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Chasing The Rooster:
Fauja Singh, The Turbaned Tornado

A Book Review by T. SHER SINGH

 

 

"Turbaned Tornado" has been selected sikhchic.com's Book of The Month for July, 2011.

 

 

TURBANED TORNADO, by Khushwant Singh. Rupa, New Delhi, 2011, pp 114. Rs. 250.

 

Being born and brought up a thousand miles from the land of my ancestors, I hungered for good literature on Sikhs and Sikhi, Punjab and Punjabiyat, through my teenage years.

The first book that truly satisfied my need - and remains the ultimate classic in the field - was Prakash Tandon’s Punjabi Century. It not only fills in the gaps left by the stories I have garnered from my parents and grandparents, but it actually paints a dynamic picture. True to its blurb, it is “the fascinating story of a virile people”.

Once my appetite had been whetted, I sought elsewhere for more.

Nanak Singh’s novels in Punjabi introduced me to a three-dimensional Punjab, but in the vocabulary of Punjabi/ Gurmukhi. Prof. Mohan Singh’s poetry gave me an added taste of the land’s trademark joie de vivre.

Many other treasure-lodes followed, ranging from Gurdit Singh’s “Mera Pind” (in Punjabi) to Tara Singh Bains’ “The Four Quarters of The Night” (edited by Hugh Johnston).

The more I read, the more I yearned to learn.

Since I began my journey, the Sikh and Punjabi world has spread out its arms and now encompasses the world, literally. Guru Nanak’s veiled blessing has come to full fruition - Sikhs now enrich wide-spread and far-flung communities, and with the advent of cyber-space, interface with each other and with the world at large more never before.

Hence the growing need now for us to learn more about each other, as we live multifarious and multinational, even international, lives.  

Dr. Surjit Kaur’s “Amongst The Sikhs” was an early attempt to examine this new species of the global Sikh, followed by a number of laudable attempts by Gurmukh Singh (“The Rise of Sikhs Abroad”, “A Hero of American Hearts: Dr. Harvinder Singh Sahota”, “California Dreams”) to introduce the principal players in each region.

This new genre, if I may call it, made a giant leap forward with the arrival of young Khushwant Singh, a farmer from Hoshiarpur, Punjab, now an author, journalist and chronicler of Sikhs of the new century.

He began with “Sikhs Unlimited” (2007), a collection of essays about fifteen Sikh-Britons and Sikh-Americans who have done their bit to change the world for the better.

Three years later, he brought out “Mending Souls“, the biography of Sikh-American entrepreneur, Ratanjit Singh Sondhe who, having shepherded a successful business venture to dizzy heights, has now turned to sharing his unique brand of corporate skills, coupled with spiritual wisdom steeped in his Sikh upbringing, with the world at large through his writings as well as his syndicated radio and television programs.

With these two books under his belt in quick succession, he is now back with his latest offering: “Turbaned Tornado”, a biography of the centenarian marathoner. Fauja Singh, who continues to wow the world with his feats of physical stamina in the face of biblical longevity.   

Fauja Singh needs no introduction. There are few people in the world who haven’t heard of this extraordinary man who turned 100 last April, but continues to knock down athletic records and presumptions about advanced age and physical fitness.

Everyone knows of Fauja Singh’s legendary prowess, his humility and simplicity, his witticisms, his generosity, his indifference to fame and publicity, his simple village and farming background hailing back to Punjab, his role as “poster-boy” for Adidas, his dapper appearances in the world’s capitals in smart suits, matching turbans, illustrated ties and, yes, high-priced running shoes …

Yet, beyond the hurried sound-bites and the highlights of his herculean story - which always gloss over the first nine decades of his life - little has been known about him.

Until now.

Khushwant Singh’s “Turbaned Tornado” rectifies the error that has become the hallmark of modern journalism, with the first in-depth look at this real-life winged Mercury.

The 114-paged book is an easy read, neatly divided into almost two dozen chapters, each zeroing in on a different aspect of his life.

It begins with his early life - which, as I pointed out earlier, has hitherto covered nine-tenths of his life - and takes us through his exceptional childhood: he didn’t start walking until the age of five; he suffered from weakness in his legs, and couldn’t walk any significant distance until he was 15 …

His nickname was “Danda” - stick!

How he transformed from the spindly kid to the champion in chasing “kukkarrs” - a game which involved chasing and catching roosters - is part of the delight, as the author intertwines tales from Punjab with the goings-on in Britain, between the past and the present, from the pre-marathon era hidden in total anonymity, to the heady days of international acclaim.   

As the tale unravels, Fauja is always there, standing over your shoulder, with his timely interjections or earthy pearls of wisdom which the author aptly calls “Faujanomics”.

There’s triumph and tragedy in Fauja Singh’s life and, as voyeurs, we learn of the well-springs of strength he has at his disposal.

