Vir Singh (1872 - 1957), a famous novelist, poet and scholar, was born on 5 December 1872 in
Amritsar,
Punjab. He shot to fame with the publication of Sundri, a landmark novel in modern
Punjabi literature, in 1898.
Bijay Singh and Satwant Kaur, novels, Rana Surat Singh, poem, and three biographies are his most popular works. Bhai Vir Singh founded the Khalsa Tract Society in 1894. A Punjabi weekly called the Khalsa Samachar, was also published in November 1899. He was one of the principal promoters of the Sikh institutions including Chief Khalsa Diwan, Sikh Educational Society and the Punjab and Sind Bank.
Panjab University conferred on him a doctorate in Oriental Learning, and the Sahitya Akademi awarded him its first annual award for outstanding contribution to Punjabi literature. He was also awarded the Padmabhushan.
