Surjit Patar (Surjit Hundal) was an Indian Punjabi language writer and poet from Punjab. His poems enjoy immense popularity with the general public and have won high acclaim from critics.

Patar hailed from the village of Pattar (Punjabi: ਪੱਤੜ) Kalan in Jalandhar district from which he got his surname. His father’s name was Harbhajan Singh and mother’s Harbhajan Kaur. He had four older sisters. His father had migrated to Kenya for work and would only return home for short time after every five years. He matriculated from a nearby village school. After that admitted in as science student in a college in Kapurthala. But the next year, he took up Arts.

Patar graduated from Randhir College, Kapurthala and then went on to get a Master’s degree from Punjabi University, Patiala and then a PhD in Literature on “Transformation of Folklore in Guru Nanak Vani” from Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar. He then joined the academic profession and retired as Professor of Punjabi from Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana.[4] He started writing poetry in the mid-1960s.

Patar was president of the Punjab Arts Council, Chandigarh. Earlier, he had held the office of the President, Punjabi Sahit Akademi, Ludhiana. He was awarded Padma Shri in 2012.

Patar died of cardiac arrest at his residence on Barewal Road in Ludhiana, on 11 May 2024, at the age of 79. According to his family members, he did not wake up that morning and was declared dead after arriving in the hospital.

Surjit Patar wrote dialogues for the Punjabi films Shaheed Uddham Singh and Videsh, the Punjabi version of Deepa Mehta’s film Heaven on Earth.

Born: Surjit Hundal14 January 1945 Pattar Kalan, Punjab Province, British India

Died: 11 May 2024 (aged 79) Ludhiana, Punjab, India

Spouse: Bhupinder Kaur Patar

Children: Manraj Patar, Ankur Patar

Parents:  Harbhajan Singh, Harbhajan Kaur

Occupation: Writer, poet, teacher