CHAPTER :FAMOUS PERSONALITIES OF HARYANA

From the historical period to current Era, Haryana state remained the land of many extraordinary people. Many personalities born in the state who belonged to various fields like history, politics, literature, arts, sports and so on.

Historical Personalities

Harshavardhana

He was born in 590 AD in Thanesar. He was the son of Prabhakara Vardhana. He was the ruler of Thanesar from 606-647 AD. He is considered the last Hindu ruler of the Northern India. He was the patron of many famous scholars and writers. Banabhatta was his court poet who composed Harshacharita which gives an account of Harshas life and deeds. He also wrote three sanskrit plays i.e. Nagananda, Ratnavali, and Priyadarshika. He died in 647 AD.

Anangpal-ll

He was the ruler of Tomar dynasty. His territory was extended from Haryana to Delhi and his capital was Delhi. He made his Tomar region strong and his army disciplined. He established LAL KOT, the very first fort of Delhi.

Surajpal

He is the son of Anangpal II and is known for the construction of Surajkund (Faridabad).

Mahipal

He was the ruler of Delhi and its neighbouring regions and belongs from Tomara dynasty. In 1043 AD, he established his reign over a large territory including Hansi and Thanesar after the death of Masood, successor of Mahmud Ghaznavi. He founded ‘Mahipalpur town in Delhi.

Prithviraj Chauhan

He was born in 1166 AD. He was the Kshatriya ruler of Chahamana (Chauhan) dynasty. He ruled over Ajmer and Delhi (Northern Indian Territory). His period of reign was from 1178 to 1192 AD.

He was known by many other names like Rai Pithora, Prithvi Raj-III, Hindu Samrat and Sapadalaksha. He defeated Muhammad of Ghor in the first battle of Tarain (Karnal) in 1191 AD, but was defeated, and killed by Muhammad of Ghor in the second battle of Tarain in 1192 AD.

Jatwan

He was the commander of Hansi and Hisar. After the second battle of Tarain (1192 AD) he conquered Hansi fort. He was defeated by Qutb-ud-Din Aibak, the commander of Muhammad of Ghor in a battle on the Western Bangar region and was killed.

Hasan Khan Mewati

He was the ruler of Mewat which was under the possession of Lodhi rulers. In 1527 AD, he was defeated by Babur at the Battle of Khanwa where he was killed in 1527 AD and his son Nahar Khan was imprisoned by Babur.

Hemu (Hemchandra)

He was a simple tradesman of Rewari, who was appointed as the Prime Minister of Adil Shah, the successor of Sher Shah Suri. In 1556 AD, after taking control of Delhi and Agra, he assumed the title of Vikramaditya and became the ruler of these regions. But he was defeated by Akbar in the Second

Battle of Panipat in 1556 AD and was killed by Bairam Khan, the regent of Akbar. He was the last Hindu ruler of Delhi and last ‘Vikramaditya.

Gopal Singh

He belonged to Sihi village and was the founder of the Jat principality in Ballabhgarh. After many invasions, the Mughal Faujdar of Faridabad accepted him as the ruler and Chaudhary of Ballabhgarh in 1910 AD.

Political Personalities

Pandit Deen Dayal Sharma

He was born in 1763 AD in Jhajjar, in Haryana. He travelled all over the country for the awakening in Hindu society and for the honour of Hindi language. He was the member of Hindu Mahasabha. He died in 1837 AD.

Sir Shadilal

He was born in 1874 AD at Rewari in a well-off family . He started his career as a lawyer in 1900. He received the title of ‘Rai Bahadur in 1909 by the British Government. He became the member of Punjab legislative Assembly in 1910.

He became the first Indian to be appointed as the first Chief Justice of Punjab High Court in 1913. He became a member of Privy Council, London for 5 years. He died in 1941.

Dr. Sarup Singh

He was born on 9th January, 1917, at Sanghi village in Rohtak. He was a politician and remained on many posts like, a faculty member at Kirori Mai College, Delhi, Vice-Chancellor of

University of Delhi (1971-74), became member of Rajya Sabha from Haryana (1978-1984), appointed as the Governor of Gujarat (1990-1995) and a member of UPSC Board. He died in the year 2003.

Chaudhary Bansilal

He was born on 26th August, 1927 in Golagarh village in Bhiwani district. He is also considered the Architect of Modern Haryana/ He served three times as Chief Minister of Haryana i.e. 1968-75, 1985-87 and 1996-99.

