“Unfortunately, as the situation is getting worse day by day, we are losing our history,” Karanjee Gaba, an Afghan Sikh who lives in the UK said. His family has been around Afghanistan for more than 100 years. In an exclusive interview with Asian Voice, Gaba told us why it is imperative to know about Afghan Sikhs.
Sharing his sentiment about the ongoing crisis in Afghanistan as an Afghan Sikh in Britain, Gaba said, “I feel very lost and heartbroken. My father used to tell me about his experience in Afghanistan, as it is a beautiful country that involves food, lifestyle and fashion. During his time, they used to visit the mountains and picnic near the flowing rivers. Each family used to have minimal food but they were happy. Right now things are misplaced and it isn’t really helping anyone. Living is more expensive than death.
“My parents have become anxious and feel fearful that history again is repeating itself. The land is moving back to what it was, after a long war the results have yet been the same. Hoping that the situation will stabilise and one day the pace will come.”
Gaba added, “We have nothing back home (Afghanistan) anymore. Everything we had has been lost and probably destroyed or occupied by someone.”
Helping us learn more about the cultural differences and similarities between Sikhs from Asia and Afghan Sikhs, he said, “Our culture is different in terms of Asian is by our food, our songs and our sense of style. Religiously, we follow and do the same rituals and ceremonies. In terms of culture, we are different.”
Speaking about some of his early memories of learning about his heritage from parents and family, Gaba told the newsweekly, “I was lost. I never knew anything about my culture and every day I am expanding my knowledge about back home. I made a film called Hindko, which is available on YouTube in back 2019. The film is about the Sikh language Hindko and Culture exploration. Many Sikhs didn’t know including my family that Afghan Sikhs speak Hindko, it also explains the culture and differences between Afghan and Asian Sikhs.”
People don’t know the history
Commenting on the lack of awareness about Afghan Sikhs and what can be done to increase knowledge among the community, Gaba said, “Many people in the community don’t know history themselves due to the fact many have left their homes, flee to another country or even the history has been destroyed. I think media is the most powerful tool and we need to make more films/videos for people to learn about Afghanistan and involve youth in it.”
But how has moving to Britain changed the life of his family?
“Moving to London has given the chance for many afghans to educate. I was freely able to walk in a city and Not being judged for my appearance. It made me feel safe, until some racists men tried to tell us to back to our country. As safe as Britain is, it still has some elements of racism that we cannot control. Other than that, I now have become one of the first Afghan Sikh models. A journey that is allowing me to speak on the behalf of Afghan Sikhs and I am able to shine a light on Afghan Sikhs,” Gaba explained.
Is he more British than Afghan now?
“To begin with, I was more closer to British Culture but during my journey, I wanted to explore more about my identity. As an Afghan, I then went to speak with the elderly about our community and from there I have become more attached to our culture as we need to carry on the legacy. We need to keep it for the future and may it never be forgotten. We cannot lose our history because if we do, it’ll mean we have lost our identity,” he told Asian Voice.
