Rangila, South Asian Queerness & The Black Country (1985-2025)
In February 2026, Jaivant Patel Company announced it had been successful in gaining support from The National Lottery Heritage Lottery Fund for an exciting new project entitled Rangila.
Image courtesy of Hardish Virk, Stories That Made Us Collection. Photograph taken by Parminder Sekhon (1990s) for The Naz Project.
Rangila, South Asian Queerness & The Black Country (1985-2025)
Rangila, will document the untold stories of individuals at the intersection of South Asian and LGBTQ+ communities.
Despite increased visibility and acceptance over this period, continuing challenges mean that stories remain unshared. As a South Asian LGBTQ+-led organisation, Jaivant Patel Company (JPCo) aims to provide visibility and representation for South Asian LGBTQ+ communities today and to increase understanding of the complexity of their experience.
Recordings of oral histories are vital to preserving this history. Jaivant Patel Company is collecting individual memories relating to South Asian Queerness and the Black Country between 1985 and 2025.
Rangila is made possible by The National Lottery Heritage Fund, with thanks to National Lottery players.
Elements of this heritage project will be held at Birmingham Museums Trust, preserving them for future generations to share.
Project partners include: Birmingham Museums Trust, Wolverhampton Grand Theatre, Arena Theatre and members of the LGBTQ+ Community across The Black Country and West Midlands.
Watch this space for further details!
#JPCoRangila
The National Lottery Heritage Fund is the largest funder for the UK’s heritage. Using money raised by National Lottery players we support projects that connect people and communities to heritage. Our vision is for heritage to be valued, cared for and sustained for everyone, now and in the future. From historic buildings, our industrial legacy and the natural environment, to collections, traditions, stories and more. Heritage can be anything from the past that people value and want to pass on to future generations. We believe in the power of heritage to ignite the imagination, offer joy and inspiration, and to build pride in place and connection to the past.
Using money raised by National Lottery players, The National Lottery Heritage Fund supports projects that connect people and communities with the UK’s heritage. Rangila is made possible with The National Lottery Heritage Fund. Thanks to National Lottery players, we have been able to tell the powerful and inspiring story of South Asian Queerness and The Black Country documenting the untold stories of individuals at the intersection of South Asian and LGBTQ+ communities.