Sikh Beard Swag
According to Urban Dictionary (is there another source?), “The single most manly, and great thing a man can do [is grow a beard]. To have a beard is to be a true man. If you have a beard, show it off proudly, and enjoy the satisfaction of the envy in the eyes of people around you who don’t...
The Roar of a Lioness: Sikh Women in the Diaspora
Posted by Sundari in Activism, Art, Canada, Events, History, Human Rights, Media, Sikhi, USA, Women on 04 20th, 2011 | 8 Comments
Our mothers and grandmothers would be proud. If we take a moment to pause, we’ll see the amazing mobilization that is occurring in the diaspora around Sikh women’s issues, particularly by youth. I’m not quite sure if it is a legit rise in websites or events or whether we are simply...
Vaisakhi {for Sikh Children}
Image: Copyright Saffron Press
As a very proud Masi, I often find myself wondering how we can make events such as Vaisakhi, more meaningful for the next generation. Why is it that we exchange cards and gifts during Christmas, and yet for Vaisakhi, a Facebook status update suffices? While I fully...
People’s Party of Punjab
As we follow news on pro-democracy uprisings across the globe, Panjab has joined this conversation in it’s own way. On Sunday March 27th 2011, Manpreet Badal announced a brand new political party in preparation for February 2012 elections in Punjab. Thousands gathered at Khatkar Kalan village,...
Roots of Love: Exploring Hair in the Sikh Community
Conversations about hair are often emotional for Sikhs – and therefore they are conversations which we tend to avoid. For many Sikhs, it is a constant struggle to explain the historical significance of keeping our hair and/or wearing a turban while other Sikhs will argue that simply keeping your...
Soho Road – Five Rivers to Five Boroughs
An exhibition showcasing British Bhangra music and Culture, titled ‘Soho Road to the Punjab’, will be crossing the pond from the UK to New York City on March 18th 2011 at 6pm. The USA version of the exhibition, Soho Road – Five Rivers to Five Boroughs, will be the world’s first visual...
Raising Bilingual Children
I recently came across information about Speaking in Tongues, a documentary which follows four diverse children on a journey to become bilingual. As the website states, “At a time when 31 states have passed “English Only” laws, four pioneering families put their children in public schools...
The Changing Face of the Darbar Sahib
On a recent visit to Amritsar, one of the topics of interest was the newly approved plan by Chief Minister Badal for the revamping of the entrance to the Darbar Sahib. The plan includes a “state-of-art” restructuring of the entrance plaza.
According to one article, the new entrance would address...
A Spiritual Journey to the Guru’s Abode
A luxury train, costing about $10,000 per passenger, and traveling to the five takhts throughout India has begun it’s journey. The nine-day trip will begin in New Delhi and will stop at Keshgarh Sahib, the Akal Takht, Damdama Sahib, Hazoor Sahib and Patna Sahib.
The 21-coach train includes two...
Five River Flow/Beautiful Butterfly
So, in the new year we’ll be bringing about some changes to TLH and we hope that one of these changes will be a better way of highlighting events happening in and around North America.
In the meantime, for our California Langar Hall family, you can catch Sikh Knowledge + Mandeep Sethi + Humble...
Punjab’s Growing Drug Problem
The following video, from the BBC, shows a sad reality of the growing drug problem in Punjab. High unemployment rates have inevitably contributed to this problem. While the video only highlights Punjabi men, it is well known that young Punjabi women are also suffering from this addiction. I can’t...
The Rebel
Posted by Sundari in General on 11 18th, 2010 | Comments Off on The Rebel
For those of you who are following the Sikh hip-hop scene, Navdeep Singh Dhillon’s blog has a good overview of each of the musicians who’ll be in attendance at the upcoming Lahir 2010: Move the Movement event in New Jersey. Here’s an excerpt about one of the rappers whose name means...
Lahir 2010 & Tears and Ashes
Posted by Sundari in Activism, Art, Entertainment, Events, Human Rights, Music, Sikhi on 11 10th, 2010 | 3 Comments
Though Sikhs have settled all around the world, roughly 20 million Sikhs still reside in Punjab. There, and elsewhere, Sikhs are facing serious problems including, but not limited to: farmer suicide, female infanticide, drugs and alcohol abuse, domestic violence, economic disasters, disease, poverty,...
Community Advisory: Turbans to Always be Searched at US Airports
Posted by Sundari in USA on 11 5th, 2010 | 3 Comments
This morning the Sikh Coalition, SALDEF and United Sikhs issued Alerts advising the community that Sikhs should now expect turbans to be searched 100% of the time at American airports. The alert has been copied below so that community members are aware of this prior to arriving at airports around...
SikhLens: Sikh Art and Film Festival
We have previously written about SikhLens, an art and film festival which brings together Sikh filmmakers, authors, artists and actors. For those of you who support the development of Sikh arts, you will be pleased to know that the second annual Sikh Art and Film Festival (SAFF) will be held from...
Sikhs@War
A new film, by Turbanology filmmaker Jay Singh-Sohal, discusses the presence of Sikhs in the World Wars. Sikhs at War is a free online educational short-film exploring one young person’s journey to discover the invaluable contribution made by his community during the First World War. This documentary...
In Memory of Sardar Jaswant Singh Khalra
Today we remember human rights activist, Jaswant Singh Khalra. Jaswant Singh Khalra discovered cremation records that proved Indian security forces illegally killed thousands of Sikhs in the 1980s and 1990s. Khalra connected the police to the disappearances of over 2,000 Sikhs in Amritsar district,...
Nourishing Souls at the Darbar Sahib
Anyone who has been blessed enough to visit the Darbar Sahib in Panjab will always speak about the amazing experience of Langar that takes place there. A free meal is provided to about 80,000 people each and every day. For those who have not visited the “Golden Temple” or perhaps are...
Sikh Artists + Hip-Hop
Posted by Sundari in Events on 08 22nd, 2010 | 30 Comments
For those of you who will be in or around Northern California [actually, if you’re in or around North America you should come!] be sure to check out this upcoming event featuring Humble the Poet, Mandeep Sethi, Hoodini, Baagi Gunjiv, DJ Rav-E and more.
This is the first event of its kind in the...
On Either Side, Punjab is Punjab
In Pakistan's flood-ravaged Punjab province, roads are impassable.
One-fifth of Pakistan is under water.
900,000 people are now homeless.
Up to 20 million are impacted – more than the number of people affected by the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, the 2005 Kashmir earthquake, and the 2010 Haiti...
