Roots in India

Paramjit Singh Bains from Wolverhampton learned that his great grandfather had been a Sikh military hero. His evidence was a WW1 medal and a certificate testifying to the ‘conspicuous gallantry’ of Sepoy Sher Singh – but what had he done? Harbinder Singh of the Anglo-Sikh Heritage Trail explains.

Philippa Wright’s mother was Anglo-Indian and called Britain home, even before she moved here. Her daughter would love to trace the Indian blood that she feels sure is in the family, although her mother always denied it. How does she track back to test her theory?

As a child, Sam Merry loved the tale of his great grandfather marrying a high-born Indian woman and bringing her home to live in Mansfield. Now, he wants to check the facts. Barbara Gallon of the Old Mansfield Society and Penny Brook of the British Library advise.

Excited by the discovery that her paternal grandfather was Indian – racism in her native Blackburn led her father and uncle to pretend that they were of Italian extraction – Marie wants to trace her Indian roots. She has only one name to go on, but Abi Husainy of the National Archives can help.

When only two weeks old, Margaret Nevil’s Hungarian parents left her in the care of a Darjeeling convent, promising to return. They never did. She wonders why they failed to claim her and whether there is truth in rumours that they were travelling entertainers. Margaret asks for help in searching for clues to her hidden Indian past.