A watch, running shoes and end of marathon

Fauja Singh had always understood the value of time, not just as a marathon runner who defied age, but as a man who cherished every moment. A day before his passing, the 114-year-old showed his beloved Rado watch to his youngest son Harvinder Singh with a quiet smile.

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The next day, after Fauja Singh’s sudden death, the same watch was placed in Harvinder’s hands by the doctor. Overcome with grief, he broke down.  “I never imagined that the watch he showed me with such love would be the last time I'd see him like this," he said, his voice trembling.

Fauja Singh met with a fatal road accident on Monday at Beas village, Jalandhar. His sudden death has left the family shattered. “If he had died naturally or after an illness, we might have found some peace. But his life was taken by someone else and that’s something we can’t come to terms with,” an inconsolable Harvinder shared.

Fauja Singh lived with Harvinder, daughter-in-law Bhanjeet Kaur and a granddaughter. His elder son and two daughters reside abroad, while another son and daughter had passed away years ago.

Despite his age, Fauja Singh had a sharp sense of style. “He adored branded things. Shoes, clothes and even his socks had to match his outfit,” Harvinder recalled with a faint smile.

Balbir Singh, a close friend of the family, visited Fauja Singh daily. He was the first to find him after the accident. “He was conscious but in terrible pain. He was trying to say something, but I couldn’t make out what it was. I will always remember him as warm, funny and kind,” Balbir told The Tribune.

Bhanjeet Kaur said her father-in-law avoided doctors as he disliked medicines and injections. “Even when sick, he would recover on his own. We never thought he would leave us like this, badly injured and forced to undergo painful treatment at the hospital” she said.

When The Tribune visited Fauja Singh’s home, mangoes lay scattered in the courtyard. The house, once alive with his voice singing Gurdas Mann’s “Umra ch ki rakheya, dil hona chahida jawan” and “Baike dekh jawana baabe bhangra paunde ne”, was now silent.

Harvinder smiled through tears, remembering his father’s quirks. “He would eat 8-10 mangoes at once. No one could stop him. And not a day passed without his ‘alsi (flaxseed) pinni’. Those small joys are gone with him.”