Jag Singh talks ‘Unbreakable’, Childhood & Racism Experiences

In 1970s East London, racism was not just a backdrop; it was a daily reality. For Jag Singh, childhood meant facing violence, prejudice, and a society that often refused to see him.

His new book Unbreakable: Part One – Wrong Place, Wrong Time… draws on that journey with stark honesty, revealing both the cruelty he endured and the resilience that carried him through.

Singh’s story is not just personal; it is a witness to a period of history too often ignored, a record of survival, identity, and hope under relentless hostility.

Through his words, readers confront the realities of racism and the enduring strength it takes to overcome it.

In an exclusive interview with DESIblitz, Jag Singh delved into his inspiration behind the book as well as some of the painful memories he relived whilst writing it.

Unbreakable is based on your childhood experiences in East London during the 1970s. What inspired you to turn these personal and painful memories into a narrative for readers today?

I had always wanted to be a writer since the age of 13, but life gets in the way. I wrote some short stories and that was that; there was no major project planned.

This changed in 2003, when my first child Josh was born. As I held this beautiful baby in my arms, it dawned upon me that he would never have to go through the brutal childhood that I had been through.

Firstly, I would be there to protect him, and secondly, the world had changed; racism was no longer openly accepted as it was during my childhood.

I came to realise that he would never have to face the brutality, belittlement and hatred that I did from the racists of the 1970s.

Then, I thought about the fact that no one lives forever, and if I didn’t write my story, nobody would ever know that such events ever took place.

That included my children and our future generations.

Why did I want to share my story?

Because it was a story of resilience, willpower, and determination: To keep fighting for your beliefs. I thought to myself, if ever anyone felt disheartened or were in a tough situation, they would be motivated by reading my story and believe that happiness is possible.

I wanted my book to be a beacon of hope, freedom and bravery for those who were facing similar challenges in their lives.

What were some of the hardest moments for you while writing this book?

Oh, there were many. It wasn’t easy reliving those daunting moments. But what kept me motivated was the fact that people who would read my story would be ‘powered up’ by the fact that I always had hope.

I know it’s hard sometimes, but we must never give up; there’s always a solution, a way to happiness, we just have to find it or create it.

“I can’t remember how many times, there are too many, when I just had to stop writing, close my laptop, and walk away.”

I was sad, upset and had to take time out due to the event or situation I was writing about as the memories and emotions came flooding back.

But I knew that the message of ‘survival’ would be my legacy through my book and that’s what made me continue writing.

Sometimes, after writing a challenging memory from my childhood, I just had to hug a member of my family, confirming that those days were finally over.

How did your experiences as a Sikh boy in a hostile environment shape your perspective on resilience and identity?

Due to my dreaded experiences from the 1970s, I realised at a later time in my life that I had become immune to the pain.

The humiliation and mental abuse I had suffered had given me, let’s say ‘crocodile skin’, it had made me stronger.

But it wasn’t like this to begin with when I was in our Canning Town school.

After every abusive encounter, I always asked the question, ‘Why me?’. It took me many years to discover that I was just a kid in the ‘wrong place at the wrong time’.

I was an Indian-Sikh boy with short hair plaits. Most of the British-White people in our town had never even seen an Indian before, let alone an Indian boy with hair plaits.

But we were proud of who we were and always will be. My father constantly reminded us that our ancestors had been Sikh warriors and did not surrender to defeat easily.

We had the same blood flowing through us.

This encouraged me and my brother to be strong and tolerate the pain we endured both physically and mentally.

Whenever I am faced with any tough challenges, I think of my childhood; this always makes the challenge ahead look smaller.

I felt as if the suffering at that time was never-ending. But as the years went on, I found ways to cope, adapt and stay strong.

The main factor behind this was my belief in our Sikh religion. I prayed every single day to the Guru’s, pleading for a way out. I knew it would take time, but eventually, if I kept my faith, I would make it to the other side.

“As I grew up, I realised that those challenges I faced as a child tailored my beliefs and values.”

What happened to me wasn’t right. Things had to change.

Eventually, I would learn how to stand up for justice, help the weak, respect all religions accordingly and find ways to make this world a better place for us all to live in.

