"Next time I saw him, he was in a coffin": Nimrat Kaur recalls father's death in Kashmir
Actor Nimrat Kaur opens up about the traumatic loss of her father, Major Bhupener Singh, in a Kashmir terror attack.
In a deeply emotional revelation, actor Nimrat Kaur has opened up about the traumatic loss of her father, Major Bhupener Singh, who was killed in a terror attack in Kashmir. Recalling the incident that changed her life forever, the actor shared how a routine day of duty turned into a nightmare that left her family shattered.
A sudden abduction and a family's collapse
The tragedy struck when Nimrat was just 11 years old. She recounted how her father was kidnapped while returning from a duty assignment. The perpetrators, posing as soldiers in army fatigues, intercepted him during his transit. For seven days, the family endured a harrowing period as terrorists made various demands, including the release of captives held in India.
The ordeal ended on the seventh day when the family received the devastating news that he had been assassinated. "I saw my father leave for work that morning. I just remember him leaving and then after that the next time I saw him was in a coffin," Kaur shared, noting the profound lack of closure that accompanies such sudden violence.
The strength of a mother
The actor spoke with immense respect about her mother, who was in her early to mid-30s when the tragedy occurred. Following the assassination, her mother was left to raise two young daughters single-handedly.
"The world she knew collapsed. We were just two young girls she was bringing up," Kaur remarked. She praised her mother's incredible resilience, stating that the way she rebuilt their lives with such dignity and respect is something she finds deeply inspiring and rare.
A lasting impact on perspective
Even decades later, the actor admitted that the loss remains a heavy presence for her family. The experience of navigating grief from such a young age has shaped her understanding of the emotional cycles families undergo following terror attacks.
While Nimrat Kaur has gone on to build a successful career in cinema—most recently seen in The Family Man 3—she remains deeply connected to the lessons of perseverance learned from her family's survival and her father's bravery.