Sikh Youth Fit to Be Tied

April 6, 2010

Author: Wendy Stueck

Source: The Globe and Mail

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/british-columbia/bc-turban-contest-leaves-sikh-youth-fit-to-be-tied/article1524794/?cmpid=rss1

At a banquet hall in Surrey, a group of boys lined up before rows of full-length mirrors, some of them gripping the tail end of a long strip of cloth in their teeth as they wrestled the metres of material into a tight, symmetrical mound on top of their heads.

As they worked, a group of older men walked back and forth beside them, casting critical eyes on whether the turbans were loose or lopsided and checking their watches to see who could perform the task in the allotted 10 minutes. After his turn on the stage, 13-year-old Dilkamalpreet Singh Phull was wearing a bright orange turban and looking relieved.

“I’m here to see whether I can do it in the time we have,” he said, adding that it was his first time in the competition.