh was born in [[Hadali]], [[Khushab District]], [[Punjab (British India)|Punjab]] (which now lies in Pakistan), in a [[Sikh]] family. He was the younger son of [[Sobha Singh (builder)|Sir Sobha Singh]], who later witnessed against Bhagat Singh, and Veeran Bai. Births and deaths were not recorded in his time, and for him his father simply made up 2 February 1915 for his school enrollment at [[Modern School, New Delhi]].<ref name=rahul>{{cite book|last1=Singh|first1=Rahul|editor1-last=Dharker|editor1-first=Anil|title=Icons: Men & Women Who Shaped Today's India|date=2008|publisher=Lotus Collection, an imprint of Roli Books|location=New Delhi|isbn=978-81-7436-612-2|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sNFbBAAAQBAJ&q=khushwant+singh+15+august+1915&pg=PT94|chapter=The Man in the Light Bulb: Khushwant Singh}}</ref> But his grandmother Lakshmi Devi asserted that he was born in August, so he later set the date for himself as 15 August.<ref name=sengupta/> Sobha Singh was a prominent builder in [[Lutyens' Delhi]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=Singh|first1=Ranjit|title=Sikh Achievers|year=2008|publisher=Hemkunt Publishers|location=New Delhi|isbn=978-8-17-01036-53|page=168|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qfuDnpVlmlcC}}</ref> His uncle [[Sardar Ujjal Singh]] (1895–1983) was previously [[List of governors of Punjab, India|Governor of Punjab]] and [[List of governors of Tamil Nadu|Tamil Nadu]].

His birth name, given by his grandmother, was Khushal Singh (meaning "Prosperous Lion"). He was called by a pet name "Shalee". At school his name earned him ridicule as other boys would mock him with an expression, "Shalee Shoolee, Bagh dee Moolee" (meaning, "This shalee or shoolee is the radish of some garden.") He chose Khushwant so that it rhymes with his elder brother's name Bhagwant.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Singh|first1=Khushwant|title=The Kh Factor|url=http://www.outlookindia.com/article/the-kh-factor/210867|access-date=7 May 2015|work=Outlook|date=19 February 2001}}</ref> He declared that his new name was "self-manufactured and meaningless". But he later discovered that there was a Hindu physician with the same name, and the number subsequently increased.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Singh|first1=Khushwant|title=DON'T WORRY, BE HAPPY|url=http://www.telegraphindia.com/1061125/asp/opinion/story_7045213.asp|access-date=7 May 2015|work=The Telegraph|date=25 November 2006}}</ref>

He entered Delhi Modern School in 1920 and studied there till 1930. There he met his future wife, Kanwal Malik, one year his junior.<ref name=rahul/> He studied Intermediate of Arts at [[St. Stephen's College, Delhi|St. Stephen's College]] in [[Delhi]] during 1930-1932.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Singh|first=Khushwant|title=The Fiction of St. Stephen's|date=2000|publisher=Ravi Dayal Publisher|isbn=81-7530-030-2 |editor=Chatterji, Lola |location=New Delhi|pages=v-vi|chapter=Forward|oclc=45799950}}</ref> He pursued higher education at [[Government College University, Lahore|Government College, Lahore]], in 1932,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.tribuneindia.com/2014/20140321/khushwant.htm|title=The Tribune, Chandigarh, India - Khushwant Singh 1915 — 2014 Selected Columns|website=tribuneindia.com|access-date=2020-03-01}}</ref> and got his BA in 1934 by a "[[third-class degree]]".<ref>{{Cite news|last=Massey|first=Reginald|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/mar/20/khushwant-singh|title=Khushwant Singh obituary|date=2014-03-20|work=The Guardian|access-date=2020-03-01|language=en-GB|issn=0261-3077}}</ref> Then he went to [[King's College London]] to study law, and was awarded an LL.B. from [[University of London]] in 1938. He was subsequently [[called to the bar]] at the London [[Inner Temple]].<ref>Vinita Rani, "[http://mjpru.ac.in/PhdDetails/PhdEnglish/PhdData/Vinita.doc Style and Structure in the Short Stories of Khushwant Singh. A Critical Study.]", PhD Thesis</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Singh|first1=Khuswant|editor1-last=Bhattacharjea|editor1-first=Aditya|editor2-last=Chatterji|editor2-first=Lola|title=The Fiction of St. Stephen's|year=2000|publisher=Ravi Dayal Publisher|location=New Delhi|isbn=978-8-17-53003-09|page=v|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2ai6XVABXdkC}}</ref><ref name="king's" />

