Ravinder Ravi : Role of the Punjabi Writer

This interview is a part of the “Punjabi in BC” oral history project (2019-2023). “Punjabi in BC” is comprised of interviews with over 50 K-12 teachers, language advocates, journalists, and writers who have contributed to the life of the Punjabi language in British Columbia, Canada. The subject of this interview is Ravinder Ravi, born in 1937 in Sialkot, Pakistan. He moved to Canada in December 1974, where he found a teaching position in New Aiyansh, BC. Over the years, Ravi has published many verse-plays, collections of Punjabi poetry, short story collections, a travelogue, two autobiographies, and two books of literary criticism, along with various anthologies. This interview is divided into three segments and includes two promotional videos. In the interview Ravinder Ravi talks about his immigration to Kenya and Canada, his career as a writer, the inspiration behind his poetry and books, the Experimental Movement, and suggests ways in which literature can be made more relevant in contemporary times.