AMRITSAR: Dalbir Singh ’s throaty guffaw would draw huge applause year after year as he played Ravana on Ram Lila stages. He was a favourite among the locals.

On Friday, the beloved ‘Ravana’ saved at least eight people before getting crushed under the speeding train that claimed at least 59 people. One of his friends, Rajesh, who was standing a few metres away from the rail track recalled, “I saw Dalbir cry out and rush towards people standing on the track. He pushed at least eight people away but was hit by the train himself.”

On Friday, after the event, Dalbir went home on the other side of the tracks and returned to see the effigy being set on fire. As he approached the tracks, he saw the Jalandhar-Amritsar DMU speeding towards the crowd.

That’s when he made a desperate attempt to save as many people as he could. Dalbir got married last year and had recently posted pictures with his eight-month-old daughter on his social media profile.

Krishan Lal, one of his neighbours, said, “We would often joke with him as he played the role of Ravana in the local Ram Lila every year. We would call him ‘Lankesh’. But what he did on Friday was heroic”.

Dalbir’s mother and wife refused to perform the last rites, demanding the state government should own responsibility and ensure that their family received compensation as Dalbir was the only breadwinner.



In Video: Amritsar train tragedy: Man who played Ravana dies trying to save lives