==Career==
Khushwant Singh started his professional career as a practicing lawyer in 1926
at Lahore in Chamber of [[Manzur Qadir]] and Ijaz Husain Batalvi. He worked at Lahore Court for eight years where there are so many of his friends and fans including [[Akhtar Aly Kureshy]] Advocate and Raja Muhammad Arif Advocate. In 1947 he entered [[Indian Foreign Service]] for the newly independent India. He started as Information Officer of the Government of India in Toronto, Canada. He was Press Attaché and Public Officer for the Indian High Commission for four years in London and Ottawa. In 1951 he joined the All India Radio as a journalist. Between 1954 and 1956 he worked in Department of Mass Communication of the UNESCO at Paris.<ref name=Indianexpress>{{cite news|last=Press Trust of India|title=Khushwant Singh could easily switch roles from author to commentator and journalist|url=http://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-others/khushwant-singh-a-prolific-writer-who-left-a-mark-on-readers/|access-date=21 March 2014|newspaper=The Indian Express|date=20 March 2014}}</ref><ref name=indiatiday14>{{cite web|title=Life and times of Khushwant Singh l|url=http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/khushwant-singh-timeline/1/350342.htm|publisher=India Today|access-date=21 March 2014}}</ref> From 1956 he turned to editorial services. He founded and edited ''Yojana'',<ref>{{cite web | url=http://yojana.gov.in/ | title=Yojana | access-date=18 September 2013}}</ref> an Indian government journal in 1951 -1953; ''[[The Illustrated Weekly of India]]'', a newsweekly;''[[The National Herald (India)|The National Herald]]''.<ref name="pti">{{cite news|last1=PTI|title=Khushwant Singh, renowned author and journalist, passes away|access-date=21 March 2016|work=The Economic Times|publisher=Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd.|url=http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2014-03-20/news/48401954_1_khushwant-singh-hadali-rahul-singh|date=20 March 2014}}</ref><ref name="libr">{{cite news|title=Khushwant Singh, 1915-|url=https://www.loc.gov/acq/ovop/delhi/salrp/khushwantsingh.html|access-date=21 March 2016|work=The South Asian Literary Recording Project|publisher=The Library of Congress (New Delhi)|year=2016}}</ref> He was also appointed as editor of [[Hindustan Times]] on [[Indira Gandhi|Indira Gandhi's]] personal recommendation.<ref>{{Cite web|title=History repeating at Shobhana Bhartia's Hindustan Times|url=https://caravanmagazine.in/media/history-repeating-shobhana-bhartias-hindustan-times|last=Dev|first=Atul|website=The Caravan|language=en|access-date=2020-05-03}}</ref>

During his tenure, ''The Illustrated Weekly'' became India's pre-eminent newsweekly, with its circulation raising from 65,000 to 400,000.<ref name="NandiniMehta">{{cite book|title=Not a Nice Man To Know|chapter=Farewell to the Illustrated Weekly|editor=Nandini Mehta|author=Khushwant Singh|publisher=[[Penguin Books]]|year=1993|page=8|quote=On 25 July 1978, one week before he was to retire, he was abruptly asked to leave with immediate effect. Khushwant quietly got up, collected his umbrella, and without a word to his staff, left the office where he had worked for nine years, raising the ''Illustrated Weekly''{{'s}} circulation from 65,000 to 400,000. The new editor was installed the same day, and ordered by the ''Weekly''{{'s}} management to kill the "Farewell" column.}}</ref> After working for nine years in the weekly, on 25 July 1978, a week before he was to retire, the management asked Singh to leave "with immediate effect".<ref name="NandiniMehta" /> A new editor was installed the same day.<ref name="NandiniMehta" /> After Singh's departure, the weekly suffered a huge drop in readership.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sepiamutiny.com/sepia/archives/003653.html |title=Khushwant Singh's Journalism: The Illustrated Weekly of India |publisher=Sepiamutiny.com |access-date=9 August 2009}}</ref> In 2016 Khushwant Singh enters [[Limca Book of Records]] as a tribute.<ref>{{cite web|title=TRIBUTE - Khushwant Singh|url=http://www.limcabookofrecords.in/record-detail.aspx?rid=1079|publisher=Limca Book of Records|access-date=20 June 2016}}</ref>

==Politics==


From 1981 to 1986, Singh was a member of [[Rajya Sabha]], the upper house of the Indian parliament. He was awarded the [[Padma Bhushan]] in 1974 for service to his country. In 1984, he returned the award in protest against [[Operation Blue Star|the siege of the Golden Temple]] by the Indian Army.<ref>{{cite web
|url = http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/2714615.cms
|title = Those who said no to top awards
|work = The Times of India
|date = 20 January 2008
|access-date = 5 November 2008
}}</ref> In 2007, the Indian government awarded Khushwant Singh the [[Padma Vibhushan]].

