Archive · 12 Aug 2026
Couple flies from Germany to Punjab to honour father's wish
Robin grew up in Germany, but his father was a Sikh from Punjab in India.
His father, Jagtar Singh Toor, moved to Germany long ago to find work.
Jagtar married Robin's German mother there, but the couple never had a wedding in India.
Jagtar passed away in 2017, and Robin wanted to honour his memory.
So Robin decided his own wedding must happen in Punjab, the land of his father's roots.
He married Pia, who was born in Germany, at a Sikh gurdwara in Mohali.
Family and friends from Germany flew about 6,000 km for the grand celebrations.
Pia did not understand Punjabi, but she enjoyed the music, dancing, and big wedding.
Robin's German mother was very happy and wore a traditional Punjabi suit.
After the India celebrations, the couple will hold more festivities in Germany.
Pia Blankermann, 30, and Robin Singh, 42, married in a Sikh laavan phere ceremony at a gurdwara in Mohali, Punjab.
Robin travelled about 6,000 km from Germany to wed in India to honour his late father's Punjabi Sikh roots.
Robin's father, Jagtar Singh Toor, migrated to Germany in the early 1980s and had a court marriage there in 1983.
Jagtar died of a heart attack in 2017, and Robin's late paternal grandparents never witnessed a wedding in Punjab.
Both families, including Robin's German mother Annegret and Pia's mother Regina, joined the five-day trip, with more celebrations to follow in Germany.
- Who
- Robin Singh, a half-Punjabi, half-German basketball coach, and Pia Blankermann, a Germany-born social worker, along with both their families.
- What
- A Sikh wedding ceremony (laavan phere) held in a gurdwara, fulfilling a family wish to have a wedding in Punjab.
- When
- Recently, on a Saturday, during a five-day trip from Germany.
- Where
- A gurdwara in Mohali, Punjab, India.
- Why
- To honour Robin's late father Jagtar Singh Toor's Punjabi Sikh roots and the unfulfilled wish for a family wedding in Punjab.
- Bride
- Pia Blankermann, 30, a social worker from Germany
- Groom
- Robin Singh, 42, a basketball coach, half Punjabi and half German
- Wedding ritual
- Laavan phere, circling the Sri Guru Granth Sahib
- Venue
- A gurdwara in Mohali, Punjab, India
- Distance travelled
- About 6,000 km from Germany to India
- Groom's father
- Late Jagtar Singh Toor, who migrated to Germany in the early 1980s
- Groom's mother
- Annegret Rölleke-Singh, 69, who married Jagtar in 1983
- Future plans
- Another set of celebrations to be hosted in Germany