Damodar Gulati
Damodar Gulati also known as Damodar Das Arora, was a Punjabi Hindu poet, of the 16th and 17th centuries, hailing from Jhang, now in Pakistan. He is widely celebrated for his poetic narration of the romance tragedy Heer Ranjha, based on a preexisting Punjabi oral legend; his tradition continued to be adapted throughout centuries in Punjabi literature. He lived during the reign of Mughal king Akbar.
Biography
''Heer and Ranjha''
He wrote the qissa ''Heer and Ranjha and was the first to put the story to paper, adapted from a preexisting and circulating legend. He claims to be the eye witness of this tale. His Qissa is deemed the oldest and the first Heer Ranjha in Punjabi literature. He states in the poem that he is from Jhang—the home of Heer, one of the poem's two main characters. He wrote his rendition and the original tale of Heer Ranjha in the dialect of Sandal Bar, despite this fact after the lapse of five hundred years the language used in the story is nearer to modern Majhi dialect. An analysis by Najam Hussain Syed led him to believe that Damodar Gulati was not actually an eyewitness to the tale but rather he was using a storytelling technique that was misinterpreted as meaning he was simply an eyewitness. In reality, Gulati's position to the characters in the tale is similar to that of Sanjaya of the Mahabharata'' epic, who used paranormal powers to see what was happening at the battle of Kurukshetra.Religious identity
On the matter of his religious identity, the majority of scholars describe him as a Punjabi Hindu. Amaresh Dutta, chief editor of the Encyclopaedia of Indian Literature, mentioned that Gulati was influenced by Sufi and Sikh thought.Style
He does have also a peculiar style, at the end of a quaternary he repeats Aakkh Damodar means "Say Damodar":Ahmad Shah Gujjar and Waris Shah later adapted Heer and Ranjha.
Particular importance is placed on finer details in the storytelling of Gulati's works.