Kahaani

Kahaani means “Story” in Hindi, Punjabi and Urdu and is a film, website, education resource and exhibition to honour the voices and experiences of South Asian communities that shaped the South West of England from the 1950s to today.

Thanks to the support of the National Lottery Heritage Fund, the team at Create Studios worked with regional partners to gather 50 powerful stories over 4 months in 2025. 

We discovered personal and powerful stories from first and second generation South Asian migrants who made Somerset, Dorset, Swindon, and Wiltshire their home. 

These stories – of challenge and joy, isolation and community, resilience and belonging – capture the living history of the rural South West. We have had the privilege of curating and bringing together the stories into the film that forms part of the touring exhibition. They will go on to:

• form part of a lasting digital legacy in local archives 
• be used in schools to build greater understanding between different communities and generations 
• inspire film production by emerging young filmmakers working with South Asian writers
• be a resource for communities and social historians through the website 

It’s been a privilege to document, celebrate and share these remarkable journeys and we look forward to hearing the impact on contributors and audiences alike as Kahaani is shared for the first time.

Gurchetan Singh, Creative Director, Create Studios

October 2025

The current exhibition runs at :

Swindon & Wiltshire Museum from Monday 3rd March to Sunday 31st May 2026.

Museum & Art Swindon as part of the Sharing Stories programme:

THIS Sat 23rd May 2026 – Launch event (10:30 a.m.–4:30 p.m.)
Sat 6th June 2026 – Now extended to run all day
Sat 13th June 2026 – 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. (closed Sundays)
Sat 27th June 2026 – 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. (closed Sundays)

Look out for future exhibitions across the South West on the Kahaani website