As a public figure, khushwant Singh was accused of favouring the ruling [[Indian National Congress|Congress party]], especially during the reign of [[Indira Gandhi]]. When [[Indira Gandhi]] announced [[The Emergency (India)|nation-wide-emergency]] , he openly supported it and was derisively called an 'establishment liberal'.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Why I Supported Emergency {{!}} Outlook India Magazine|url=https://www.outlookindia.com/magazine/story/why-i-supported-emergency/209636|website=Outlook India |access-date=2020-05-03}}</ref>

Singh's faith in the Indian political system was shaken by the [[anti-Sikh riots]] that followed [[Assassination of Indira Gandhi|Indira Gandhi's assassination]], in which major Congress politicians are alleged to be involved; but he remained resolutely positive on the promise of Indian democracy<ref>Singh, Khushwant, "Oh, That Other Hindu Riot of Passage," Outlook Magazine, November, 07, 2004, available at [http://www.countercurrents.org/comm-khushwantsing071104.htm]</ref> and worked via [[Citizen's Justice Committee]] floated by [[H. S. Phoolka]] who is a senior advocate of [[Delhi High Court]].

Singh was a votary of greater diplomatic relations with [[Israel]] at a time when India did not want to displease [[Arab]] nations where thousands of Indians found employment. He visited Israel in the 1970s and was impressed by its progress.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.tribuneindia.com/2003/20031018/windows/above.htm | title=THIS ABOVE ALL : When Israel was a distant dream | work=The Tribune | date=18 October 2003 | access-date=27 March 2014 | author=Singh, Khushwant}}</ref>

==Personal life==

Khushwant Singh was married to Kanwal Malik. Malik was his childhood friend who had moved to [[London]] earlier. They met again when he studied law at King's College London, and soon got married.<ref name=dna/> They were married in Delhi, with [[Chetan Anand (director)|Chetan Anand]] and Iqbal Singh as the only invitees.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Singh|first=Khushwant|title=Khushwant Singh's Big Book of Malice|date=2000|publisher=Penguin Books|isbn=0-14-029832-0|location=New Delhi|pages=126|oclc=45420301}}</ref> [[Muhammad Ali Jinnah]] also attended the formal service.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Singh|first=Khushwant|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Qr1lAAAAMAAJ|title=Khushwant Singh: An Icon of Our Age|date=2000|publisher=Jiya Prakashan|pages=79|language=en}}</ref> They had a son, named Rahul Singh, and a daughter, named Mala. His wife predeceased him in 2001.<ref name="pti"/> Actress [[Amrita Singh]] is the daughter of his brother Daljit Singh's son - Shavinder Singh and Rukhsana Sultana. He stayed in "Sujan Singh Park", near [[Khan Market]] New Delhi, Delhi's first apartment complex, built by his father in 1945, and named after his grandfather.<ref>{{cite news|title=Making history with brick and mortar |url=http://www.hindustantimes.com/Making-history-with-brick-and-mortar/Article1-745801.aspx |archive-url=https://archive.today/20121205200651/http://www.hindustantimes.com/Making-history-with-brick-and-mortar/Article1-745801.aspx |url-status=dead |archive-date=5 December 2012 |publisher=[[Hindustan Times]] |date=15 September 2011 }}</ref> His grandniece [[Tisca Chopra]] is a noted TV and film actress.<ref>{{cite web|title=Grandniece Tisca Chopra remembers granduncle Khushwant Singh|url=http://news.biharprabha.com/2014/03/grandniece-tisca-chopra-remembers-granduncle-khushwant-singh/|work=IANS|publisher=news.biharprabha.com|access-date=20 March 2014}}</ref>

