Sardar Mr Jit Singh Mastana, affectionately known as Papa Singh, was awarded the Life Time Achievement Award earlier this week.
It has been a historic week for the Singh family, behind Glasgow’s much-loved Mr Singh’s India restaurant, with Satty Singh appointed Honorary Colonel of an Army Reserve squadron and his father Papa Singh, honoured with this incredible accolade.
Chairman of the Indian Council of Scotland and UK, Neil Lal, presented the award to Papa Singh.
Lal, celebrating Papa Singh, said: “This young man here is a role model not only to the Indian community but to all communities. Hard working, good ethics, good principles, morals, character and integrity.
“He’s ingrained that not only in himself but his family, into Satty, all of his family and children.”
Speaking to Papa Singh, he added: “I respect you for that and well done sir.”
Reflecting on his journey, Papa Singh looked back on his arrival in the UK and the experiences that shaped his life and career.
Also in attendance was MP for Glasgow South West, Dr Zubair Ahmed. Ahmed mentioned that it was “a real honour to be here”, adding that his father’s generation was the same as Papa Singh’s.
Ahmed also reflected on the sense of togetherness within the South Asian community, looking beyond religious differences to the shared heritage that connects people across generations.
He added: “When you cut me open, you cut yourselves open, we are Punjabis. That’s the DNA, that’s where it goes back to.”
Addressing the changing identity of South Asian communities in Scotland, Ahmed spoke about the journey from the generation that first arrived in the country to those who have grown up here and call Scotland home.
He said: “When our parents came here, they were always intending to go back. But we’re not going back now, okay. We’re here, we’re Scottish, we’re British and, more than that, we are contributing.
“We are contributing just as much as everyone else. So this flag, regardless of what anyone tells you more recently, belongs to all of you. You are home. You do not need to go home, you are home.”
Charan Gill MBE, a prominent figure in Scotland’s South Asian restaurant industry, credited Papa Singh’s generation with inspiring his own journey.
He said: “If he could do it, the electricity in that room and the enthusiasm in that room, as a young man fired me up. That was my inspiration. I owe a personal debt to you sir, because you’re one of the reasons that we are where we are today and where my children are today.”
Charan Gill MBE celebrating Papa Singh
Papa Singh’s Life Time Achievement Award is not only a recognition of his own remarkable journey, but a celebration of the family, community and generations he has helped inspire along the way.
Watch: Highlights from the celebration
