Best-selling author Rupi Kaur comes home to honour victims of Sikh massacre with event in Brampton

Best-selling Brampton author and poet Rupi Kaur will be marking Sikh Heritage Month with an evening remembering those killed in a massacre nearly 40 years ago.

The author, who also produced the Oscar-nominated documentary “To Kill a Tiger,” will take the stage at Brampton’s The Rose Theatre later this month along with humanitarian and activist Ravi Singh to commemorate the 1984 Sikh massacre.

Thousands were killed in riots and attacks on Sikh religious sites following the assassination of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, killed by Sikh bodyguards at her official residence in New Delhi in October 1984.

Kaur and Singh will pay tribute to the lives lost and honour “a pivotal year in Sikh history” at the event, titled “The Spirit Rising.”

“Commemorating the 40th anniversary of a pivotal year in Sikh history, the event will reflect on the human rights abuses of 1984, honoring (sic) the memory of those who lost their lives and suffered great injustices,” the event description reads.

The event promises to show “the resilience and spirit of the Sikh community” in Brampton and around the world.

Kaur was born in Punjab and emigrated to Canada, living in Brampton and attending Turner Fenton Secondary School.

A New York Times No. 1 bestselling author, Kaur has sold over 11 million copies of her works including the collections Milk and Honey, The Sun and Her Flowers and Home Body.

Kaur also worked as an executive producer on “To Kill a Tiger” which warned an Oscar nod this year along with other big names in the South Asian community including Hollywood actors and producers Dev Patel Mindy Kaling.

“The Spirit Rising” runs for one night only on April 12 at The Rose Theatre in Brampton. For more information and to get tickets visit www.tickets.brampton.ca.