In a heartfelt interview, Nimrat Kaur revealed how she became the pillar of strength for her family, supporting her grieving mother and younger sister after the loss of her father. The acclaimed Bollywood actress recently shared how the sudden and tragic death of her father, Major Bhupender Singh, profoundly changed her life and helped shape the woman she has become today.

Nimrat Kaur Reflects on the Moment That Changed Her Life After Her Father’s Passing

In January 1994, Nimrat Kaur’s father, Major Bhupender Singh, was stationed in Kashmir when he was tragically killed by a group of terrorists at the age of 44. He lost his life after refusing to release some arrested militants. Nimrat, the eldest daughter, was just 11 years old then. Though the loss was devastating, over time she began to understand the harsh reality of the situation.

When Nimrat was still a child, her mother, just in her mid-thirties, was suddenly widowed. Overnight, Nimrat found herself becoming the emotional support for her family. In a heartfelt and candid interview with Zoom, Nimrat opened up about this experience:

“My mother went through her own cycle of ups and downs and carried such deep sadness within her… I was just trying to be there for her in my own way, thinking I needed to be normal, to be strong… And then, sometimes, you don’t want to be strong—you just want to be a child, to make mistakes like any kid would. A lot of those liberties were taken away. I had to grow up really fast.”

Nimrat was raised in Delhi, completing her schooling and college there, but the trauma she experienced left a lasting impact on her early years. At just 11 years old, she struggled to fully understand the weight of the situation. For a time, her focus was more on getting through the chaos than mourning the loss of her family’s pillar. Reflecting on the moment she felt the need to support her grieving mother after her father’s passing, the Airlift actress opened up:

“I lost my father to terrorism when I was 11. It was a strange and violent way to lose a parent, and from that moment, everything changed… the reality of what had happened didn’t hit me right away. I think it will sink in much later.”

Nimrat Kaur Reflects on Slowly Coming to Terms with Her Father’s Absence

It wasn’t until a year after her father’s tragic passing that Nimrat Kaur fully understood what it meant to grow up without him. Major Bhupender Singh, her father, was not just a highly respected officer in the Indian Army but also an extraordinary man who had risen from modest beginnings. Beyond his impressive career, it was his steadfast faith in his daughters that truly defined him. Reflecting on the impact of his absence, Nimrat shared:

“I realised only a year later what it meant to grow up without him, the first man in your life, your father. He was a shining example of a human being… He was an exceptional father, so proud of his daughters. In a society that often values sons over daughters, he stood apart. When I was born in Pilani, someone said to him, ‘Oh, you had a daughter,’ and he replied, ‘That’s exactly why I’m celebrating, because I had a daughter.’ The wings he gave me during those 11 years formed the foundation of who I am today.”