ANU(ChandigarhCityNews)

 Punjab Vidhan Sabha speaker, Rana KP Singh released 10 volumes of the magnum opus, “Peelay Pattar” posthumously, authored by Late Harbans Bhalla(May 7, 1930—April 5, 1993) at the 6th World Punjabi Conference. 

Comprising a whopping 70,000 verses divided into 10 volumes, Peelay Pattar is an epic punjabi  poem touching 1700 diverse subjects and creating the longest poetry. 

Harbans Bhalla was a prolific writer and a philosopher who moved to India from Pakistan post Partition in 1947 and chose to pen his thoughts in Urdu, Persian and Shahamukhi, away from limelight. 

From 1978 to 1992, a total of 1,40,000 lines with over 15 lakh words were written by him, breaking a 10th century record of a 60,000 verses poetry written by Phirdousi who took 35 years to complete his Shahnameh. 

“The release of the full compilation of my father’s work at the World Punjabi Conference is a moment of pride. It took him 14 years to write PeelayPattar. And it took me 10 years to publish it. This is a 24-year long effort by a father and his son. For the readers, this will be journey of discovery, of the times lived and of the thoughts echoed. It is a work of a lifetime,” said Monish Bhalla,  son of Harbans Bhalla.

The author has used the Davaiya Chhand, different from the traditional Dohras, Kabitt and Baintt to create a world of truth by being close to existence and a primordial life. Originally written in Shahamukhi, his son decided to get the voluminous work transcribed into Gurmukhi by renowned poet Harbhajan Singh Komal.