Heart and Soul: Daring escape from forced labour during Japanese Occupation

A sketch of the scene at the bridge, and the escape from the Japanese. Photos: Raajdip Singh RandhawaDo you have any real-life, heart-warming stories to share with readers? We'd love to hear from you. Please keep your story within 900 words. Photos are optional and should be in JPEG format . There is no payment for stories, and we reserve the right to edit all submissions. Email your story to: lifestyle@thestar.com.my with the subject"Heart and Soul".

My great-grandfather Banta Singh had, on that fateful day, gone by bicycle to Batu Gajah to buy some essentials. Just out of Batu Gajah town, there was a Japanese roadblock. They stopped him. Nobody in the Sikh settlement knew where my great-grandfather was. In those unruly days, anything could have happened.

He had heard that some men had been taken from Malaya to Burma to build the Death Railway line there. My great-grandfather thought hard and prayed fervently, then made up his mind to make his escape.He knew that the Japanese were not going to allow him to go as he was a very able workman. The river water was muddy. There were flood lights up and down the river for about 100m on both sides.

The flow of the river was of help as he was swimming downwards. His experience swimming in the ponds and pools around the village, and even his work in dredging, came in handy. But it felt like an eternity that he was underwater.

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