Meghan Markle isn’t the only one switching up longstanding royal traditions.
During Saturday’s Trooping the Colour, Guardsman Charanpreet Singh Lall became the first member of the Coldstream Guards to partake in the Queen’s official birthday celebration wearing a turban.
“For myself, being the first turban-wearing Sikh to troop the colour and to be part of the escort it is a really high honor for myself, and hopefully for everyone else as well,” Lall, 22, told the BBC.
Lall’s black turban featured the ceremonial cap star that matches the one on the bearskin hats worn by the other approximately 1,000 Guardsmen who participate in the Trooping.
A member of the British Army since 2016, Lall was born in Punjab, India and moved to the U.K. as an infant. He said his mom “was crying on the day” he joined the ranks and feels “quite proud” to be changing royal trajectory.
“I hope that people watching, that they will just acknowledge it and that they will look at it as a new change in history,” he continued to the BBC. “I hope that more people like me, not just Sikhs but from other religions and different backgrounds, that they will be encouraged to join the Army.”
