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Mukul and Ghetto Tigers undertook an oral history project which explores the question ‘Who am I?’ raised by second-generation immigrants. Their parents left pre-partition India during colonial and pre-colonial times and settled in East Africa, including Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania. The project will investigate what it means for young British Asians in the UK growing up in a system with a colonial legacy. It explores how the past horrible historic events experienced by their parents and grandparents still affect their lives.
The oral histories have been researched and taken by Oral Historian and Media Producer Rolf Killius and Community Arts Producer Lata Desai.
The speciality of this project is: Through the viewpoint of a new generation it investigates questions of ‘identity’ and ‘heritage’. Though loosely connected to the expulsion of Asians from Africa it digs deeper.
The workshops and exhibition investigate what it means for young people growing up in a system with a colonial legacy:
- • Where much of the old elite is still in control of the society.
- • Where the street names, places and monuments are often named after colonial ‘heroes’.
- • Where the history books are full of the ‘glorious past’, but slavery, exploitation and killings are nearly ‘forgotten’.
- • Where school education in respect to the recent colonial history with its atrocities is nearly absent.
- • Where the reasons for immigration into this country (Windrush Generation, East African Asians; the colonial past in general) are only recently discussed.
- • Where people with a slightly different colour or accent are still asked ‘where do you come from?’, meaning to ask whether one belongs to this place or not.
- • Where people are not judged ‘what they are?’, but rather ‘what specific socio-economic or cultural heritage they are from?’
- • Where racism and unequal treatment is still part and parcel of the every-day experience for many people.
Rolf Killius with Aarti Shah and Lata Desai
Steven Kasamba and Rolf Killius
Rolf Killius with Ali Fazel and Lata Desai
Mira Salat
Saaj Raja
Pritee Varsani
Vipul Bhatti
Steven Kasamba
Ali Fazel
