After the Partition: Suman Gujral's story

Artist Suman Gujral became interested in Partition through stories shared by her mother, weaving those stories and memories into her poetry and art practice. Suman's parents were Sikhs living in Lahore, who fled to Amritsar to meet family and friends very soon after Partition. She moved to England in 1965 with her parents and sister, leaving her brother behind with grandparents. She moved to Essex recently, when she was offered an art studio at Parndon Mill in Harlow, where she continues to make work about Partition and the effect it has on the displacement of families. 

After the Partition: A Shared Cultural Heritage in Essex
Funded through the National Lottery Heritage Fund, 2025

Over half a million Sikhs, Hindu’s and Muslims came to Britain because of the upheaval of Partition, the promise of economic opportunities and a safer life. Essex Cultural Diversity Project has been awarded funding from the National Lottery Heritage Fund for Sikh, Hindu and (Pakistani) Muslim communities living in Essex to reflect on seven decades of their family’s lives, to explore experiences, challenges, successes, and social change from 1947 to today. The project will pose the question: how has British culture changed and how have they changed British culture?

With few original settlers surviving, this is the last chance to bring three generations together to document the fortunes of settlers and their families who can trace their migration directly to Partition between India and Pakistan. This will be a rare chance to focus on lived experiences since Partition, rather than on the experience of Partition itself, opening opportunities to explore this unique cultural context within and between communities. As time passes and memories fade, it is important for Sikhs, Hindus, and Muslims to capture what shaped their modern heritage for posterity, and to reflect on wider issues of migration and colonialism today.

Through this project, we have captured people’s memories through oral history recording, films and interviews, and have created a touring pop-up exhibition. 

essexcdp.com/project/afterthepartition/

After the Partition: Suman Gujral's story

Essexcdp