I have volunteered and worked for many charities, including the NSPCC (National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children) and visited schools, conducting workshops and assemblies promoting the fact that every childhood is worth fighting for.

This to me, was a dream come true especially after the gruesome childhood I had.

The book highlights issues such as mental health, racism, and bullying. How important was it for you to explore these themes honestly, and what message do you hope readers take away?

When writing about a certain event or situation that took place back then, I had to actually relive all the emotions I encountered at that time.

By doing this, it was easier for me to write exactly how I had felt during the experience. It was so important for me to write about the true emotions I felt when I was being physically and mentally abused.

There are many people out there who sometimes don’t think before they speak or act.

They don’t stop to think about the repercussions of their words and how they could upset someone. I had first-hand experience of this during my childhood on a regular basis.

The bullies didn’t care; the racist teachers didn’t care, none of them did.

The whole idea of my book is to remind people to always be nice, considerate and caring to others, because you don’t know what battles people are silently fighting.

Negative words leave a negative impact. Positive words leave a positive impact.

During my childhood, I thought it was a common thing for me to be abused. It was just the way things were and I had no choice but to accept this.

I mean, how can an eight-year-old take on the National Front? The bullies? Racist teachers? The skinheads? It just wasn’t possible. So, I tolerated the abuse. There was no help.

But today, in this time, no one has to tolerate any abuse due to the laws of the land and there are many support groups that they can reach out to.

Never suffer in silence.

Were there particular events from your childhood that were especially difficult to relive or write about? How did you approach conveying them authentically?

For me, the whole book was an emotional roller coaster ride and I had to relive many of the memories that I had buried a long time ago.

Whenever I wrote about the violence and the bullying, I always got goosebumps. But I kept the belief that my book will send out the strong message regarding the true impact of hatred, and that it needs to stop.

That kept me writing.

I also struggled writing about my defenceless parents who did all they could to protect us.

I imagined being in their shoes many times. They just didn’t know what to do, how to stop the abuse. But they always provided us with faith that the future will be better. They were right.

I mean, as parents how do you explain to your children why your windows are regularly smashed by racists? Life-threatening leaflets keep coming through the post? Skinheads trying to break your door down?

I really did feel for my parents as I wrote about these horrid experiences.

As my brother, Charanjit Singh, and me both experienced the events during our childhood, I had many conversations with him to recap what happened back then.

This was to not only reassure me that I would not miss anything out, but also to see his point of view, which clearly matched mine.

I also used my mental ‘time machine’ to travel back to that time and replay many of the events from start to finish.

I recapped on the emotions I felt at that time, the atmosphere and recreated the event, step by step. The good part was that I didn’t have to stay there; I would always get to come back to the present time.

East London in the 1970s is depicted as a hotspot for racial tension. How did growing up in this environment influence your family dynamics and sense of community?

We called our house ‘Little India’; it was a place where we all found solitude. A place of calmness and tranquillity.

Despite how we were treated outside our house we were all comfortable, loving and bonded together at home.

But the racism my father faced at work, in the streets and by the police eventually took its toll on him.

He was a very peaceful and loving man, but eventually he had no choice but to stand up for himself and his family. He became quiet, hardly talked. He never spoke about it, but we knew he was going through hell just as we were at school.

But he continued to tell us to have faith in our Gurus, and one day things would get better.

Our mum taught us not to tolerate any form of abuse. She was always brave when the skinheads tried to mess with her. Man, she used to get so angry whenever the skinheads threw abuse at us on the streets. This always frightened the cowardly skinheads.

During our stay in Canning Town, Mum made us a special Indian dish to eat every single day! It was the most she could do to put smiles on our faces.

Mum always badgered Dad to call the police and report the incidents that took place, but Dad disagreed. He knew at that time that the police were just as bad as the skinheads. This caused friction between my parents.

At that time, I remember our visits to the local Gurdwara in Barking, we went every Sunday without fail.

The sense of community I felt when we went to the Gurdwara was so comforting. I was amongst the Sikhs, my community, I felt safe.

Every time racists tried to attack the Gurdwara, it was great to see the Sikhs combine their strength to chase off the hooligans. The racists just weren’t strong enough to deal with the mighty arm of the Sikhs.

“These attacks became a thing of the past as the Sikh community grew bigger and bigger in East London.”