===Religious belief===

Singh was a self-proclaimed agnostic, as the title of is 2011 book ''Agnostic Khushwant: There is no God'' explicitly revealed. He was particularly against [[organised religion]]. He was evidently inclined towards atheism, as he said, "One can be a saintly person without believing in God and a detestable villain believing in him. In my personalised religion, There Is No God!"<ref>{{cite web|last=Nayar|first=Aruti|title=Staring into The Abyss: Khushwant Singh's Personal Struggles With Organized Religion|url=http://www.sikhchic.com/books/staring_into_the_abyss_khushwant_singhs_personal_struggles_with_organized_religion|work=sikhchic.com|access-date=21 March 2014}}</ref> He also once said, "I don't believe in rebirth or in reincarnation, in the day of judgement or in heaven or hell. I accept the finality of death."<ref>{{cite web|last=Khuswant|first=Singh|title=How To Live & Die|url=http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?266528|work=Outlook|date=16 August 2010}}</ref> His last book ''The Good, The Bad and The Ridiculous'' was published in October 2013, following which he retired from writing.<ref name="bp">{{cite web|title=Veteran Writer and Novelist Khushwant Singh passes away at 99|url=http://news.biharprabha.com/2014/03/veteran-writer-and-novelist-khushwant-singh-passes-away-at-99/|publisher=news.biharprabha.com|access-date=20 March 2014}}</ref> The book was his continued critique of religion and especially its practice in India, including the critique of the clergy and priests. It earned a lot of acclaim in India.<ref>{{cite web|last=Tiwary|first=Akash|title=Khushwant Singh's demise bereaves India of its most articulate agnostic|url=https://townpost.in/2014/03/21/khushwant-singhs-demise-bereaves-india-of-its-most-articulate-agnostic/|work=The Town Post|access-date=21 March 2014|date=21 March 2014}}</ref>

===Death===
Singh died of natural causes on 20 March 2014 at his [[Delhi]] residence, at the age of 99. His death was mourned by many including the [[President of India|President]], [[Vice President of India|Vice-President]] and [[Prime Minister of India]].<ref>{{cite web|title=President, Prime Minister of India condole Khushwant Singh's Demise|url=http://news.biharprabha.com/2014/03/president-prime-minister-of-india-condole-khushwant-singhs-demise/|work=IANS|publisher=news.biharprabha.com|access-date=20 March 2014}}</ref> He was cremated at Lodhi Crematorium in Delhi at 4 in the afternoon of the same day.<ref name=timesofindia/> During his lifetime, Khushwant Singh was keen on burial because he believed that with a burial we give back to the earth what we have taken. He had requested the management of the [[Baháʼí Faith]] if he could be buried in their cemetery. After initial agreement, they had proposed some conditions which were unacceptable to Singh, and hence the idea was later abandoned.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?266528 | title=Excerpt: How To Live & Die | publisher=Outlook India | access-date=23 March 2014}}</ref> He was born in [[Hadali]], [[Khushab District]] in the [[Punjab, Pakistan|Punjab Province]] of modern Pakistan, in 1915. According to his wishes, some of his ashes were brought and scattered in [[Hadali]].<ref>[https://www.dawn.com/news/1101851/train-to-pakistan-2014 Train to Pakistan : 2014]</ref>

In 1943 he had already written his own obituary, included in his collection of short stories ''Posthumous.'' Under the headline "Sardar Khushwant Singh Dead", the text reads:

{{quote|We regret to announce the sudden death of Sardar Khushwant Singh at 6 pm last evening. He leaves behind a young widow, two infant children and a large number of friends and admirers. Amongst those who called at the late sardar’s residence were the PA to the chief justice, several ministers, and judges of the high court.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Singh|first1=Khushwant|title=How To Live & Die|url=http://www.outlookindia.com/article/how-to-live--die/266528|access-date=7 May 2015|work=Outlook|date=16 October 2010}}</ref>}}

He also prepared an epitaph for himself, which runs:
{{quote|Here lies one who spared neither man nor God; Waste not your tears on him, he was a sod; Writing nasty things he regarded as great fun; Thank the Lord he is dead, this son of a gun.<ref>{{cite news|last1=PTI|title=Here lies one who spared neither man nor God: Khushwant's epitaph for himself|url=http://www.thehindu.com/books/books-authors/here-lies-one-who-spared-neither-man-nor-god-khushwants-epitaph-for-himself/article5810085.ece|access-date=7 May 2015|work=The Hindu|date=20 March 2014}}</ref>}}

