When it comes to her newfound spirituality, former socialite Alexandra Aitken means business.
As the sun rises over the dirt roads of Bani, a remote village in Uttar Pradesh, India, a solitary figure begins her morning prayer. She is barefoot, dressed in long, traditional robes. Her blonde hair, modestly wrapped in a white turban, is knotted on top of her head. On her left wrist, she wears a metal bracelet – the kara – a symbol of her devotion to the Sikh faith.
The figure is Alexandra Aitken, former “It” girl and daughter of disgraced
Tory Cabinet minister Jonathan. It is nearly two years since she gave up
partying in London and Los Angeles and married a Sikh warrior from the
Punjab. Now, Aitken is known as Uttrang Kaur Khalsa (“victorious return” in
Punjabi). She moved to a small house in the holy city of Anandpur Sahib with
her husband, Inderjot Singh, a member of the deeply religious Nihang sect.
By day, she prays, meditates and practises yoga. By night, she studies
religious texts and helps local women scrub the temple floors.
Since her reinvention, Aitken has shunned tabloid attention. But this week she
has been back in the headlines. The former socialite, pictured striding
along an Indian road carrying a spear and ceremonial dagger, is rumoured to
be living apart from her husband. Reports say she has retreated to an ashram
run by a sect of yoga Sikhs, where other guests have not seen her husband in
weeks. In July, Singh’s father, Brahmjit, died – but Aitken did not attend
the family funeral.
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