I have a multi-layered interest in history, art, culture, photography and people. These interests have invariable influenced my work over the years and I have worked on exhibitions such as Coming to Coventry (The Herbert, 2006) and The Punjab: Moving Journey (Royal Geographical Society, 2008). As an academic at De Montfort University, Leicester I have written extensively about Punjabi history, refugees, Partition of Punjab, Pakistan, women and the South Asian diaspora in the UK. Within all of this work I try to explore ideas and social change through people’s stories and visual history.

I was born in Ludhiana, India and spent my early childhood travelling with my mother between Ludhiana and Nakuru, Kenya, where we eventually settled down. However, we then migrated to the UK, making Coventry my new adopted home. I have remained there ever since, but still maintaining my strong links with Punjab(s), both personal and professional. These multiple identities are all important to me as they allow me to adopt a broader lens through which I view the world.

This blog is essentially a scrapbook of short essays, photography, and other musings, that allows me to indulge in my own interests that do not always conveniently fit into the academic world.