Life was never easy for Kanwal Bharti, who was born dirt poor in a cobbler's home in this city of nawabs in Uttar Pradesh. But with sheer hard work he changed it all.

Bharti, 53, is now a poet whose works are taught to postgraduate students in many universities across the country. Renowned writer Rajendra Yadav calls him one of the best authors on Dalit issues.

Bharti, who lived a major part of his life in slums, told IANS: "My father hardly made any money by mending shoes. Yet he preferred to spend on my education rather than on our meals."

Bharti learnt to write early and the experience was almost therapeutic. "I started writing poems when I was barely 15. We were Dalits and I often wrote about our plight."

His writings on Dalit soon became his passport to fame. "When I was an undergraduate student, I was hired by a Hindi newspaper to write a column. The editor gave me a free hand and it is there I honed my writing skills."

Bharti's works are prescribed texts at New Delhi's Indira Gandhi National Open University, Allahabad University, Delhi University, Aligarh Muslim University and Lucknow University.

His works on Dalits are considered a must read by anyone specialising in the subject. He won the Dr. Ambedekar National Award in 1996 and the Bhim Ratna Award in 2001.

But the biggest feat for Bharti was when his two poems - "Tab Tumhari Nishtha Kya Hogi" and "Shambook" - and a critique, "Philosophy of Dalit Literature", were included in university curricula alongside works of renowned Hindi poets and writers such as Nirala, Prem Chand and Nagarjun.

Author of 15 books, Bharti's works have been widely published in many periodicals of repute. He also keeps getting invites to deliver lectures at the Lucknow, Aligarh, Allahabad and Gorakhpur universities.

Itihaas Bodh Publications of Allahabad recently published a book "Kanwal Bharti Se Dosti".

Bharti continues to work with the social welfare department of Uttar Pradesh, which he joined in 1983. He has ensured his children get the best education.

His eldest son is enrolled for the MPhil programme at the prestigious Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi.