Playfield To Battleground, Life Is An Arena

From the heights of Everest to art galleries, pop music to literature, warfare to the catwalk, the colourful presence of the Sikhs will always be found in the thick of the action

Updated on: 7 February 2024 7:28 pm

Pargat Singh, India's best hockey full-back; Bishen Bedi, the craftiest exponent of spin; Ajit Pal Singh, led India to its only hockey World Cup triumph in 1975; B.S. Sandhu, author of 'The Ball From Hell' that bowled Greenidge in the 1983 World Cup final; weightlifter B.S. Bhatia did India proud in the '60s and '70s; the gutsy Navjot Singh 'Sixer' Sidhu; Maninder Singh, whose career was eventful if shortlived.

General J.S. Aurora led the army during the Bangladesh war and was present when Pakistan surrendered; Rear Admiral Kirpal Singh was one of the finest naval commanders in India; Air Chief Marshal Arjan Singh served as Chief of Air Staff from 1964-1969. Between them, they represent the finest of the Sikh presence in India's armed forces.

Conquerors of Everest: Captain M.S.Kohli with Major H.P.S. Ahluwalia; Flying Sikh Milkha Singh, India's greatest athlete

Broad Canvas: High Art And High Finance

The range of Sikh writing spans Amrita Pritam's powerfully feminist poetry, Khushwant Singh's vast repertoire, Ajeet Caur's hard-edged short stories and Amrit Srinivasan's contemporary works. The canvas is just as wide when it comes to art: Paramjit Singh redefined landscape painting; Serbjeet Singh's environmental films changed the frame; Arpana Caur took the modern Indian art scene by storm; P.S. Ladi carved a niche in sculpture; while Bawa's figures became emblematic of Indian art.

Manmohan Singh, the architect of economic liberalisation, was also the man who brought shairi and Budget speeches together. His backroom boys included Montek Singh Ahluwalia: the economist was left to carry on the legacy as finance secretary and member of the Planning Commission; and respected economist Isher J. Ahluwalia, who is now the director of ICRIER.

The stereotype of the Sikh as nature's businessman has gained ground with the success of men like Analjit Singh and Raunaq Singh. The latter is the founder and chairman of Apollo Tyres, a group whose turnover last year touched Rs 1,400 crore. Analjit Singh made Indian corporate history when he sold his stake in Hutchison Max in what become the most talked about telecom merger and the biggest buyout of 1998: the selling price was a staggering Rs 565 crore.

Chak De! Looks And Sounds Like Success

As Punjabi chic takes over, the Sikhs can be seen on and off the ramp. Former Miss India Manpreet Brar is now a supermodel, while there's a queue for designs by Valaya and Gill. Then there's the entertainers: Bharatanatyam dancer Navtej Johar, classical singers Tejpal and Surinder, called the Singh Bandhu, theatre activist G.S. Channi.

The one place Sikhs can always be found is onstage. Pop stars Daler Mehndi and Sukhbir grew up on bhajans but switched to the more robust rhythms of bhangra, inspiring a host of clones. Chart topper Pyaar To Hona Hi Tha paired playback singer Jaspinder with Remo. Crooning in seven languages is Amrik Singh Arora, Calcutta boy who had a hit in Bengal with Rupashi Dohai Tomar. From ghazals to Bhojpuri pop, bhajans to bhangra, he's done it all.

Medicine Men

Sikhs in medicine offer a wide-ranging prescription.Dr A.S. Soin successfully performed the first two liver transplants in India; Dr Sarinder Man Singh is one of India's first and best-known urologists and set up the urology department at AIIMS; Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan recipient Dr J.S. Bajaj is an internationally renowned diabetologist; Dr S.S. China is one of India's most famous neurophysiologists.

Surjeet has for long been one of the most visible faces of the Communist movement. Justice Kuldip Singh authored several pathbreaking green judgements during his tenure. Jaspal Bhatti filtered India's turbulent times through his sharply comic lens. A.S. Samra took over as Bombay police chief just after the post-Babri Masjid demolition riots, and then had to restore peace to a sickened city all over again after the serial bomb blasts. Posted to a terrorised Punjab, K.P.S. Gill made it his mission to wipe out militancy. Former Bihar chief secretary Saran Singh did a stint as Assam Governor and now edits the Sikh Review in Calcutta, the community's only theological-cultural journal.