SACRAMENTO, CA, Sept.3, 94: 50006000 Sikhs from Northern California gathered at Arco Arena to see the famous play Sirhand Di Diwar. The play is about Sikhs’ fight against tyranny. In this play, scenes over 300 years old were recreated. It is the story of how the two younger sons (Zorawar Singh and Fateh Singh) of Guru Gobind Singh ji were put into the walls while alive by the Subedar of Sirhand, Wazir Khan. The extraordinary bravery and sacrifice of these children at such a lender age brought tears into the eyes of audience.
Harpal Tiwara, a famous Punjabi artist for last 20 years, needs to be congratulated for his efforts in bringing Sikh history in the form of a play to California. He clearly showed that Wazir Khan was & mad man preoccupied with his power play. Wazir Khan was warned by his wife and his courtiers against the crime against the innocent children. He was clearly told that his actions were against the (caching of Islam but he didn’t listen, in the end he died as a miserable man and Sirhand was destroyed completely by Sikhs under the leadership of Banda Bahadur. To our knowledge this is the first such function attended by such large numbers outside a Gurdwara. Inspite of some problems with the sound system, the audience was overwhelmed by the contents of the play and the marvelous skills of the actors. Mr. Bernice Richter, Assemblyman for Yuba City/Chico area, who has introduced a recent bill in California Assembly to allow Sikh children to wear kirpans at school was also present at the opening Ceremony. He made a very emotional speech to the Sikhs. Mr, Richter said we are all celebrating the U.S. Constitution and its Amendment which allows all of us to practice our religion. He also said, “Since Lam representing you and I am to uphold the Constitution it is my duty to speak up for religious freedom.” He also said that, “we are all the children of immigrants in this country and we all. Benefit from each other by cultural exchanges.” Management of Sikh Gurdwara Sahib, Tierra Buena, Yuba City and Dr, Jasbir Singh Kang need to be congratulated for their efforts in making the program a success. Mr. Kulwant Singh Johl also contributed to this story.
Article extracted from this publication >> September 9, 1994
