Surrey, British Columbia – Two UBC students created a short documentary on activism in the Punjabi LGBTQ+ community in Vancouver for a class-based research project.
This short documentary was created by Rhea Bassan and Palvi Sandhar who are two Punjabi women in the Punjabi Studies program at UBC.
The documentary is 12 minutes and 41 seconds long and available to view on YouTube on the UBC Punjabi Student Work page. Here is the link to the documentary
The documentary stars Sher Vancouver Women’s Group Facilitator Jag Nagra and Sher Vancouver Founder Alex Sangha both of whom are born in Punjabi Sikh families.
“We decided to create a documentary film about Punjabi LGBTQ+ experiences and activism in the Lower Mainland, because as allies, we know that these identities exist, but that they tend to be alienated or excluded from Punjabi society. This semester, we took an Asian Studies course called “Documenting Punjabi Canada” (ASIA 475) and decided to use this opportunity to create this film project to provide even more visibility for this community. As allies, we want to stress that although we put this film together, the people that you should champion are the ones that fight for social justice on the front lines, like Jag and Alex of Sher Vancouver. Our request for everyone who has or will view this film is to lead your lives with the marginalized in mind. In the words of the lovely Ellen DeGeneres, “Be Kind to One Another,” state Rhea Bassan and Palvi Sandhar in a joint statement.
“The documentary has received a great response from within Sher Vancouver and on social media. It was wonderful to work with Rhea and Palvi who approached the project with such a non-judgemental, open-minded, and balanced viewpoint,” states Alex Sangha.
