Alexandra Aitken

Uttrang Kaur Khalsa (born Alexandra Aitken on 14 June 1980), also known earlier as Ally Aitken, is a British citizen and an environmental campaigner, actress, artist and socialite. She is the daughter of former British government Cabinet minister Jonathan Aitken. She is the great granddaughter of John Maffey,1st Baron Rugby. She became famous when she was born as her birth was marked by President Richard Nixons security team closing the roads to practice emergency presidential protocol to deliver flowers to the hospital to give to Alexandra her twin Victoria and her Mother Lolitza . She became famous modelling for GQ magazine. As a model she subsequently appeared in Vogue, Tatler, Vanity Fair and many other publications. As an actress she had lead roles in well reviewed west end plays and off west end plays in film she worked alongside award winning directors such as Mike Figgis and Roger Michell. In 2010, she married Inderjot Singh, a Sikh man, and realized Sikhism as a faith which includes all. Her primary reason for becoming Sikh, she was quoted saying, is that "It includes the most views."

As a writer she has had articles published in The Times, The Telegraph, The Daily Mail and Tatler.

Early life

Alexandra Aitken was born on 14 June 1980.^[1][2] She is daughter of former Conservative Member of Parliament in the United Kingdom and former British government Cabinet minister Jonathan Aitken and his first wife Lolicia Aitken.^[3] She has a twin sister Victoria, a brother William and a half-sister Petrina Khashoggi. Her relation to Khashoggi was revealed in 1998 through a DNA test.^[3] Aitken went to The King's School, Canterbury where she acted as a server and school sacresten in Canterbury Cathedral carrying altar candles. She graduated in fine arts.^[1] She had a well-educated upbringing and her family were well known a political hosts frequently hosting prayer breakfasts and political think tank parties in their home in London ( 8 Lord North Street, which Winston Churchill also once lived in). This ended when her father was convicted of perjury in 1999. Aitken family's property was sold to pay the legal fees. Lolicia and Victoria Aitken moved to Switzerland and US, respectively. Alexandra Aitken remained in London and became a socialite. In 2002, she posed for GQ magazine along with her half sister Khashoggi. In 2004, she appeared in the movie Enduring Love.^[4][5] Later, she moved to Hollywood.

Marriage

In 2007, Aitken started teaching Kundalini yoga, meditation and walking meditation and that time she also started studying Sikhism.^[6] In 2010 at Gurdwara Harmandir Sahib in Amritsar, she met Inderjot Singh, a Sikh man of the Nihang order. On 28 October 2010, they got married in a secret wedding in Rayya near Amritsar, Punjab, India.^[6][7] From Aitken's family, only her sister Victoria was present at the wedding.^[7] Before her marriage, Aitken included Sikhism into her daily life and started sporting Sikh religious symbols known as Panj Kakars (The Five Ks).^[6] However, according to her, she did not include Sikhism because of her husband. She changed her name to Uttrang Kaur Khalsa.^[6] She moved by Qila Taragarh Sahib, Anandpur Sahib where she has a house. She also became a teetotaler and a vegan.^[8] In January 2013, she was reported to have been separated from husband, but continue to adopt Sikhism.^[7] In 2015, her father confirmed that the marriage was over. As of January 2015, she is living in a house in Anandpur Sahib, Punjab.^[9][10]

References