Century-old Amritsar orphanage basks in glow of film Sardar Udham's success

Tribune News Service

Neha Saini

Amritsar, August 25

As the 69th National Film Awards were announced, a great sense of elation ran across the members and staff of the Central Khalsa Orphanage as one of the their most famous and celebrated inmates, Shaheed Sardar Udham Singh, once again came into limelight. Shoojit Sircar’s acclaimed biographical film Sardar Udham starring the talented Vicky Kaushal, won five national awards in different categories. The film bagged the award for Best Hindi Film, Best Cinematography, Best Costume Design, Best Production Design and Best Audiography (Re-recording) Final Mixing.

Amritsar connection

• Established in 1904 in Amritsar, the Central Khalsa Orphanage is one of the oldest in the region.
• The orphanage, which is currently home to 350 children, once housed the martyr over a century ago.
• Actor Vicky Kaushal who portrays the martyr in the film, visited Central Khalsa Orphanage for information.

As Vicky Kaushal and Shoojit Sircar took to their social media handles to thank the audience and their team, the staff at Central Khalsa Orphanage once again paid tribute to the martyr, who took revenge for the Jallianwalla Bagh massacre on the British Army. Established way back in 1904 in Amritsar, the Central Khalsa Orphanage is one of the oldest in the region. The orphanage, which is currently home to 350 children, once housed the martyr over a century ago.

A young Udham Singh, along with his elder brother, was brought to the orphanage when he was a kid in 1907. Both received new names with Sher Singh becoming Udham Singh and Mukta Singh becoming Sadhu Singh. He stayed at the orphanage and completed his matriculation. Later, he got associated with the Ghadar Party. The orphanage, run by Chief Khalsa Diwan, has also created a small museum in memory of Shaheed Udham Singh, displaying the stuff related to him. A corner of the room has a bed and another corner has a small cupboard in which his lamp and utensils are kept. The room contains a portrait of the martyr. A photograph of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre, old FIR reports and a few photographs are also there in the room. It is said that Udham Singh and his classmates were sent from the orphanage for ‘seva’ to carry the bodies of innocent Indians killed inside the Jallianwala Bagh, a moment that left an impression on the young mind and 21 years later, he went all the way to London and killed Michael O’ Dwyer on March 13, 1940.

During the shooting schedule of the film, actor Vicky Kaushal who portrayed the role of Sardar Udham Singh had visited the Central Khalsa Orphanage to know more about the young martyr. The orphanage also runs a YouTube channel, ‘Chief Khalsa Diwan’, which will talk about religious awareness and also inform about Udham Singh’s life.

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