AUCKLAND – A Sikh man in New Zealand who removed his turban to aid a boy struck by a car received worldwide praise — and then an unexpected bonus.
The Good Samaritan, Harman Singh, said he “wasn’t thinking about the turban” when he saw that a child was bleeding on the ground following an accident outside his home in Auckland on May 15.
“I was thinking about the accident and I just thought, ‘He needs something on his head because he’s bleeding.’ That’s my job — to help,” Singh, 22, said in an interview with the New Zealand Herald.
Singh removed his turban and used it to stem the bleeding — especially significant because in Sikhism, a turban is an article of faith and usually removed only in the privacy of the wearer’s home.
A passerby who witnessed the scene snapped a photo of Singh cradling his turban under the boy’s head at the scene of the accident. The photo of the act of kindness went viral and led a local television news outlet to interview him at his home.
One good turn deserves another
The One News TV crew returned after a few days to prepare a second report about how Singh was handling his newfound fame — but they also had something else in mind.
After the first report aired, viewers noticed that the business student’s house, which he shared with a roommate, was bare of furniture save for plastic chairs and a simple mattress on the floor.
During the second interview inside his home, the reporter asked him if he wanted to furnish his house one day, to which he replied that he would.
The crew then brought Singh outside, where a local business owner surprised him with a set of new furniture.
“Thank you. Thanks a lot. I’m very happy,” a visibly moved Singh said in response, prompting the reporter to tears as well.
In the video, Singh is shown inside his living room as couches and coffee tables are unloading around him.
“It’s the biggest surprise of my life.”
