Divine Artist Sobha Singh
The saintly Artist who painted the Divine.
29 November 1901 AD, to 22 August 1986 AD.
In this world, renowned artists are there, but Sobha Singh was a painter with difference. Once he attained the elevated level, he spent his whole life painting the Gurus, avatars, and prophets. His work was his deep meditation on his subject - mostly some Guru. He spent his life like a recluse. He was a God-oriented, saintly person, and a role model not only in the Sikh world, but also for every human being. This write-up throws a light as to what a Sikh , particularly an artist, should be.
The renowned artist enriched the world with the object of inspiration - marvelous paintings of the Gurus, Avatars, and prophets. In the Sikh world, he held a unique distinction of painting the Gurus, and these paintings were considered to be the standard work for others to follow.
Ruby in Rags [Gudri da laal]
A usual boy from a mediocre family, educated up to 5th grade, became a widely known artist-painter, and a highly learned person. He was a realistic Master-Painter. In the months of November and December 2001, his 100th birthday was celebrated at the public and government levels at Andretta, leading towns of the Punjab, Delhi and at other important cities as well as towns in and outside India. In the USA, seminars and talks were held at about half a dozen places. The Government of India issued a stamp bearing his self-portrait.Who knew, he was a ruby in rags!
Dar ji
Dar ji was a tall, fair colored, handsome person with flowing white beard and brushed back white hair. He wore the clothes of light natural color. When going out, he would wrap him with a pashmino shawl, and kept with him a slim document case. He was always smiling, and walked with a limp but long strides. He personally attended his visitors.Out of reverence, most of visitors after touching his feet, preferred to sit on the thick carpet on the floor. His art gallery was next to his bedroom and the doors of his room cum studio and gallery opened into a semicircular verandah to the east, which had a large cage of twittering parakeets (budgerigars - small parrots). The verandah faced the snow-covered Dhauladhar mountains. Darji would sit there in the cool of the early morning to mingle with the dawn and enjoy the rising sun.
Room of the Artist
His room had a spiritual aura. On entering it, the mind calmed down, and peace manifested. He lived an organized, ethical and simple life of a hermit. Out of his love and respect, everyone addressed him `Darji' - Respected Sir. His room used to be meticulously clean, and set with an artistic taste. Decoration pieces, books, and other items were aesthetically arranged. His paintings graced the walls of his studio cum bedroom. Fresh flowers beautified the windowsills. The easel of the artist was set between the headboard of his bed and an artistically designed window on the west.Birth He was very soft spoken, calm, patient, understanding and compassionate. He was born on 29 November 1901, Wednesday, at Sri Hargobindpur in District Gurdaspur, Punjab, to his mother Achhran and father Deva Singh. He lost his mother when four and had a very trying childhood under the strict discipline of his father who was a retired draftsman from army. He was brought up mainly by his elder sister Lachhmi. Circumstances did not permit him to cross even the middle school. He cleared 5th grade, entered the 6th, and could not go further. But he became a highly learned person.ArtistRoaming on the banks of the river Beas at Sri Hargobindpur - his birth town, drawing figures with fingers and sticks on the sand, and carving sand stones with a piece of tin or a crude knife, he came up to sketching and sculpting the faces of his classmates. He picked up the scale drawing from Mangal Singh, husband of his sister Lachhmi. He was in service at Amritsar. Sobha Singh learned a bit more from a couple of art and craft schools. His one principal encouraged him to paint portraits.He would offend nobody, but would take into the fold of his friendship only the ethical people with high thinking. He was a teetotaler, vegetarian, very selective and frugal eater, and was fond of the sugary things.
Army
In 1919 AD, he joined army as a draftsman and went to Basra-Baghdad. There, Colonel Glover and some other Europeans had the hobby of painting. He watched them painting with open eyes and critical mind, and became expert in the color-mixing and painting techniques. Colonel Glover, as well, polished his English.Marriage
On coming back from Baghdad, he married Inder Kaur. Whatever amount he had been sending to his sister from overseas, she had not saved anything out of it for him. They had a real hard beginning due to the stringency of money.Studio
After returning to India, he set up his studio at Amritsar. After a while, the studio moved from Bazar Mai Sewan close to Jallianwala Bagh at Amritsar, Punjab. Nanak Singh, who became a well-known Punjabi writer: novelist, was his bosom friend. Sardar Gurbux Singh, editor Preet-Lari, a distinguished Punjabi writer, was their contemporary.To avoid stagnation, as well to keep on evolving, he moved on in search of wider fields for his work. Wherever he went, in a short time he became popular and an important social figure. His charming personality, humility, wisdom and sincerity, besides his superb painting, made him a distinguished person. Anyone, who came in his contact once, was his fan forever.
Right from his early days, Darji loved visiting the mountains beyond Pathankot. Usually, Nanak Singh accompanied him on his such forays.
Preet Nagar
When he was on move, he had a short stay of about 3 years at Prit Nagar, a development close to Amritsar. Here, he had association with Gurbux Singh and Nanak Singh.Lahore
From Preet Nagar, Amritsar, he moved to Lahore. In a short time, he became a well established artist and an important person in the society. He did not forget his friends at Amritsar, and kept visiting the mountains with them.From Lahore he moved to Delhi.
Delhi
At Delhi, the artist had his studio in Cannaught Place. At that time it was isolated, calm and quiet place with small hills in the vicinity. Colonel Tait, an officer in the Railway Publicity Department, was an art lover, and he became a devoted friend of Darji. The artist stayed at Delhi for twelve years, in the full bloom of his youth, and became a central figure in the social gatherings of importance.Occasionally, he would sit at his easel even for 18 to 20 hours. He did the first painting of Sohani-Mahiwal at Delhi. It gave him an instant fame.
Andretta
This village is about 12 miles from Palampur, in the District Kangra, in Himachal Pradesh, India. It is located in the charming Kangra valley.He was possessed by the desire to settle somewhere away from the rush of a town, in the solitude of nature. Nohra Richards, mother of the Punjabi drama, who lived at Andretta, became a deciding factor and Darji went to this village in 1947, shortly after the partition of India.
He was visiting Lahore from Delhi. On the partition of India, the town got engulfed by the communal riots. He sent his wife to his friend Mr. Mehta of the Mehta Printing Press at Delhi, and himself left for Andretta. All his previous paintings still lying at Lahore, were lost to the fire of raging riots.
This small village became his home, and he built his house on its outskirts. In the heart of the pine-forest, besides a creek, on the hill nearby, he built a small cottage as a retreat for his occasional introspection. The visiting thinkers would go there to enjoy the solitude and to be with the nature.No army top brass, Chief Minister, Governor, or any other important person, considered his or her visit to Himachal complete without meeting him and seeing his gallery. He had almost a continuous flow of visitors, especially on the weekends. A metalled road was laid down from Palampur to this village for his and the convenience of visitors.
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