Amid the growing hate crime rate against Sikh community in the United States, an 18-year-old girl in the U.S. made a short film titled ‘SIKH’ based on a true story of an Indian American Sikh philanthropist whose campaign forced the U.S. authorities to change their policy towards turban of the Sikh community.
The film, directed by Jenna Ruiz, a student and an actor from Indiana, is based on true incident that took place in 2007 when Sikh businessperson Gurinder Singh Khalsa, was turned down get on a flight in Buffalo, New York when he said no to remove his turban after successfully passing through each security measure at the airport.
Following this incident, Indianapolis-based Khalsa worked towards bringing the issue to the attention of the U.S. Congress, which later resulted in headgear policies being changed in airports across the nation.
Recently, Khalsa was conferred with the prestigious Rosa Parks Trailblazer award for his campaign.
In the short film, Khalsa is made to choose between his religious beliefs and his flight to see his mother in her last days.
“It is an honour to be able to showcase a moment in history that led to change in our TSA (Transportation Security Administration) Policy regarding the removal of headgear,” said Ruiz, who is pursuing a bachelors degree in Nuclear Medicine Technology at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis.
“However, it’s more than that; it’s one man’s real-life story that will shed light on the true vulnerability and fear that comes with being racially profiled – this film will allow viewers to experience firsthand what it is like to be made to choose between religious beliefs and everyday life,” she said.
Since her start in the film industry at the age of nine, Ruiz has had the opportunity to appear in multiple films and commercials, as well as write, shoot and produce several films and music videos.
‘SINGH’ has been filmed at the Indianapolis International Airport and is slated to be released next month.
“I took this stand for all those who believe in religious liberty and freedom of faith,” Khalsa had said earlier in a media statement.
“Incidents like this one happens for the greater good, where misunderstandings occur between people of different backgrounds and faith, strengthen our society,” said Khalsa.
Khalsa recently announced that he will enter electoral politics in America and will run for City Council of Fishers.
-Sowmya Sangam
