Ludhiana, October 15: Very few people know that ghazal maestro Jagjit Singh — who died recently — had started his career as a constable in the Punjab Police.
His career as a cop however ended in the late 1950s when he decided to study further.
Ashwani Kumar — now an octogenarian residing in Ludhiana — had helped him get a job in the police. Kumar was the principal at the Police Training College at Phillaur near Ludhiana at that time.
Sohan Singh — the then head of the music department at Guru Nanak Dev University in Amritsar — had brought him to Kumar.
Kumar remembers how he approached Inspector general of Police Sant Prakash with the request for inducting Jagjit in the police. He had been seeking a job to financially support his passion for music. Jagjit Singh served the police band for a few months and then joined DAV College, Jalandhar for his BA in 1959. Jagjit Singh wore a turban at that time. Kumar recalls that he had not recognised Jagjit at a concert at Delhi’s Hotel Ashok.
But, Jagjit Singh called out to him from the stage and told him that he was “ Constable” Jagjit Singh.
Courtesy: Mailtoday.in