‘Under the Turban’ film and talk explore Sikh identity

"Under the Turban," a film that explores Sikh identity, will be shown on Tuesday, Nov. 29 on campus, hosted by the Fox International Fellowship.
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A scene from "Under the Turban," about members of the fashion world in London.

The Fox International Fellowship is hosting a screening and discussion of the film “Under the Turban” on Tuesday, Nov. 29 at 4:30 p.m. in the Luce Hall auditorium, 34 Hillhouse Ave.

The film follows the members of the Garcha family, who embark on a journey to learn about their identity after 9-year-old Zara asks, “What makes me a Sikh?” The family visits diverse Sikh communities around the world: meeting with a Maharaja, cheesemakers, fashionistas, farmers, and scholars to glean a better understanding of the world’s fifth-largest religion. The documentary was selected for the United Nations Association Film Festival this year.

“‘Under the Turban’ explores what it means to be Sikh in various diasporas after 9/11, where the turban has become a contentious identity symbol often met with hate and discrimination, while it remains a sacred and integral part of Sikh identity,” write the event organizers.

This question of Sikh identity will be explored further during a discussion following the screening. Speakers will include the team from “Under the Turban” (Satinder Garcha, Meghan Shea, Mike Rogers, Harpreet Bedi, and Zara Garcha); Inderpal Grewal, professor Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Program and the Ethnicity, Race and Migration Studies Program at Yale; Harjant Gill, an Indian documentary filmmaker and assistant professor at Towson University; and Sasha Sabherwal, a Ph.D. student in American studies at Yale. Satveer Kaur-Gill, a Fox Fellow at Yale from the National University of Singapore, will moderate the discussion

The event is free and open to the public. Those who plan to attend should RSVP to satveer.kaur@yale.edu.

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