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Kumar Vishwas

b. 1970 · A portrait

A Hindi poet from Pilkhuwa who built a mass following through kavi sammelans and one especially loved poem, then carried that fame into politics as a founding member of the Aam Aadmi Party.

Moment 1 of 5 · 1970

Pilkhuwa

Born Vishwas Kumar Sharma in the small town of Pilkhuwa, Uttar Pradesh. He later built his public name around the stage — the kavi sammelan, a live gathering where poets perform for a crowd.

Moment 2 of 5 · 2007

The poem

Koi Deewana Kehta Hai, his collection named for his best-loved poem, was published. The poem, one of romantic devotion, became the piece audiences most asked for, and later spread online far beyond the halls.

Moment 3 of 5 · 2012

Into politics

He joined the newly formed Aam Aadmi Party as a volunteer, becoming one of its founding figures and, later, a member of its national executive — a stage change from poetry to public office.

Moment 4 of 5 · 2022

The break

Ahead of the 2022 Punjab election, he publicly accused party leader Arvind Kejriwal of remarks about Khalistan. Their falling-out played out openly; Vishwas has said he was never formally expelled, nor did he resign.

Moment 5 of 5 · today

Still on stage

He continues performing at kavi sammelans and appearing on television, mostly apart from active party politics now — the poet's stage outlasting, for him, the political one.

The stage came first. It outlasted the politics.
He still headlines kavi sammelans across India, and 'Koi Deewana Kehta Hai' remains the poem most requested from him, decades after he first wrote it.
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