[8] His grandfather, Baba Kalyana, had served in the forces of the Akal Sena during the guruship period of Guru Hargobind.

[7] His father, Nanu Rai, would later assist with the rescue of the severed head of Guru Tegh Bahadur in Delhi.

[7] Per Sikh lore, during this time the Guru had placed a turban upon the head of the young Darbara (dastar bandi), a great honour.

[7] He was further instructed to establish an Akhara (Indic martial training centre) in Punjab to educate many ranks of men for the upcoming battles of the Sikhs.

[10] He took-over the leadership role of the Budha Dal after Binod Singh was killed in a clash against Mughal forces in 1721.

[16][17] In 1733, Zakariya Khan, the governor of Lahore province, attempted to make peace with the Sikhs and sent an envoy named Subeg Singh to meet with them.

[8] According to Rattan Singh Bhangu's Panth Prakash, the Sikhs at the time held an assembly and decided to award the title of nawab to Darbara Singh but he rejected it and did not believe the Sikhs should accept a title from the Mughal government as they did not need to do so to legitimize their sovereignty as per his belief.

[8][1] He died aged 90 and was succeeded by Nawab Kapur Singh, whom had assisted him in his campaigns after the Mughals during his life.

[22] His successor, Kapur Singh, would shortly after reform the organization of the Sikh army and establish the Dal Khalsa force with its various formations.