It is another grey, drizzly Sunday afternoon in West London. Pritpar Singh Chaggar, 16, a first generation British Indian, walks through the entrance of the spectacular new Sikh temple in Southall, his eyes full of pride and wonderment. "I never used to come and pray very often," he says. "But as soon as I walked into this new gurdwara I thought, wow! I was really impressed with the amount of love people show here. I came with a donation of some milk, and people were so kind directing me where to go. This place really brings people together."
Pritpar is typical of a young generation of British Sikhs
who have been inspired by the temple. "This gurdwara has got me
more involved with my religion," Pritpar goes on. "My friends feel
the same way too." The Southall gurdwara was opened in great style
on March 30 this year with an estimated 40,000 people attending.
The stunning temple, covering an area of 6,000 square meters, lies incongruously
amid the bustling streets of Southall. Yet it is hard to think of a more
appropriate place for what is now the biggest Sikh temple in Europe. Southall
is an extraordinary community, hailed by local MPs as an example to the rest of
the world of how people can get on. Thousands of Indian immigrants have settled
here, and the area has become a byword for tolerance and respect.
The temple features a large dome in the center and attractive stained glass
windows, and is finished in marble and granite. The main prayer hall and
gallery have space for 4,000 worshippers. A smaller hall is used for private
functions, a library, and a large langar hall (for community feasts)
which can serve more than 20,000 meals in a festival weekend. There is also an
underground car park with room for over 90 cars.
The worshippers' body language as they arrived at the temple made it clear the
immense pride the temple has imbued in the Sikh community. Older worshippers,
many of whom have visited the Golden Temple in Amritsar back home in India,
wore respectful smiles as they wandered up the steps to the entrance, clearly
impressed. Younger Sikhs approached the gurdwara wide-eyed, excitedly
making the most of their visit.
Without doubt, the most pleasing aspect of the gurdwara's success so far
has been the progress made in achieving a favorable reaction among young Sikhs.
Jaswant Singh, 43, was one of a group of 60 people who had come from Bristol
especially to visit the gurdwara. "It is very beautiful - it
captures the heart, and you go away with an even greater feeling for your
religion. We are looking at the next generation here, looking 200 years ahead.
This temple has laid good foundations, of stones, not bricks, " he says.
Singh's wife, Kalvinar Kaur Roudh, 39, described it as "magnificent".
"It feels like being back home in India. It's just a shame there is no sarovar
[lake] but I guess there are space restrictions."
Shri Wadhwani, 59, had come with his 12-year-old son Chirag. Shri also agreed
that the gurdwara would help the next generation to know more about
their own community. Chirag was happy, saying, "I like the dome, the
stained glass windows and the cool room temperature. It has definitely inspired
me to become more involved with my religion."
Plenty of non-Sikhs have also been to the temple. Tourists come from the US and
Canada, where many natives have converted to Sikhism. The number of such
converts in Britain is much lower, but clearly the Southall gurdwara
increases the chances of there being more.
The temple's immediate popularity will be particularly pleasing to all those
who assisted in the project. The required US$25 million came entirely through
donations from the Sikh community. The gurdwara's president, Himmat
Singh Sohi, explains how far the Sikh community in Southall has come in recent
years. "When I became president in 1993, we had debts of $4 million, and
we went into receivership at that time. By the grace of the almighty and the
support of the community we have got rid of the debts and refurbished. Now the
temple is worth $750 million."
Sohi explains how the success of the project was a model of hard work and
careful financing: "We took out a $15 million loan, of which we have only
used $9 million so far. People are still donating money. Our chief fundraiser,
Rasham Singh Mandhr, proved very influential. This is the only gurdwara
ever to be completed on time. The other day, people were discussing the Wembley
[football stadium] project on the TV news, and were using our gurdwara
as a good example of going under budget."
Meanwhile, it has been confirmed that a representative of the royal family will
visit, and also the deputy mayor of London. Already, the singer Gurdas Mann has
paid a visit.
M S Gill, former chief election commissioner of India, too, visited. He says,
"I am very impressed. I have seen this gurdwara develop since 1967.
There was great hardship for the Sikh community then, but over the decades
things have improved. It's not easy to run a collective body. This place gives
a lot of strength to Sikhs, and it's a great meeting place for children. To me,
this is the hub of maintaining the best community in England - other religions
don't have this. It is a fulcrum for Indians, rather than Sikhs." Gill
perhaps hinted at the most salient point here, as such an outstanding building
says more about the Indian community's growing strength in Britain than any
Bollywood movie, Indian restaurant or musician could ever do.