He served as the Defence Minister from December, 1975 to March, 1977 and had a brief period as a Minister without Portfolio in the Union Government in 1975. He also held the Railways and Transport portfolios. Lai was elected to the State Assembly seven times, the first time in 1967.

He set up ‘Haryana Vikas Party’ after parting ways with the Indian National Congress in 1996. He is also known as Iron Man of Haryana.

Om Prakash Jindal

He was born on 7th August, 1930 in Hisar and was popularly known as OP Jindal. He was the founder of Jindal Steel and Power under the flagship of the Jindal Organisation.

For his outstanding contribution to the Indian Steel Industry, he was awarded with ‘Lifetime Achievement Award’ in 2004 by the Bengal Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

He became the Minister of Power in the Government of Haryana and won the Legislative Assembly seat of Haryana three times.

Bhajan Lal

He was born on 6th October, 1930 in Koranwali, Bahawalpur district, now in Punjab (Pakistan). He was a politician and two times Chief Minister of Haryana (June, 1979 to July, 1985 and July, 1991 to May, 1996).

He was the Central point of Haryana politics. He had also served as a Union Cabinet Minister at the Centre, holding the Agriculture and Environments and Forest portfolios during Rajiv Gandhi’s administration. He died on 3rd June, 2011, in Hisar.

Om Prakash Chautala

He was born on 1st January, 1935. He is an Indian politician from the state of Haryana and the leader of the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) political party. Chautala is the son of Chaudhary Devi Lal.

He was the Chief Minister of Haryana from 2nd December, 1989 to 2nd May, 1990, from 12th July, 1990 to 17th July, 1990, again from 22nd March, 1991 to 6th April, 1991 and finally from 24th July, 1999 to 4th March, 2005.

Politically, he had been part of NDA and United National Progressive Alliance at national level.

Bhupender Singh Hooda

He was born on 15th September, 1947 in Sanghi village in Rohtak. He is an Indian politician and leader of the Indian National Congress. He served as the Chief Minister of Haryana from 2005 to 2014.

Sushma Swaraj

She was born on 14th February, 1952 at Ambala Cantt. At the age of 25, she became Haryana s Youngest Cabinet Minister. She is second woman to be India’s External Affairs Minister (at present), first being Indira Gandhi.

She has been elected seven times as a Member of Parliament and three times as a Member of the Legislative Assembly. She became the first women Chief Minister of Delhi and also held the office of Minister of Information and Broadcasting and Minister of Health and Family Welfare.

Manohar Lal Khattar

He was born on 5th May, 1954 in Meham town of Rohtak district. He is a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) politician and the 10th Chief Minister of Haryana. During 2000-2014, Khattar was Organizational General Secretary of the BJP in Haryana.

In 2014, Khattar was nominated as BJPs candidate from Karnal constituency for the Haryana Legislative Assembly election, 2014. He became the BJPs first Chief Minister of Haryana after his swearing-in ceremony on 26th October 2014.

Arvind Kejriwal

He was born on 16th August, 1968 in Siwani, in Bhiwani district. He is an Indian Politician and a former bureaucrat. He is the seventh and current Chief Minister of Delhi.

 

Important Litterateurs

Banabhatta

He was the court poet of Harshavardhana. He wrote ‘Harshacharita in Sanskrit language which is about the Northern India of Harsha Period. It contains information from the period of Pushyabuti clan to the victories of Harsha.

Surdas

He was born in the Sihi village of modern Faridabad in a Brahman clan. Later he shifted to Gaughat which is located on Mathura-Agra road. He composed Sur Saravali, Sahitya Lahari and Sur Sagar, etc. He was the disciple of Sant Haridas. He was the contemporary of Akbar, the Mughal Emperor.

Altaf Husain Hali

He was born in 1837 in Panipat. He created many compositions like Hayat-e-Saadi, Safarnama, Makatib-e-Hali, Makalat-e-Hali, Yadgar-e-Ghalib, Hayat-e-Javed and so on. He got the title of ‘Shamsul Ulema in 1904 by the British Government.

Balmukund Gupt

He was born on 24th November, 1865 in Gudiana village in Jhajjar district of Haryana. He was the famous Hindi Language Litterateur, Essayist and Journalist.

He has the strong grip on both Hindi and Urdu languages. He edited Urdu newspaper, Akhbar-e- Chunar’in 1886 and ‘Kohinoor’, an Urdu letter from Lahore in 1888-89. He successfully edited three Hindu letters, namely, Hindustan, Bangwasi and Bharat Mitra.

