Amar Singh Chamkila was one of the much-loved singers in Punjab, whose songs, high vocals, and out-of-the-box lyrics etched a place in the hearts of music lovers. While people were used to listening to songs about heroism and romance, Chamkila introduced a new genre of music that talked about social taboos. The touch of realism in the lyrics instantly sparked a liking in the hearts of everyone out there, making Chamkila one of the best back in the '80s. However, his growing popularity also brought the singer a tragic fate as he and his wife, Amarjot were killed in an akhada in Mehsampur, Punjab, where they were supposed to perform.
Imtiaz Ali recently made a film on Amar Singh Chamkila, featuring Parineeti Chopra and Diljit Dosanjh, which gave the audience a closer view of the singer's life. Earlier than that, filmmaker, Kabir Singh Chowdhry made a film, which he named Mehsampur. In an interview, Kabir stated that one of the three shooters of Chamkila and Amarjot is still alive. However, Chamkila's former secretary, Manku divulged details about the tragic day while mentioning that a policeman had told him that the killers suffered and then subsequently were killed.
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In an interview with Cine Punjabi, recalling the tragic day of Chamkila and Amarjot's assassination, Manku revealed that the singer was paid Rs. 8000 for his performance. He also added that Chamkila and Amarjot wanted to have a meal before reaching the place where they were going to perform, so Manku arranged food and headed toward the akhada to check if everything was fine. After that, he called the singer and his wife to come there.
Recalling the incident, Manku, in the same interview, stated that Amar Singh Chamkila and Amarjot's shooters were among the crowd, and they waited for the right moment to knock down the singer and his wife. Manku said no sooner did he address the audience to clap for Chamkila and Amarjot than he heard loud bangs. In Manku's words:
"The shooters were among the crowd. They could have shot him on the way. They could have shot him after he’d stepped onto the stage. Who knows, even I might have been shot if they’d fired at the stage. But they waited. Chamkila arrived in his car in grand fashion, it was a scene straight out of a movie. I said, ‘Put your hands together, Chamkila is here’.’ No sooner than I’d said this, I heard loud bangs.”
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In the same interview, Manku shared how, after understanding what had happened, he jumped off the stage and got stuck in the fallen chairs. Chamkila's former secretary revealed that one of the eye-witnesses described to him that after knocking down Chamkila and Amarjot, the shooters did bhangra and kept a letter on his chest, which was drenched in blood. Sharing that he read the letter and picked up the bodies himself, Manku revealed:
"You aren’t getting out of this alive.” He added, “One person next to me described what she saw, I was too scared to look out. She said, ‘There are three men, they’re doing the bhangra. They’ve kept a letter on Chamkila’s chest’. I saw that letter later, I read it. It was drenched in blood. They left on scooters. I picked up the bodies myself.”
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It's still under covers why Amarjot and Amar Singh Chamkila were brutally killed, but several theories have been attached as reasons for this assassination. While some believe that jealousy among others toward Chamkila was the cause of his tragic demise, others stated it was due to his controversial lyrics, which talked about social issues. On the other hand, it's also believed that the Sikh militants killed the singer and his wife due to the insurgency and the Khalistan movement of that time.
What do you think about Manku's revelations? Let us know!
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