Celebrated English poet and former cop Keki N Daruwalla dies at 87

NEW DELHI: Poet, writer and former IPS officer Keki N Daruwalla, whose magic with words gained him national and international repute, has died at a Delhi hospital after prolonged illness and a spell of pneumonia. He was 87.

Daruwalla, one of India's best known writers in English, died on Thursday night.

"He had a stroke a year ago and hadn't been keeping well since. There were stroke related complications. But it wasn't a stroke this time, he basically died of pneumonia," his daughter Anaheita Kapadia told PTI.

Daruwalla, also known for his short stories, is survived by Anaheita and his other daughter Rookvain, sons-in-law and four grandchildren.

The last rites will be performed on Friday evening at Parsi Aramgah near Khan Market.

Born in Lahore in 1937, Daruwalla studied at Government College in Ludhiana. He joined the Indian Police Services (Uttar Pradesh cadre) in 1958 and rose through the ranks to becoming special assistant on international affairs to then prime minister Charan Singh.

He later joined the Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW) where he was promoted to the rank of secretary, R&AW.

Even though he led a successful career in police and later at R&AW, it was his literary acumen that was most recognised.

Daruwalla's first book of poetry, "Under Orion", was published in 1970. Two years later, he received the Uttar Pradesh State Award for his second book, "Apparition in April".

He also won the Sahitya Akademi Award in 1984 for his poetry collection, "The Keeper of the Dead", which he returned in October 2015 in protest against Sahitya Akademi's failure "to speak out against ideological collectives that have used physical violence against authors".

Daruwalla was also awarded the Padma Shri in 2014.

His latest book of poetry, "Landfall: Poems", was published in 2023. Earlier this year, the Sahitya Akademi published "A House of Words- Festschrift: In Honour of Keki N. Daruwalla" to celebrate a life dedicated to the written word.

Messages of condolence poured in on social media website X as writers and readers paid homage to the cop-poet for the "uncompromising truthfulness of his words" and "the most intense visually dramatic and fascinating poetry".

Writer Namita Gokhale saluted Daruwalla for "the tenderness of his vision".

"...for the unrelenting, uncompromising truthfulness of his words, for the creative genius of his imagination," Gokhale said.

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh also took to the microblogging site and remembered Daruwalla as a "man of great compassion and empathy".

"Keki Daruwalla, one of the most delightful persons I have known, has just passed away. He was a distinguished IPS officer of the 1958 batch and had spent much time in India's intelligence establishment, including R&AW.

"Keki was also a very well known poet and fiction writer. He had won prestigious awards for his works, which have been translated into different languages. Tremendously witty and always with a smile, he spoke truth to power at all times. A man of great compassion and empathy, he reflected all that is noble in our syncretic culture," Ramesh said.

Rajya Sabha MP and author Sagarika Ghose said Daruwalla was an old friend of the family who wrote "the most intense visually dramatic and fascinating poetry and was at the same time a policeman and a RAW officer! Who says cops don’t make great poets?"

Some also remembered Daruwalla's short story collection "Love Across the Salt Desert" that "overturned the tragedy of Laila-Majnu".

"I'm not very familiar with Keki N. Daruwalla's poetry, but I fondly recollect our excitement when Love Across the Salt Desert was taught in the English course at school (CBSE, early 80s, Assam). Najab taking Fatemah home as it rained, overturned the tragedy of Laila-Majnu. RIP," Manash Firaq wrote in a post.

Queer historian Samyak Ghosh said the story made him think about "borderlands as a distinct place".

"I was in 9th standard when I read an exquisite story about border crossers in the Rann of Kutch. It made me think about borderlands as a distinct place, always made in difference. An early lesson that I remain indebted to. Rest in power, Keki N. Daruwalla," Ghosh said.

Writer Nilanjana Roy shared a few lines from Daruwalla's poem "Notes From Underground".

"'I think I am at peace now,/he said, for my dreams/move like the thinnest/veil of mist over water.' ~ Keki Daruwalla, Notes from the Underground. (24 January 1937 - 27 September 2024). Go gently, and thank you for the words, the heart, that conscience," Roy posted on X.