Today I regularly visit my local Gurdwara in Grays, Essex and I am a member of the great Sikh Community we have here.

I will continue to thank the Gurus for freeing me from the clutches of hell.

I am so grateful for having an amazing family, and I tell them every day how grateful I am for having them in my life. They are my pillar of strength. My children are well aware of my childhood challenges and appreciate their upbringing.

How did you balance staying true to real-life events while creating a compelling story for readers?

When I originally wrote the first two drafts, I felt as if I was holding back and wasn’t satisfied with my writing.

I had to make a decision to write with a ‘no-holds-barred’ attitude. This meant feeling the actual emotional pain and humiliation I did all them years ago.

This helped me with providing the right amount of information for the book and I stayed on track, covering all the real-life events accurately.

Were there any personal stories or anecdotes from your family that were especially inspiring to include?

There are many throughout the book, but the one that comes to mind is a quote from my mum.

One day, whilst walking home after doing some shopping, we got cornered by three skinheads. I was eight years old, my brother was nine and my baby sister Sharan was in her pram, only four at the time.

We had encountered the skinheads many times when walking the streets but this time was different.

One of the skinheads took a knife out and pointed it at my mum. This we hadn’t seen before. He said, ‘Go back to your country!’

They soon realised that this was a big mistake. Man, my mum was ready to fight these guys! They got so scared they ran off.

I will never forget the great advice my mum gave us on this day. She said, ‘When the skinheads are standing in front of you, never show them that you are scared. You will be, of course, but never let them see that fear. It will only make them stronger.’

We never forgot this golden rule.

Looking back now, decades later, what reflections do you have on the impact of these childhood experiences on your adult life and outlook?

Due to the Neo-Nazi territory we were growing up and me and my brother never thought we would make it to teenagers. We thought we would be dead before then.

But we did, and everything we experienced during those years has eventually made us stronger.

I was mentally exhausted by the time I became a teenager and needed support, so I reached out and read motivational books and autobiographies of the legends such as Martin Luther King, Mahatma Gandhi and Mother Teresa.

Reading became a lifelong habit. This gave me the opportunity to reach out to others and share my findings so they too could change their lives for the better.

I have also hosted and produced many motivational shows on TV and Radio, and written motivational articles for magazines.

By the grace of God, I fully intend to continue my mission which is to make this world a much better place than I found it.

I have a very positive outlook in life as I appreciate every second, every minute that I am alive. This gives me a purpose and encourages me to engage and find new ways to send out my positive messages to the world.

Due to my past, I always know, there is someone out there who could do with some encouragement. To reach out to that individual is my mission in life.

Without giving too much away, can you tell us what readers can expect from Part Two?

In Part Two: Against All Odds, just down the road from our house, in Upton Park, Green Street, a small community of Asians begins to develop.

This development is not appreciated by the National Front and the skinheads. They decide to declare war.

The Indians are outnumbered by the racists.

The Asians have to find a way to survive and many are pushed to their extreme levels as the acts of racism brutality increase. So, they are left with no
other option and some decide to fight fire with fire.

Many of those Asian individuals who stood up against racism at that time would become pioneers in creating the multicultural Canning Town and Upton Park we have today.

Their sacrifices must never be forgotten… Many years ago, when I first started to write my book, I made a list of all the racist events that took place against me and my family in the 1970s.

Before I knew it there were pages and pages of incidents.

“This clearly stated that one book would not be enough to cover these incidents.”

So, this began the journey of Part Two: Against All Odds.

I am now on the verge of releasing Part Two in December 2025 and have already started work on the third and final book.

My main motivation to continue to write my story is that hopefully it will teach us all to respect each other despite our skin colour or beliefs, therefore making this world a better place for us all to live together in peace and harmony.

Unbreakable does more than draw on a difficult childhood; it challenges readers to confront uncomfortable truths about racism and its lasting impact.

Jag Singh’s book is a reminder that resilience is forged in adversity, and that personal experiences can illuminate wider social realities.

By basing his book on real-life experiences, Singh ensures the struggles of his generation are neither ignored nor forgotten.

Unbreakable stands as both a warning and an inspiration, proving that even in the face of relentless hostility, hope and identity can endure. Unbreakable is available to buy now on Amazon.