Remembering 98-year-old Edinburgh Sikh community leader Sapuran Singh Bhai ahead of Leith funeral procession
A colourful funeral procession will light-up Leith on Monday as the local community gathers to remember the founding father of Edinburgh's Sikh Community - Sardar Sapuran Singh Bhai.
The Edinburgh Sikh community is mourning the loss of one of its most beloved and pioneering figures. Sardar Sapuran Singh Bhai, who would have turned 99 this year, passed away recently, leaving behind a legacy that stretches across more than seven decades of Edinburgh life, a family of 140 direct descendants, and a community he helped build from nothing.
He was one of the founding members of the Sikh community in Edinburgh, helping to establish what would become the Edinburgh Gurdwara at Mill Lane — an institution that today serves thousands.
Archive photographs from 1965 show him at Hopefield Terrace, one of the early gathering places of the Edinburgh Sikh community, alongside fellow pioneers who helped lay the foundations of organised Sikh life in Scotland's capital.
Born in Punjab, India in 1927, prior to the Partition, Mr Singh arrived in Scotland in 1949 as a young man of around 15 or 16 years old.
In his own words, he previously said: "I came from India in 1949. I was 15 or 16 years old. I lived with my brother-in-law and sister in Glasgow for a couple of months, then Dundee and Aberdeen. Then I came to Edinburgh and settled."
Edinburgh became his home, and he never left. Like so many of his generation, he came here to work. He began with door-to-door sales before opening his own shop in Leith — a business his children would later join.
The colourful funeral procession on Monday is scheduled to arrive at the Edinburgh Gurdwara, 1 Mill Lane, at 1.30pm, where the community will gather to remember Mr Singh, before heading to Warriston Crematorium for the funeral at 3.30pm.
The funeral cortege of a horse and carriage, eight limos and six mini buses will then head back to Mill Lane for 5pm.
Paying tribute, Mr Singh’s eldest daughter Ragbeer Kaur said: “Sapuran Singh Bhai was not just a member of Edinburgh's Sikh community — he helped create it.
“He was a respected father to his six children, Jasbeer Singh Bhai, Gurmit Singh Bhai, Ragbeer Kaur, Balbeer Kaur, Pabhinder Singh Bhai and Rajwant Kaur.
“With the support of his loving wife Sarjit Kaur Singh Bhai, they championed education and taught us to present ourselves with dignity and self-respect at all times.
“His profound teachings, principles and belief in equality served as a guiding force throughout our lives and will continue to guide future generations.
“His loving and kind nature was a defining part of his character. He will always be loved and deeply missed by his family, the Sangat, and by Leith itself.”
Mr Singh and fellow members of Edinburgh's Sikh community performed at the Leith Festival in 1971, showcasing Sikh music and culture at an international night in Leith Town Hall.
A contemporary newspaper cutting described them as "Hitting the High Notes — Sikh Style", noting that members of the Sikh community provided their own brand of music at the event. It was a proud moment of cultural contribution to the city they had made their home.
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Mr Singh’s grandson Hari Singh added: “He was a Leither through and through, and Leith knew it — a local artist immortalised him in a striking print simply titled ‘Leither’, a testament to how deeply embedded he became in the fabric of the city.
“The funeral will be a colourful affair, all the men in the family will proudly be wearing a tartan tie and all the women will be wearing a Scottish scarf to showcase our Scottish heritage, and to remember a great community man.”
At the heart of everything was his family. Sapuran Singh leaves behind approximately 140 direct family members — children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren — a family that grew out of the quiet determination of a young man who arrived in Scotland with almost nothing and built a life of extraordinary richness.