Arjan Singh Nalwa

Some Lesser Known Facts About Arjan Singh Nalwa

• Arjan Singh Nalwa was a minor jagirdar in the Sikh Empire who fought against the Mughals in the nineteenth century. He was the younger son of Hari Singh Nalwa, the Commander-in-chief of the Sikh Khalsa Fauj. In 2023, a song titled ‘Arjan Vailly’ based on Arjan Singh was included in the Hindi language action thriller film Animal.

• His family had its roots in Majitha, near Amritsar, Punjab.

• Arjan’s father, Hari Singh Nalwa, was popularly known as Baagh Maar for bravely defeating a tiger with a dagger. Hari Singh fought actively to conquer Kasur, Sialkot, Attock, Multan, Kashmir, Peshawar and Jamrud. Hari Singh Nalwa was born into an Uppal Khatri family in Gujranwala, Punjab. When he was 10 years old, he took Amrit Sanskar and was baptized as a Sikh.

• Arjan Singh’s grandfather,  Gurdial Singh Uppal, served under Maha Singh and Charat Singh, the ancestors of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. He worked as a horseman and musketeer in their army. Arjan’s grandmother’s name was Dharam Kaur.

• As per sources, Arjan Singh’s grandson Narain Singh received the title of Sardar Bahadur by the British. Narain died in March 1934.

• After Hari Singh Nalwa passed away in 1837, his sons Arjan Singh Nalwa and Jawahir Singh Nalwa fought for the Sikh Empire against the Mughals. Arjan’s brother Jawahir Singh Nalwa played an active role in the Battle of Chillianwala.

• Arjan Singh fought bravely in the battle between the Sikh Empire and the Mughals, causing mayhem on the battlefield with a gandaasi (battleaxe).

• Some sources reveal that Arjan Singh Nalwa was the favourite jagirdar of Kanvar Nau Nihal Singh, the grandson of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. Reportedly, in July 1840, Arjan Singh Nalwa killed one of the servants of Nau Nihal, forcing the servant’s widow to burn herself as Sati. Annoyed with Arjan Singh’s act, Nau Nihal imposed a heavy fine on him.

• While he was fighting for the Sikh’s during the Anglo-Sikh war in October 1948, he locked himself in his fortified house at Gujranwala. At that time, Brigadier Campbell sent a body of troops and a squadron of skinner’s horses towards his house to capture him. However, he escaped from there. Soon after, Arjan Singh died.

• In 2023, a song titled ‘Arjan Vailly’ based on the life and times of Arjan Singh Nalwa featured in the Hindi-language action thriller film Animal starring Ranbir Kapoor in the lead role. The singer Bhupinder Babbal lent his voice to the song which was sung in Dhadi-Vaar music style; Dhadi-Vaar music was used by Guru Gobind Singh ji as a war cry against the Mughals to boost the spirits of his people. The Punjabi singer Kuldeep Manak originally composed and sung the song Arjan Vailly. The lyrics of the song talk about the times when there was a war between the Sikh Empire and the Mughals and describe how fiercely Arjan Singh Nalwa battled in the Anglo Sikh war, using his weapons like axe and kirpan. The song begins with the line “Ho Khade Vich Dang Khadke, Othe Ho Gayi Ladayi Bhari,” which means that there was an intense fight going on in a crowd. The most popular line in the song “Arjan Vailly ne Pair Jod Ke Gandasi Maari” reveals how Arjan Singh Nalwa swung his axe with full force in the fight by joining both his feet. In the end, the song compares Arjan Singh with a lion, adding that Arjan kept the police and government officials under him.