The Bottom Line

Sikh Comics brings to life the story of long dead heroes in The Battle of Saragarhi. Isolated in the North West Frontier, just 20 Sikh soldiers of the British Raj led by their commanding officer Havildar Ishar Singh are trapped by an invading horde of Pathan and Afghan enemies. Rather than surrender, the baptized Sikh warriors gave the battle cry which has become synonymous for the Sikh greeting, "Sat Sri Akal", meaning "The great glory of truth is undying" and fearlessly stood against more than 10,000 advancing troupes. The Last Stand of the 36th Sikh Regiment is a spirited tale combined with valorous imagery of their courageous final seven hours.

 

• Arresting illustrations.
• Well researched with area maps included.
• Informative true historic war story inspires heroism.
• English language narration includes translated verses of scripture.
• Affordable high quality pages printed on medium weight glossy paper.

• Graphic violence.

• The Battle of Saragarhi presented by Sikh Comics.
• Copyright © 2011 Gyan Khand Media.
• ISBN978-81-909637-4-9
• Comic book contains 40 full color illustrated pages written in English. Dialogue boxes include:
  • English narration and dialogue.
  • Translated verses of Guru Gobind Singh and scripture.
  • Romanized Punjabi with English translation.
  • Identifying name tags, lables and inscriptions.
• Printed in India.
• Compiled by design team:
  • Publisher - Daljit Singh Sidhu
  • Script Writer - Daljit Singh Sidhu
  • Art Director Illustrator - Amarjit Virdi
  • Reasearch - Guriqbal Singh Sidhu
  • Artist - Rochak Bhatnagar and Amit Gautam
  • Assistant - Sandeep Singh
  • Colorist - Sawan Madman
  • Graphic Design - Parminder Chand
• Offered by Sikhcomics.com for USD $3.99 includes free world wide shipping.
• • Contact Information:
  • Daljit Singh Sidhu
    Gyan Khand Media
    Po Box 7
    Sangrur 148001
    Punjab, India
  • Email: info@sikhscomics.com
  • Phone
    USA: 1 408 757 0048
    India: +91 843 799 1910

The Battle of Saragarhi - The Last Stand of the 36th Sikh Regiment by Sikh Comics arrived by mail. It's hard to describe the feeling I had when opening the white shipping envelope. A sense of wonderment at entering a magical moment stole over me as a light tingling transported me back through time, to September of 1897.

The Story

I opened the comic book cover to find, on the first two pages, maps charting the hilly region of the North West Frontier of Punjab during British rule fifty years before partition, where this true story took place. I studied the areas closely and felt my self being drawn into the drama unfolding. Page three pictured shooters aiming at a fortress in a panorama of bloodshed which never let up. Page four portrayed the flimsy blockade of a look out station never meant for the siege of battle. Yet it was here on September 12, 1897, that 21Amritdhari (baptized) Sikh soldiers of the 36th Regiment who had been offered terms of surrender, chose death, and held off nearly 15,000 mortal foes for seven long hours, taking more than 600 enemy lives, before breathing their last.

I cringed while I read this true tale of valor, which is not for the faint of heart, and wanted to look away from the images of impending death. No superhero fantasy that could be easily dismissed, I witnessed real heroes die on pages portraying unimaginable courage, and experienced the inspiration of Sikh tradition. Bravery instilled by the nectar of immortal amritinfused with bani (prayers) reinforced the ramparts of martyred souls faced with crumbling defenses and the mortality of their frail human shells, elevating them into illustrious shaheed martyrdom.

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