His love for family, his bottomless humility, his unquestioning faith in Sikhi, his childlike innocence, his self-tailored dietary regimen, his impish naughtiness, his no-nonsense approach to what passes as “modernity” … these intermingle to give us a more complete picture of what makes this man wake up every morning and do what he does, without paying any serious heed to the distractions that surround him.         
 
We meet the coach, Harmander Singh, who entered Fauja Singh’s life a mere dozen years ago, and became Michelangelo to Fauja Singh’s David. We learn how Harmander Singh negotiated his relationship with his octogenarian protégé, and then trained him from a life-long non-athlete to a world-class marathoner!

There’s more.

You learn exactly how Harmander Singh brilliantly took Fauja Singh through each stage. And, as a bonus, we are - at the end of the book - given 21 pages packed with a detailed “Prescription for Aspiring Long Distance Runners.” It is a phenomenal guide and user friendly to boot. When I first went through it, it inspired me enough to get me musing whether indeed I should start preparing for a marathon … it made it look so do-able.

And then, I caught myself shaking the thought out of my head with the words: “Naa-ah! I’m too old for it!”

Then I stopped, and laughed my head off as I saw the irony of it all: a 61-year old declaring he’s too old to follow in Fauja Singh’s footsteps!

It simply underlines the walking - no, running - miracle that Fauja Singh is.

I challenge you to read the chapter on “Diet” and not stop to scratch your head to examine your own lifestyle, even if it is only for a short while. I must confess it’s been haunting me for days, since I read it.

His “Daily Routine” will similarly grab you as well.

But what really stopped me in my tracks was the litany of stats that you find sprinkled throughout the book.

Wait till you see the comparative table of running times, as Fauja Singh gets older, year after year.

Or - my favourite - is the chapter titled “Human Marvel”.

The University of Westminster in London, at the behest of the BBC, undertook detailed and elaborate scientific tests on four outstanding “elderly” athletes. Fauja Singh was 99 years old then, the next younger one being a 77-year old female  swimmer, followed by a 71-year old male hurdler, and a 63-year-old female endurance athlete.

I won’t give away the results. All I can say is that even though I have known S. Fauja Singh for several years and spent enough time with him on a number of occasions to hero-worship him, when I read the findings of the study, it instantly shot my esteem for him sky-high.

It makes you believe in the biblical legend of Methuselah!

The book is well presented. The cover boasts one of the masterpieces of Amrit and Rabindra Kaur Singh - The Singh Twins - that adorn the Museum of London Collection. There are 16 pages of well-selected colour illustrations from Fauja Singh‘s life.

The book - and this addresses my perennial gripe with publications from India - is relatively free of typos and is far better edited than most other publications I have come across from the subcontinent.

But it could still benefit from an editor from the diaspora who could rid it of the many Indianisms that could prove to be distractions to many a reader.

For example, the fascination with blondes, or Punjab’s colourful street language, or Scotch, is obvious through frequent references to them throughout the book. However, I’m not sure whether it belongs to the subject, or if it is the author’s own.

But it is a fun book to read and worth every penny. I recommend it unequivocally.

 

The book is available on the following sites:
www.flipkart.com (for Indian users)
 
Orders can also can be directed via www.paypal.com to khushwant.ahluwalia@gmail.com (US $13.00. The book will be sent by registered post).

July 1, 2011   

Conversation about this article

1: Bibek Singh (Jersey City, USA), July 01, 2011, 2:07 PM.

Thanks for the wonderful review and other details. I just ordered this book via Paypal (on Amazon, it is for $25!) I eagerly look forward to reading it. In our local gurdwara's annual magazine, we published a small section by the name - "Proud to be a SIKH". We published about respected Fauja Singh ji's story under this category. Please refer the magazine at www.nnjgurudwara.com.

2: Gurinder Singh Johal (Amritsar, Punjab), July 04, 2011, 11:54 PM.

When I work with tourists from Britain, they talk about two Sikhs. One is Monty Panesar and the second is Fauja Singh. I feel proud of their achievements. Thanks to Fauja singh ji for bringing glory to all Sikhs.

3: Gurmeet Kaur  (Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.A.), August 01, 2011, 10:52 AM.

I just finished reading this wonderful tribute to this wonderful young man. I agree with the review here, it is a must-read for anybody in need of any real inspiration in life. The book is full of good stuff to motivate you (sans the gratuitous references to blondes, scotch, etc.) - at the end of each chapter, you want to read more and more about Fauja Singh. It finishes in no time and leaves you uplifted and with a tool to train yourself towards fitness. After finishing my book, I skipped the evening snacks and went for a walk/run in the park instead, with a grin on my face and thoughts of the loveliest and most spirited man I have ever met.

4: Mandeep Dhillon Hayer (Sukhna, Punjab), November 09, 2011, 12:27 PM.

Based on the book review and comments, and otherwise too, I like the man. i will certainly get the book and read it. Though I lead my life based on healthy eating habits, the book will certainly help me improve on other aspects. The author deserves praise as well.

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Fauja Singh, The Turbaned Tornado"









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