His two satires are very famous i.e. ‘Shiv Shambhu Ke Chitthe and ‘Urdu Bibi ke Naam Chitthi’. His main creations were Haridas, Khilona, Khel-Tamasha, Balmukund Gupt Nibandhavali.

Vishambhar Nath Sharma ‘Kaushik’

He was born in 1899 in Ambala Cantonment. He was a famous Hindi language story writer. Besides novels and stories he also wrote satire under the name ‘Dube ki Chitthiyan in the monthly magazine, ‘Chand’. He died in 1945.

Tulsidas Sharma ‘Dinesh’

He was the resident of Bhiwani district in Haryana. He created many compositions like Purushottam Mahakavya, Bhakt Bharti, Shyam Satsayi and Satyagrah Prahlad. His creations contributed a lot in the development of Hindi Literature.

Shamin Sharma

He is the famous litterateur of Hisar district in Haryana. He started the first research work on short stories, in Haryana. His important compositions are ‘Chaupal ka Makhor, ‘Chaupal ke Chale’, ‘Chaupal Petau,etc.

Sunita Jain

She was born on 13th July, 1940 in Ambala district of Haryana. She was an Indian scholar, novelist, short-story writer and poet of English and Hindi Literature. Recognising her contribution in educationa and literature, she was given ‘Padma Shri Award’ by the Indian

Government in 2004 and ‘Vyas Samman by KK Birla Foundation in 2015 for her poetry collection Kshama. Her important compositions are ‘EK Aur Din,’Kahan Milogi Kavita, ‘Jane Laraki Pagli’, ‘Barish Mein Dilli’, and ‘Hui Sanjh ki Ber, etc.

Dr. Mukta

She is the famous litterateur of Haryana and founder of ‘Rajkiya Mahila Vidyalaya. She is the first women of Haryana who has been elected as the Director of Haryana Sahitya Akademi. She was honoured by ‘Shreshtha Mahila Rachnakar Award in 2017 by the Haryana Government. She is the first women litterateur to receive such award.

She was also awarded ‘Subramanyam Bharti Award’ in 2016 for her contribution in Hindi literature. Her important creations are Harigandha, Akhir Kese, Beti Ka Dukh, Apnatva, etc.

Minakshi Jijivisha

She was born in Faridabad district of Haryana. Since last decade she is actively writing short-stories. Her two-story collection has been published and the first one is ‘Is Tarah Se Bhi’.

 

Important Artists

Sunil Dutt

He was born on 6th June, 1929 in Punjab Province, British India (now in Pakistan). After partition his family resettled in Yamunanagar, Haryana.

His real name was ‘Balraj Dutt\ He was an Indian movie actor, producer, director and politician. He also acted in some Punjabi movies.

His important movies are ‘Mother India,’ Waqt\Mujhe Jine Do’, etc. He also played a leading role in politics. He became a Cabinet Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports in 2005-06. He joined the Indian National Congress Party in 1984 and became Member of Parliament. He received Padma Shri in 1968. He died on 25th May, 2005.

Pandit Jasraj

He was born on 28th January, 1930 in Hisar district of Haryana. He is an Indian classical vocalist. He belongs to Mewati’ Gharana. He received education in singing from his father Pandit Motiram. He is also a Tabla player. He received many awards like Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (1987), Padma Bhushan (1990), Padma Vibhushan (2000) and Sangeet Martand Puraskar by Government of Haryana. He also received several other awards like, Sangeet Kala Ratna, Lata Mangeshkar Puraskar, Maharashtra Gaurav Puraskar, Marwar Sangeet Ratna Award, etc.

Om Puri

He was born on 18th October, 1950 in Ambala district of Haryana. He was a famous Indian film actor. He graduated from Film and Television Institute of India. He also played great roles in films of United Kingdom and USA. He received ‘Padma Sim in 1990. He produced many films like, Ghashiran Kotwal, Sadgati, Ardhsatya, Mirch-Masala, Dahravi. He died on 6th January, 2017.

Satish Kaushik

He was born on 13th April, 1956 in Mahendragarh, district of Haryana. He started his career as an assistant director to Shekhar Kapoor in the film Masoom (1983). He also played a role in this film. He graduated from National School of Drama in 1978. He produced films like ‘Dhol’and ‘Haryana. He received the Filmfare Best Comedian Award twice i.e. in 1990 and in 1997.

