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Abhay Kumar (Poet) Biography: Age, Career, Family and More

F4U Editorial Desk • Updated September 4, 2026 • 6 min read

Quick Info

Date of birth1980

Age43 Years (as of 2023)

BirthplaceBhattu Bigha village near Rajgir, Nalanda district, Bihar

ProfessionPoet, Diplomat

NationalityIndian

FamilyFather: Rajendra Singh; Mother: Dayawanti; Brother: Ajay

Abhay Kumar (Poet) Biography

Abhay Kumar is an Indian poet-diplomat from Nalanda, Bihar, known for writing widely translated planetary and Earth anthems and for a literary career that:

Early life and background
Abhay Kumar was born in 1980 in Bhattu Bigha village near Rajgir in the Nalanda district of Bihar. His family moved when he was two to Chhabilapur in the same district. His father, Rajendra Singh, worked as a school teacher and his mother, Dayawanti, was a homemaker. He has a younger brother, Ajay, who works in the IT sector.

Kumar attended R.D.H. School in Rajgir before moving to New Delhi for higher studies. He studied at Kirori Mal College and later pursued further degrees and training at institutions including Jawaharlal Nehru University, Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration (LBSNAA), Lomonosov Moscow State University, the Elliot School of International Affairs at George Washington University, Tribhuvan University, and the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. His formal qualifications include a Bachelor of Arts in Geography, a Master of Arts in Geography and Population Studies, and an M.Phil. He also completed civil service foundation training and language studies in Russian and Nepali, along with diplomatic modules abroad.

Career
Abhay Kumar joined the Indian Foreign Service after securing the 71st rank in the 2003 UPSC Civil Services Examination. He completed his foundation course at LBSNAA in 2003 and received training at the Sushma Swaraj Institute of Foreign Service. Early postings included work at the Ministry of External Affairs handling East and South Africa divisions and a period at the economic and commercial wing of the Indian Embassy in Moscow. In 2007 he served as Second Secretary (Commerce) in Moscow, managing trade relations and delegations.

His diplomatic career has included roles as Consulate General of India in St. Petersburg (2007–2010), Under Secretary of Digital Diplomacy in New Delhi (2010–2012), spokesperson at the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu (2012–2015), Deputy Chief of Mission to Brazil (2016–2019), and Ambassador of India to Madagascar and Comoros (2019–2022). While in Madagascar he introduced solar power at the embassy and established a Street Library. In 2019 he became one of India’s youngest ambassadors at age 38. On 19 September 2022 he was appointed Deputy Director General of the Indian Council for Cultural Relations with responsibility for cultural events during India’s G-20 presidency.

Alongside diplomacy, Kumar has built a prolific literary career. He published a memoir, River Valley to Silicon Valley, in 2007, and has written many books of non-fiction and poetry. His poetry collections include Enigmatic Love (2009), Fallen Leaves of Autumn (2010), Remains (2012), The Seduction of Delhi (2014), The Magic of Madagascar (2021), Stray Poems (2022), and Celestial (2023). He has edited several poetry anthologies and collections, and translated works from classical Sanskrit and contemporary Brazilian poets into English, including Kalidasa’s Meghaduta and Ritusamhara.

Public profile
Kumar is widely recognized as a poet of international reach. He wrote an “Earth Anthem” in 2013 that was translated into multiple languages, including the six UN languages, Hindi, and Nepali, and has since been rendered into many more. The English version was sung by Nepali vocalist Shreya Sotang, and the anthem was recited by over 100 artists on Earth Day 2021. He has also composed anthems for SAARC, India’s Chandrayaan-2 and Chandrayaan-3 missions, and for the other planets in the solar system.

His work has received literary recognition and awards, such as the SAARC Literary Award (2013), the Asia-Pacific Excellence Award (2014), and honors at the Kalinga Literary Festival. The Seduction of Delhi was a finalist for a young writers’ award in 2015, and his translation of Kalidasa won Poetry Book of the Year recognition at KLF. His poetry has entered academic syllabi — his poem “The Partitioned Land” was taught at Cornell University in 2021 — and scholars have produced critical work on his poems.

Kumar’s artistic practice extends to visual work on planetary themes exhibited in cities including St. Petersburg, Paris, New Delhi, and Brasilia. In 2018–19 he became the first Indian poet invited to record his poems at the Library of Congress in the United States. He writes under the pen name Abhay K and has been described by some peers as a poet with global reach.

Personal interests and other achievements
A polyglot, Kumar speaks Magahi, Hindi, English, Russian, Nepali, and Portuguese, and has knowledge of French and Sanskrit. He lists hobbies such as photography, travel, and cooking, and maintains a regular exercise and meditation routine. Earlier in his life he represented Kirori Mal College at the 19th World Universities Debating Championship in Manila and worked as a geography tutor before joining the civil services.

Latest updates
From 2019 to 2022 Kumar served as Ambassador to Madagascar and Comoros. In September 2022 he took up the role of Deputy Director General at the Indian Council for Cultural Relations with duties connected to India’s G-20 cultural programming.
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Recent Work

Celestial

Poetry collection

2023
Stray Poems

Poetry collection

2022
The Magic of Madagascar

Poetry collection

2021
River Valley to Silicon Valley

Memoir

2007
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Career Highlights

  1. Joined Indian Foreign Service after UPSC rank of 71 in 2003
  2. Served as Consulate General in St. Petersburg and as Deputy Chief of Mission in Brazil
  3. Ambassador of India to Madagascar and Comoros (2019–2022)
  4. Appointed Deputy Director General of ICCR in September 2022
  5. Authored the widely translated Earth Anthem and composed planetary and mission anthems
  6. First Indian poet invited to record at the Library of Congress (2018–19)
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Frequently Asked Questions

When was Abhay Kumar (Poet) born?

1980

What is Abhay Kumar (Poet) known for?

Poet, Diplomat