Dr Narinder Singh Kapany

Dr Narinder Singh Kapany is shown here meeting with the Prince of Wales, is a physicist who is acknowledged as the father of fibreoptics. He conducted experiments that led to the invention of fibreoptics and this is the technology behind devices used in endoscopy to communication applications. He was named as one of the seven unsung heroes of the century by Forbes magazine. He was born in India, educated in England and has lived in the US. He has published over 100 scientific papers and four books. Besides work in fibreoptics he has over 100 patents and has received numerous awards. His personal interests include philantropy, collecting art and sculpting. As a philantropist he has been a major funder of the Sikh Foundation and been involved with its activities for over 30 years. One such activity was organising the first ever Sikh Film Festival with sikhs in Toronto. He has also funded a Chair of Sikh Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara. He has a big collection of Sikh art, which he loaned to London's Victoria & Albert Museum for part of their acclaimed 'Arts of the Sikh Kingdoms' exhibition in 1999.