Yashpal Sharma

He was born on 1st January, 1965, in Hisar district of Haryana. He is an Indian film actor. He graduated from National School of Drama in 1994. He started his career in the film Industry from ‘Hazaar Chaurasi ki Maa (1998) film. His famous films are Zindagi Ek Jua, Samar, Pukar, Bavandar, Risk, Gangajal and Hazaron Khawhishein Aisi (best known film), etc.

Sonu Nigam

He was born on 30th July, 1973 in Faridabad district of Haryana. He is a famous Indian Playback Singer. He received the ‘Filmfare Best Male Playback Award’ in 2003, ‘National Film Award for Best Male Playback Singer’in 2004 and ‘Star Screen Award Best Male Playback’ in 2005.

Randeep Singh Hooda

He was born on 20th August, 1976 in Jasia village, Rohtak. He is an Indian actor working in Bollywood films. He made his debut in films with Mira Nair’s ‘Monsoon Wedding in 2001. He is a successful actor of Bollywood. His important films are ‘D’, ‘Once Upon a Time in Mumbai’, ‘Kick’ and ‘Sarbjit’.

Madhu Sharma

She was born in Pehowa village in Kurukshetra district, Haryana. Haryanas famous Ragini singer. Her important Raginis are ‘Pairon Mein Pahri Payal’, ‘Ankhiyan Mein Ghalya KajaTand ‘Rang Phekiye Na, etc.

Nasib Singh Kundu

He was born on 27th November, 1961 in Titotli village, in Rohtak district of Haryana. He played a role in the film ‘ChandrawaT which is very famous in the state. He played role in other films like ‘Lado’ ‘Basanti’ and ‘Jar, Joru, Jamin’.

Surender Sharma

He is a famous comic poet of Haryana. He uses Marwari language in his poems and is famous as ‘Chaar Laina Wala Poet’. He received Tadma Shri Award’ in 2013 by the Government of India.

 

Miscellaneous Personalities

Pandit Bastiram

He was born in Kheri Sultan village in Jhajjar district, Haryana. He was the famous Arya Samaj preacher. After meeting with Swamy Dayanand in 1880 AD, he roamed village to village to spread the knowledge of Arya Samaj. He mainly preached in Haryana, Western Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan. He died in 1959 at the age of 117 years.

Kalpana Chawla

She was born on 17th March, 1962 in Karnal district, Haryana. She became the first Indian origin women who flew into space by Columbia flight on 19th November, 1977.

She went on her second flight to space on 16th January, 2003 by Space Shuttle Columbia, but she lost her life on 1st February, 2003 in Columbia spacecraft disaster just 16 minutes before landing of the spacecraft on the Earth.

Baba Ramdev

He was born on 26th December, 1965 in Saiyed Alipur in Mahendragarh district, Haryana. He is an Indian Yoga Guru. His Guru was Acharya Baldevji. He teaches Yoga and Pranayam to people in India and also in the world.

He founded the Divya Yog Mandir Trust in 1995. In 2006, he started Patanjali Ayurveda with Acharya Balkrishna. It is a consumer-packaged goods company, based in Haridwar. In 2006, he also founded Patanjali Yogpeetha in Haridwar which is an institute founded for the promotion and practice of Yoga and Ayurveda. In 2009, he founded Bharat Swabhiman Trust to support his political activities.

In January, 2015 he was considered for Padma Vibushan, second highest civilian award but he refrained from receiving this award. In May 2018, Ramdev launched Swadeshi Samriddhi SIM cards in alliance with BSNL.

Santosh Yadav

She was born in 1969 in Rewari district. She is an Indian mountaineer and is the first and youngest women in the world to climb Mt. Everest twice i.e. in May, 1992 and May, 1993. She is an officer in the Indo-Tibetan Border police. She was honoured by the Tadma Shri’ Award in 2000.

Manushi Chhillar

She was born on 14th June, 1997 in Rohtak, Haryana. She is an Indian model. She won the title of Femina Miss India in 2017. She won the Miss World title/2017 which was held in Arena, China in 2017. She is the second women to won this title after Priyanka Chopra (2000). She studied at St. Thomas’ School in New Delhi and was all India CBSE topper in English subject in class 12. She is also a trained Kuchipudi dancer and has trained under legendary dancers Raja and Radha Reddy and Kaushalya Reddy.