The preface of the book titled `Jaagte Raho’ has been written by Prof. (Dr.) Sunil, Dean, Faculty of Languages & Head of Department of Hindi, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar. According to him, ‘Jaagte Raho’ is one such collection of short stories, which reveals many aspects of life and society which a person keeps dealing with. The author’s stories have been written in such a way that readers are forced to think and ponder. Some of the short stories in this collection are timeless. In this collection, every aspect of life and society has been observed and examined very closely. These short stories introduce the reader to the inconsistencies of life and society and bring him or her face to face with the bitter reality of life. The book encapsulates how wrongdoings like cheating in the name of religion, political corruption, conspiracy to spread communal frenzy, deception in the name of social reform, or personal injury in the name of relationships leave a simple and sensitive human being hurt at every step. This pain can be felt in all the short stories of this collection and the scope of these short stories is very wide.
Further, Prof. (Dr.) Sunil writes, “In some of Manoj Dhiman’s short stories, an attempt has been made to capture the character of contemporary politics. The stories show how contemporary politics now has nothing to do with the concept of a welfare state. Manoj Dhiman has vast life experiences, and this, coupled with his writing ability, helps him express many bitter truths through literature.”
The Preface of the Hindi Novel, titled `Birju Naai Ki Dukan’ has been written by Punjab’s noted Hindi Novelist, Dr Ajay Sharma, who is the recipient of many awards such as the Shiromani Hindi Sahityakar Award by the Punjab Government and the Central Hindi Directorate Award and the Sauhardya Puraskaar by UP government. In the preface, Dr Ajay Sharma writes that “India is a country of diversity and that unity in diversity is its identity. Moreover, it is a country of beliefs. In this country, traditions and beliefs are closely associated with each other and many bad practices are also present along with this. Many times, such things also become a means of livelihood in this country. Despite this, faith is a part of the culture of this country. However, faith can turn into superstition, because of which many kinds of distortions start arising. Manoj Dhiman, through his novel, has dug a new ground and forced readers to think.”
Further, Dr Ajay Sharma writes that in Dhiman’s novel, incidents of superstition start surfacing from the first page itself. There is a thin line between faith and superstition and the novel reveals the difference of that line. The novel also exposes the hypocrisy of people. Dhiman is concerned about the evils happening in the society. His novel also talks about women in the context of their so-called empowerment and writes about how they still are not adequately empowered despite tall claims about gender equality. He further writes that Dhiman has successfully raised many questions before the readers.
Reacting over Dhiman’s books, Punjab’s renowned Hindi author, Tarsem Gujral, who is a winner of many literary awards, including The Central Hindi Directorate Award for the year 1993-94, said that the short stories in the book titled, `Jaagte Raho’, raises poignant incidents of life. He added that Dhiman’s maiden story collection `Late Night Party’ is a must-read and that his latest novel `Birju Naai Ki Dukan’ is a superlative work of literature. The connection with common people is deep in both books.
Both the books `Birju Naai Ki Dukan’ and `Jaagte Raho’ have been published by New World Publication, Delhi. Dhiman has dedicated both books to his father, Late H.R. Dhiman, a veteran journalist from Ferozepur (Punjab). “I get ideas for my creative work from my surroundings, experience and people hailing from different sections of society”, Dhiman said, adding that he always pens down his views when he sees something hurtful happening around him. He further said that he has a strong feeling that there is some ‘power’ which helps him in carrying out his creative work. He said he started writing during his childhood for Hindi Dailies and magazines and that his readers gave him strength and motivation to keep writing.
Dhiman has also penned books earlier. These are `Late Night Party’, a collection of short stories (2007); `Baarish Ki Boondein’, a collection of poems (2009), `Shoonya Ki Ore’, a novel (2012); `Yeh Makaan Bikau Hai’, a collection of short stories (2021) and `Khol Kar Dekho’, a collection of short stories (2022). The English translation of `Late Night Party’ has also been published, and the translation was done by Prof Shaheena Khan. His maiden book `Late Night Party’, was released in Ludhiana by former CBI Director Joginder Singh in 2007.
Recently, Guru Nanak Dev University (GNDU), Amritsar, inducted Dhiman into the Board of Studies (PG) for Hindi from July 1, 2024, to June 30, 2026.
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