Sarbpreet Singh is a writer, podcaster and commentator. He is also the author of the critically acclaimed Night of the Restless Spirits and the bestselling The Camel Merchant of Philadelphia, and the writer-narrator of the Story of The Sikhs podcast which has listeners in over ninety countries. Twitter-@sarbpreetsingh
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Sarbpreet Singh on his New Book "The Story of the Sikhs" in Conversation with Soni Wadhwa
On 27th Nov 6.00 pm - 6.40 pm
“I grew up in a very traditional household, but I wasn't very interested in religion at all. It wasn't very easy for me. But I kept my identity because I thought it would cause a lot of trouble. When I came to the USA for study, I came in contact with Sikh literature available in English. My college library had a book by J D Cunning, "The History of Sikhs", which I read and found fascinating. First time in my life, I developed an appreciation for Sikhs Gurus. Then I move on to other books on subjects. I started reading Punjabi writers. After teaching Sikh history to young children, I decided to put it into the book. I wanted to inspire the younger generation about Sikhism. The book is not written formally because I wanted the book to be utilized academically by historians. The podcast is informal, so many listeners told me to make a book. It wasn't that hard to convert a podcast into a book. Translation of poetry is the important part. My engagement with Gurugranth sahib was in English. At the same time, the translation process changes the essence of the original work. Though I have translated, I would suggest readers go by original to feel the real essence.”