Archive · 21 Aug 2026
Learning Shahmukhi Preserved a Sikh Grandfather’s Partition Memory
The author wanted to learn Urdu from her Sikh grandfather.
He had grown up in Bannu, which is now in Pakistan.
When Partition happened, he had to leave home at age 11 and move to India.
His old school knowledge did not match the language and script used in his new school.
He had learned Persian and Gurmukhi, but now had to learn Devanagari for Hindi.
He worked hard, went to school, and helped build a new life in Faridabad.
In 2016, he wrote the Urdu and Shahmukhi alphabet for his granddaughter.
He died soon afterward, so the page became a treasured memory for her.
In 2016, the author began learning Urdu and Shahmukhi from her grandfather, Sardar Jagat Singh Khurana.
Khurana was born in Bannu in 1936 and left his home at age 11 during Partition.
After moving to Faridabad, he had to restart school because he did not know Devanagari.
Although Persian and Gurmukhi had been part of his earlier education, he continued learning English and studied until Class 10.
Khurana died soon after writing the Urdu/Shahmukhi alphabet for the author, who now hopes to resume learning the script.
- Who
- The author and her grandfather, Sardar Jagat Singh Khurana, a Sikh man from Bannu.
- What
- The author began learning Urdu and Shahmukhi from her grandfather and preserved the alphabet primer he wrote.
- When
- The learning attempt began in the summer of 2016; Khurana died soon after writing the primer.
- Where
- Khurana was born in Bannu, in present-day Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, and later lived and studied in Faridabad, India.
- Why
- The author wanted to understand the fourth language her grandfather knew and preserve part of his cultural and Partition-era history.
- Grandfather
- Sardar Jagat Singh Khurana
- Birth
- April 4, 1936, in Bannu
- Migration
- He left his home at age 11 during Partition.
- New school
- He entered a government school in Faridabad and was asked to start in Class 1.
- Languages and scripts
- He knew Persian, Gurmukhi, English, and Urdu-related script traditions.
- Primer
- He wrote the Urdu/Shahmukhi alphabet for the author shortly before his death.
- Author
- The author is a Deputy Copy Editor at The Indian Express.