On Gurpurab, artists share how the teachings of Guru Nanak Dev ji will remain true for all times to come

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Gurpurab, also known as Guru Nanak’s Prakash Utsav, is celebrated every year on the birth of the first Sikh Guru, Guru Nanak ji. Here are some artists who have used their respective skills to present Guru Nanak ji according to their understanding.

Constant guide

“I was born inside a gurdwara, so Gurbani was what I heard in my life first,” shares painter and sculptor, Sidharth, who was born as Harjinder Singh. “My parents were ragis, but I was destined to be a painter. But, Guru Nanak ji and Gurbani has been a constant in my life. Even today I daily write mool mantra in gold. Drawing Guru Nanak twice or thrice during the day is also a routine.”

The artist explains there are two ways to draw Guru Nanak ji — iconography and illustration. While in illustration one has to draw keeping in mind the age, time and place, in iconography, only bhav is needed and it surpasses age, time and place.

Shedding boundaries

Harmanjeet Singh, who wrote Aar Nanak Paar Nanak, sung by Diljit Singh, feels when you delve deep into art, reaching the roots and mool of your existence becomes a necessity. The artist shares, “The basis of art, be it dance or writing, is to ignite the memory of god. And when writing in Gurmukhi, one cannot detach from the source of it all — the ideology of Guru Nanak ji and Guru Granth Sahib. For me, reading Japji Sahab and Guru Nanak ji’s teachings have led me to shed sharp boundaries while writing as well as in everyday things.”

In his footsteps

Author-turned-director, Amardeep Singh and his wife Vininder Kaur embarked on a journey to retrace Guru Nanak ji’s footsteps and converted it into the documentary: Allegory, A Tapestry of Guru Nanak’s Travels. It chronicles the sites visited by Guru Nanak ji during his lifetime over 550 years ago. Amardeep shares, “Guru Nanak ji’s message of unity in diversity was, is and will remain a ray of hope for the world.”

Over 260 verses of Guru Nanak ji have been included in the docu-series, which are sung in the traditional raags by Muslim, Hindu and Sikh musicians. Satninder Singh Bodal (India) and Saleema Khawaja (Pakistan) are the two lead musicians in the 24-part docu-series, which is available for free at the site TheGuruNanak.com.

Sensitive subject

Oye Makhna director Simerjit Singh, who has worked in Bollywood as well as Pollywood, says, “There is a lot to learn from the teachings of Guru nank Dev ji and these are like a guiding light for all of us. I had announced a film, Bhai Jaita, with Gippy Grewal in the lead role, back in 2017. We had taken all the permissions but the moment the poster was released, it drew some criticism and we had to stop the process. Religion has always been a sensitive subject.”

Be kind

Kindness and compassion are most important in today’s world because people don’t have these qualities now. Everyone is running; no one has the time for compassion. — Prateik Chaudhary, actor

Respect women

Guru Nanak ji insisted women deserve the same treatment as men. Women are still fighting for basic rights and religious scriptures are often used to justify the treatment that women are subjected to. Contrary to that, centuries back Guru Nanak Dev ji stood for the rights of women. — Arun Mandola, actor

Selfless service

Guru Nanak Dev ji firmly believed that spiritual satisfaction and true contentment can be achieved only through engaging in acts which are completely selfless in nature. This is the idea behind the langar that is offered in gurdwaras. — Anupama Solanki, actress