He was cremated and his ashes are buried in Hadali school, where a plaque is placed bearing the inscription:
{{quote|IN MEMORY OF SARDAR KHUSHWANT SINGH (1915–2014) A SIKH, A SCHOLAR AND A SON OF HADALI (Punjab) 'This is where my roots are. I have nourished them with tears of nostalgia ...<ref>{{cite news|last1=Masood|first1=Tariq|title=Khushwant Singh: The final homecoming|url=http://tribune.com.pk/story/720360/khushwant-singh-the-final-homecoming/|access-date=7 May 2015|work=Tribune|date=15 June 2014}}</ref>'}}

==Honours and awards==

* [[Rockefeller Grant]], 1966<ref name="king's">{{cite web|title=Khushwant Singh awarded Fellowship|url=http://www.kcl.ac.uk/newsevents/news/newsrecords/2014/January/Khushwant-Singh-awarded-Fellowship.aspx|publisher=King's College London|access-date=21 March 2014}}</ref>
* [[Padma Bhushan]], Government of India (1974) (He returned the decoration in 1984 in protest against the Union government's siege of the Golden Temple, Amritsar)<ref name=indiatiday14/>
* ''Honest Man of the Year'', [[Sulabh International]] (2000)<ref name="libr"/>
* [[Punjab Rattan Award]], [[Government of Punjab, India|The Government of Punjab]] (2006)<ref name=indiatiday14/>
* [[Padma Vibhushan]], Government of India (2007)<ref name=indiatiday14/>
* [[List of Sahitya Akademi fellows|Sahitya Akademi Fellowship]] by Sahitya academy of India (2010)<ref name=mukherjee>{{cite web|last=Mukherjee|first=Abishek|title=Khushwant Singh and the cricket connection|url=http://www.cricketcountry.com/articles/khushwant-singh-and-the-cricket-connection-113816|work=The Cricket Country|access-date=21 March 2014}}</ref>
* 'All-India Minorities Forum Annual Fellowship Award' by [[Uttar Pradesh]] Chief Minister [[Akhilesh Yadav]] (2012)<ref>{{cite news|title=Akhilesh honours Khushwant-Singh|url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Akhilesh-honours-Khushwant-Singh/speednewsbytopic/keyid-1482792.cms|access-date=21 March 2014|newspaper=The Times of India}}</ref>
* Lifetime achievement award by Tata Literature Live! The Mumbai Litfest in 2013<ref name=indiatiday14/>
*[[Fellow of King's College London]] in January 2014<ref name="king's"/>
* 'The Grove Press Award' for the best fiction.

