Geeta Basra on how she and Harbhajan Singh celebrate Guru Nanak Jayanti: Making prashad is a beautiful experience
Geeta Basra talks about learning Sikhism culture, how she and husband Harbhajan Singh celebrate Guru Nanak Jayanti and the values their kids are imbibing
While she was born into a Hindu family with Sikh roots, Geeta Basra learnt the essence of Sikhism only after getting married to cricketer Harbhajan Singh. On Guru Nanak Jayanti today, the actor says, “It’s like a huge festival which the whole of Punjab celebrates like Diwali. The Golden Temple is so beautifully lit up and the whole experience is very beautiful. The teachings of Sikhism, the peace and prosperity and the Guruji’s paath, it’s quite divine.”
Geeta Basra also admits that she falls more in love with her husband seeing him immersed in spirituality during such festivals. “It's not that Bhajji just follows Sikhism; he is God fearing. He has his Babaji who he believes in more than anyone and anything in this world. In fact, he was the one who named him Harbhajan Singh. Bhajji’s nature and his spiritualism is something that we want our kids to follow too,” she says.
The actor adds that their kids—daughter Hinaya and son Jovan—are already showing those values: “When I'm reading the Hanuman Chalisa, Hinaya now knows half of it already and she recites it with me. Whoever my kids believe in, as long as they are good people with good karma, I am happy.”
Geeta recalls serving food to people during langar as one of her most memorable moments of Guru Nanak Jayanti. “We organised a langar at our home, so all the people would come, and I would serve them. And making the prashad is a beautiful feeling. It’s about giving.” Ask her what is that one teaching of Sikhism that really inspires her, and she says, “There's a very good Gurmukhi that Bhajji’s got a tattoo of on his arm, which is from Sikhism. It basically means remain humble in life, no matter how high you go.”