Shardha Ram Phillauri (September 1837Singh Bedi, Harmohinder. Shardha Ram Granthawali. Nirmal Publisher. (A three-volume work by the dean and head of the Guru Nanak Dev University Hindi Department.) – 24 June 1881) was an Indian writer, poet and social reformer, known for his contributions to Hindi and Punjabi literature. He is best known for his Hindu arti (religious hymn) Om Jai Jagdish Hare and Bhagyawati, one of the first novels in Hindi. Phillauri has also been called the "father of modern Punjabi prose". Born in Phillaur, he visited cities across Punjab and died in Lahore in 1881. He was proficient in the Punjabi, Hindi, Urdu, and Sanskrit languages.Pall, Sheena and Malhotra, Karamjit K. Two Earliest Novels in the Colonial Punjab: Bhagyavati and Sundari. Academia.edu, 2021. Pages 1–3. Retrieved on 13 May 2026 from: https://www.academia.edu/115286293/Two_Earliest_Novels_in_the_Colonial_Punjab_Bhagyavati_and_Sundari
Early life Shardha Ram was born in September 1837, to a Punjabi Hindu Brahmin family in the town of Phillaur in the Sikh Empire under the reign of Ranjit Singh.Walia, Varinda. "Hindi novel’s first cradle." The Tribune (17 March 2005).Maitray, Mohan. "The creator of Om Jai Jagdish Hare." The Tribune (27 September 1998). His father, Jai Dyalu, was an astrologer. Their gotra was Moudgil. His father was a hereditary priest of the Bhandari Khatris of Phillaur. He did not have any formal education as such. By age ten, he had studied Hindi, Sanskrit, Persian, astrology, and music. He learnt classical Indian music from his father. At Rishikesh he studied the Vedic and Uppanashadic literature of Hinduism. Later, he was also a missionary of traditional Hinduism (Sanatana dharma), with him revering the Vedas, Puranas, and Dharamashastras. He was able to publicly recite the Mahabharata, Ramayana, and Bhagvata Purana by the time he was nineteen.
Career He began working as a translator for the Christian missionaries at the American Presbyterian Mission of Ludhiana, namely Reverend J. Newton, and taught the missionaries the local languages.
At Phillaur, he was commissioned by the British to write works, such as the Sikhan de Raj di Vithya in 1865. In his books, Shardha Ram documented Punjabi culture and language. He later became a Hindu street-preacher. Shardha Ram gave forceful lectures on the Mahabharata, and because of this was charged with conducting propaganda against the British government in 1865. As a result, he was exiled temporarily from his home town, Phillaur. Sharda Ram often visited Amritsar and adjoining Lahore, especially in connection with astrology. During this time, he earned a reputation as an astrologer and wrote several books in Hindi. Between 1867–68, he co-founded alongside Munshi Yamuna Prasad a Hindu school in Ludhiana that taught Sanskrit and Persian. He also founded a Hindu Sabha at Ludhiana to propagate the religion, it was the Hindu Dharm Prakashik Sabha with a printing-press to produce Hindu literature.
Death Shardha Ram died on 24 June 1881, aged 43, at Lahore.
Works In 1886, Sikhan De Raj Di Vithia (Punjabi: The Story of Sikh Rule, first written in 1865) he published, an account of Sikh religion and the rule of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. The last of its three chapters documents Punjabi culture and language, including its customs, usages, and folk songs. The book was often prescribed as a text book.
Shardha Ram has recently been acknowledged as having written the first novel in Hindi.Previously, Lala Sri Niwas was credited with this achievement; his Pariksha Guru was written in 1902. Walia, Varinda. "Hindi novel’s first cradle." The Tribune. His novel Bhagyawati, believed to have been written mainly in Amritsar, was first published in 1888, after Shardha Ram's death. The novel's portrayal of women and women's rights was progressive for its day. Work Year Language Description References Sikhan De Raj Di Vithia (The Story of Sikh Rule) 1865Punjabi The book is an account of Sikh religion and the rule of Maharaja Ranjit Singh.Sisir Kumar Das. A History of Indian Literature, p. 540. Sahitya Akademi (1991), . The last of its three chapters documents Punjabi culture and language, including its customs, usages, and folk songs. The book was often prescribed as a text book.Dharm Kasauti1874UrduSatya Dharm Muktawali1875UrduDharm Samvad1876Urdu Punjabi Batcheet 1876PunjabiThis book was specifically written to help the British understand the local dialect. It may have been the first book transliterated into Roman script from Gurmukhi script. The study of this was a requirement for admission into the administrative services. The book is taught to this day at schools affiliated with the Punjab School Education Board (PSEB) Mohali.Bhagyawati1877Hindi This book is believed to be the first novel in Hindi.Om Jai Jagdish Hare1870sPunjabiTranslated in Punjabi the first time Shatopadesh1886HindiPublished posthumously. Satyamrit PravahaUnknownBijmantraUnknownRamlakamdhenuUnknown
Notes and references
Further reading Singh Bedi, Harmohinder. Shardha Ram Granthawali. Nirmal Publisher. (A three-volume work by the dean and head of the Guru Nanak Dev University Hindi Department.)
External links Painting of Shardha Ram Phillauri.