==Works==
{{more citations needed section|date=March 2014}}

===Books===
*''The Mark of Vishnu and Other Stories'', (Short Story) 1950<ref name=OU>{{Cite web | url = http://www.open.ac.uk/researchprojects/makingbritain/content/khushwant-singh | title = Khushwant Singh | publisher = [[Open University]] | access-date = 21 March 2014}}</ref>
*''The History of Sikhs'', 1953
*''[[Train to Pakistan]]'', (Novel) 1956<ref name=OU/>
*''The Voice of God and Other Stories'', (Short Story) 1957<ref name=OU/>
*''I Shall Not Hear the Nightingale'', (Novel) 1959<ref name=OU/>
*''The Sikhs Today'', 1959<ref name=OU/>
*''The Fall of the Kingdom of the Punjab'', 1962<ref name=OU/>
*''A History of the Sikhs'', 1963<ref>{{cite book|last=Singh|first=Khushwant|title=A History of the Sikhs|publisher=[[Princeton University Press]]|year=1963|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-nsGAQAAIAAJ}}</ref>
*''Ranjit Singh: The Maharaja of the Punjab'', 1963<ref name=OU/>
*''Ghadar 1915: India's first armed revolution'', 1966<ref name=OU/>
*''A History of the Sikhs'', 1966 (2nd edition)<ref>{{cite book|last=Singh|first=Khushwant|title=A History of the Sikhs|publisher=[[Princeton University Press]]|year=1966|edition=2|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LHwGAQAAIAAJ}}</ref>
*''A Bride for the Sahib and Other Stories'', (Short Story) 1967<ref name=OU/>
*''Black Jasmine'', (Short Story) 1971<ref name=OU/>
*''Tragedy of Punjab'"
* ''The Collected Stories of Khushwant Singh'', N.p., Ravi Dayal Publisher, 1989
*''[[Delhi: A Novel]]'', (Novel) 1990<ref name=OU/>
*''Not a Nice Man to Know: The Best of Khushwant Singh'', 1993<ref name=OU/>
*''We Indians'', 1993<ref name=OU/>
*''Women and Men in My Life'', 1995<ref name=OU/>
*''Declaring Love in Four Languages,'' by Khushwant Singh and Sharda Kaushik, 1997
*''India: An Introduction,'' by Khushwant Singh
*''[[The Company of Women (Singh novel)|The Company of Women]]'', (Novel) 1999<ref name=OU/>
*''[[Truth, Love and a Little Malice]]'' (an autobiography), 2002
*''[[With Malice towards One and All]]''
*''The End of India'', 2003<ref name=OU/>
*''Burial at the Sea'', 2004<ref name=OU/>
*''Paradise and Other Stories'', 2004<ref name=OU/>
*''A History of the Sikhs: 1469–1838'', 2004<ref>{{cite book|last=Singh|first=Khushwant|title=A History of the Sikhs: 1469–1838|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|year=2004|edition=2, illustrated|pages=434|isbn= 9780195673081|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MD9uAAAAMAAJ|access-date=7 July 2009}}</ref>
*''Death at My Doorstep'', 2005<ref name=OU/>
*''A History of the Sikhs: 1839–2004'', 2005<ref>{{cite book|last=Singh|first=Khushwant|title=A History of the Sikhs: 1839–2004|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|year=2005|edition=2, illustrated|pages=547|isbn= 9780195673098|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lz9uAAAAMAAJ|access-date=7 July 2009}}</ref>
*''The Illustrated History of the Sikhs'', 2006<ref name=OU/>
*''Land of Five Rivers'', 2006, [[Orient Paperbacks]], {{ISBN|978-81-222010-7-9}}
*''Why I Supported the Emergency: Essays and Profiles'', 2009<ref name=OU/>
*''The Sunset Club'', (Novel) 2010
*''Gods and Godmen of India'', 2012 {{ISBN|978-9-350-29244-0}}
*''Agnostic Khushwant: There is no God'', 2012 {{ISBN|978-9-381-43111-5}}
*''The Good, the Bad and the Ridiculous'', 2013 (Co-authored with Humra Qureshi)
*''More Malicious Gossip'' 1989 - Collection of Writings
*''Sex, Scotch & Scholarship,'' 1992 Collection of Writings
*''Big Book of Malice,'' 2000, Collection of Writings
*''Khushwantnama, The Lessons Of My Life,'' 2013
*''The Freethinker's Prayer Book and Some Words To Live By,'' 2012

===Short story===

* ''The Portrait of a Lady''
* ''The Strain''
* ''Success Mantra''
* ''A Love Affair In London''
* ''ना कहू से दोस्‍ती ना कहू से बैर''
* ''The Wog''

===Play===
Television Documentary: Third World—Free Press (also presenter; Third Eye series), 1983 (UK).<ref>{{cite web|title=Third Eye: Third World – Free Press?|url=http://explore.bfi.org.uk/4ce2b6e144baa|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140322030359/http://explore.bfi.org.uk/4ce2b6e144baa|url-status=dead|archive-date=22 March 2014|publisher=BFI|access-date=21 March 2014}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[Karma (story)|"Karma"]], a short story by Khushwant Singh

==Notes==
{{reflist|30em}}

==References==
*Chopra, Radika."[https://web.archive.org/web/20130725091836/http://www.museindia.com/regularcontent.asp?issid=44&id=3520 Social Criticism through Social History in Khushwant Singh's non-fiction]". Muse India Journal. Issue 44. July–August 2012.
*Chopra, Radika. "[http://www.iupindia.in/1306/English%20Studies/Fiction_as_Social_History.html Fiction as Social History:A Study of Khushwant Singh's Novels]". The IUP Journal of English Studies Vol 1. viii, No. 2 June 2013. pp. 59–77.

==External links==
{{commons category}}
{{Wikiquote}}
*{{IMDb name|0802153}}
*{{OL author|4543260A}}
*[http://www.open.ac.uk/researchprojects/makingbritain/content/khushwant-singh Profile] at [[King's College London]]
*[http://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=4089 Essay on Khushwant Singh] on [[The Literary Encyclopedia]]
*[http://www.kamat.com/database/biographies/khushwant_singh.htm Biography: Khushwant Singh]
*[https://www.andrewwhitehead.net/partition-voices-khushwant-singh.html Khushwant Singh talking about Partition and the writing of 'Train to Pakistan']

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