His father, Lakshman Pandit, was indifferent to his formal education and Kaul had to face many difficulties in his life.
[citation needed] Zinda Kaul was the first Kashmiri poet to win the Sahitya Academy award in 1956, for his book of poetry compilations Sumran.
The Sahitya Academy of India gave Kaul an award of five thousand rupees for this book.
His first poem was Unity and Sympathy, written in 1896 and recited it at the Sanatan Dharm Sabha meeting in Srinagar.
[7] Zinda Kaul translated the works of the mystic Kashmiri writer and poet Nand Ram Parmanand into English, in three volumes.