Syed Babar Ali and Sardar Harcharan Singh Brar : A lifelong school friendship that transcended borders, faiths

LAST week, Syed Babar Ali dedicated a classroom in memory of his best friend, Sardar Harcharan Singh Brar, at their alma mater Aitchison College in Lahore. Babli Brar, the daughter of Harcharan Brar, came from India to attend this special gathering. Babar Ali and Brar came from very different backgrounds. Brar, born in 1922, was from a Sikh landlord family of Sarai Nanga near Ferozepore; while Ali, born in 1926, hailed from a Syed Muslim business family of Lahore. Both met at Aitchison College in the mid-1930s and developed a friendship that lasted about seven decades and transcended the trauma of the partition, the narrowness of patriotism, and their professional careers. What brought them together was Aitchison College, established as Punjab Chiefs College in 1886 – 140 years ago – which is known for its multi-faith pre-partition roots, and was set up and established to provide quality education to the landed gentry, princes and elite chieftains of Punjab. Babar Ali joined Aitchison College in 1934 at the age of seven, and Harcharan Brar joined in 1937 at the age of 15 years. Despite their age difference, the two became buddies. During their time at Aitchison, Babar Ali was a ‘day-boy’ (day scholar) at Jubilee House, while Harcharan Singh Brar was a boarder at Godley House. They graduated from Aitchison at the same time in December of 1943. Both spoke chaste Punjabi, and while their faith was important to them – one attended the campus mosque built in 1901 while the other frequented the campus Gurdwara built in 1910 – it never got in the way of their deep friendship Both excelled at cricket and tennis, receiving college colours. Both received the prestigious full school sports blazer in 1942. Babar Ali was chosen as the school prefect in 1942, while Harcharan became prefect a year later. Babar Ali received the Albel Singh Watson Gold Medal and the Dane Bhima Gold Medal in 1941. Meanwhile, the Rivaz Gold Medal, the medal for the best-leaving boy, was awarded in 194