‘Shivmangal Singh ‘Suman’ (English: Shivmangal Singh ‘Suman, born: August 5, 1916 – death: November 27, 2002) was one of the top poets of Hindi. In 1999, he was honored with Padma Bhushan by the Government of India in the field of literature and education.
Dr. Shivmangal Singh ‘Suman’ was born on 5 August 1915 in Unnao district of Uttar Pradesh. Primary education also took place there. B.A from Victoria College, Gwalior. And M.A. from Kashi Hindu University. After obtaining degrees of D.Litt., he taught in Gwalior, Indore and Ujjain.
Shivmangal Singh ‘Suman”s field of work was mostly related to the education world. He was a lecturer in Hindi at Victoria College, Gwalior, Principal of Madhav Mahavidyalaya, Ujjain and then Vice Chancellor. Apart from teaching, he contributed to the growth of Hindi literature by associating with various important institutions and establishments. Suman ji was also a beloved teacher, skilled administrator, profound thinker and thinker. He does not make literature a burden, he hides seriousness in his simplicity. He was very popular not only among literature lovers but also among the common people. It was enough for any unknown person in the city to tell the rickshaw puller that he had to go to Suman ji’s house.
The rickshaw puller would drop the visitor to his home without making any inquiries. Once Suman ji came to a program in a college in Kanpur. At the end of the program, some journalists surrounded him. Someone from the organizers said Suman ji is tired. On this Suman ji said angrily, No, I am not tired. Journalists are creators of contemporary literature. It feels good to talk to him for a moment or two. The most important moment in the life of Dr. Shivmangal Singh ‘Suman’ was when he was blindfolded and taken to an unknown place. When the blindfold was removed he was shocked. Chandrashekhar Azad, the great warrior of the freedom struggle, was standing in front of him. Azad had asked him, can he take this revolver to Delhi? Suman ji accepted the proposal without any hesitation. A warrant was issued against him on charges of working for freedom fighters. Simple natured Suman ji always used to tell his fans, I could not become a scholar. I have been able to touch the threshold of scholarship. The pressure of administrative work along with being a professor stopped me from becoming a scholar.
Those who have heard Sumanji know how ‘Saraswati’ flows. How is the secret stream of Saraswati reflected in speech? When he spoke, facts, examples, traditions, history, literature and present were depicted so vividly that the listener felt filled with ‘knowledge’ and ‘richness’ of knowledge while feeling joy within himself. It kept resonating within and opening a ‘bag’ of various meanings. It is difficult to find a rich speaker like Sumanji. Sumanji was as tall, complete and grand personality as he was, he was also a top man in knowledge and poetic work. His height was not only his own but he instilled a feeling of height, goodness and creativity in everyone around him. His scholarship did not die down. While training him, he used to take out gold ingots from the mine of knowledge, creativity and qualities hidden in others and tell that ‘Brother, you have a lot of treasure’.
Sometimes it was said about him that Sumanji used to go too far in praising. Whereas he was not excessive in praising but rather pointed towards the hidden richness of creation which was hidden from the eyes. He does not prove anyone to be a ‘dwarf’, he always looked at every person, place, people and creation with positivity. He was basically a creator of human love and harmony. They used to build grand buildings from small bricks. The grand building did not break into pieces. His pace of social construction remained positive and creative. Then one thing is that one needs a very big heart to praise or appreciate, Sumanji had that. He was a progressive poet. He was a leftist. But did not allow ‘ism’ to become a burden on the ‘bale’. He did not carry it, but kept exploring the ‘ism’ through his democracy, public welfare, love, human connection, creative rebellion and creation, that is why he became a ‘people’s poet’, otherwise the poet’s work, his mind and work would not be found anywhere in the debates and establishments of ‘ism’. Would have been damaged.
The oral tradition of Hindi poetry is a testimony to your popularity. Suman ji, who surprised poetry lovers across the country with the poetry of his songs, became silent on 27 November 2002. ‘Suman’, no matter how physical it may be, gives visual pleasure, but it constantly gets transformed into smell and gets absorbed in the memories. Suman is now in ‘prose’ and is alive in memories. Whoever has seen or heard Sumanji, he never used to narrate his creation in his discussions or as an example. He was an admirer of every good creation and every good effort. It was as if he was filled with wonderful memories of the works of other poets and writers.
