Podcast · History

Punjabi Pioneers

An SBS Punjabi podcast series uncovering the untold stories of Australia’s earliest Punjabi settlers. The first season brings to light the voices of Punjabi women from early Sikh families in Far North Queensland, whose courage, resilience, and contributions helped shape Punjabi life in Australia.

New episodes: Daily
Typical length: 26 min
Latest: 28 Aug 2026
Language: Punjabi

Latest episode

28 Aug 2026 · 26 min

From no English to a classic Aussie accent: Meet Harmail, a Punjabi woman who lived life like ‘Crocodile Dundee’ - 1954 ਵਿੱਚ ਸਮੁੰਦਰੀ ਜਹਾਜ਼ ਰਾਹੀਂ ਆਸਟ੍ਰੇਲੀਆ ਪਹੁੰਚੀ, 81 ਸਾਲ ਦੀ ਉਮਰ ਤੱਕ ਕੰਮ ਕਰਨ ਵਾਲੀ ਪੰਜਾਬਣ ਹਰਮੇਲ (ਮਰਲ ਸਿੰਘ)

In 1954, Harmail Kaur (Merle Singh) arrived from India in Australia after a month-long sea voyage, her young son in her arms and no English skills. As one of the very few Punjabi women in Far North Queensland at the time, she says local Australian families treated her “like their own”. With no formal lessons, Kaur learnt English simply by listening, watching and observing, eventually developing a distinctly Australian accent. From making her own clothes on a pedal sewing machine and working in a hospital from her 40s into her 80s, to fishing and catching crocodiles, Kaur built an…

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Earlier episodes 9 most recent

28 Aug 2026 · 27 min

Five generations in Australia since 1894: How Jaswinder’s family kept their heritage on a regional farm - 1894 ਤੋਂ ਆਸਟ੍ਰੇਲੀਆ ਵਿੱਚ ਵੱਸਦਾ ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ਪਰਿਵਾਰ: 130 ਸਾਲਾਂ ਦਾ ਵਸੇਬਾ ਤੇ ਪੰਜ ਪੀੜ੍ਹੀਆਂ ਦਾ ਸਫ਼ਰ

Jaswinder Kaur’s family story spans five generations in Australia, beginning with her husband’s great-grandfather's arrival in regional Queensland. It traces back to 1894, when early discrimination forced her husband's ancestors to shave, to modern times where later generations actively reclaimed their Sikh identity. She also shares her journey of how she adapted to an isolated sugar cane farm by picking up Aussie slang from kids' TV, up to intercultural marriages featuring dual Anand Karaj and Western weddings in her family today. - 1894 ਵਿੱਚ ਆਸਟ੍ਰੇਲੀਆ ਪਹੁੰਚੇ ਆਪਣੇ ਪਰਿਵਾਰ ਦੇ ਪਹਿਲੇ ਜੀਆਂ ਤੋਂ…
27 Aug 2026 · 27 min

A suitcase, blue aerogrammes and a lifetime of teaching in Australian classrooms: Devender’s migration story - ਚਿੱਠੀਆਂ (Blue Aerogram) ਦੀ ਉਡੀਕ ਤੋਂ ਆਸਟ੍ਰੇਲੀਆ ਦੇ ਸਕੂਲਾਂ ’ਚ 23 ਸਾਲ ਅਧਿਆਪਕਾ ਵਜੋਂ ਸੇਵਾ ਤੱਕ ਦਾ ਸਫ਼ਰ

When newlywed Devender Singh arrived in Cairns in May 1978, she expected an Australia of skyscrapers and bustling cityscapes. Instead, she found a quiet coastal town with no high-rises, where staying in touch with family in India meant waiting weeks for blue aerograms to arrive. Despite the isolation and challenges of starting life in a new country, Devender had her B.Ed. from Ranchi University recognised in Australia and went on to teach in Queensland primary schools for more than two decades. - 1978 ਵਿੱਚ ਦਵਿੰਦਰ ਜਦੋਂ ਨਵ-ਵਿਆਹੀ ਲਾੜੀ ਵਜੋਂ Cairns ਪਹੁੰਚੀ ਤਾਂ ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਨੇ ਇੱਕ ਅਜਿਹੇ ਦੇਸ਼ ਦੀ ਕਲਪਨਾ…
22 May 2026 · 34 min

From 1898 migration to Cyclone Larry recovery: Gurmeet Kaur’s story of rebuilding life in Queensland - ਸਾਇਕਲੋਨ ਲੈਰੀ ਦੌਰਾਨ ਸਭ ਕੁੱਝ ਗਵਾਉਣ ਤੋਂ ਬਾਅਦ ਮੁੜ ਖੜ੍ਹੀ ਕੀਤੀ ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ: ਗੁਰਮੀਤ ਕੌਰ ਦੀ ਪ੍ਰੇਰਣਾਦਾਇਕ ਕਹਾਣੀ

Gurmeet Kaur’s family story traces more than a century of Punjabi presence in Australia, beginning with her husband’s grandfather Daleep Singh, who arrived in 1898 as a hawker and farmer. He later died in Bombay while travelling back to India, never making it home to his village in Punjab. Today, Gurmeet’s family is part of Australia’s fifth-generation Punjabi community. She reflects on migration, sacrifice, family separation, working on banana farms, rebuilding after Cyclone Larry, and raising children in Far North Queensland. - ਗੁਰਮੀਤ ਕੌਰ ਦਾ ਪਰਿਵਾਰ ਆਸਟ੍ਰੇਲੀਆ ਵਸਦੀ ਪੰਜਵੀਂ ਪੁਸ਼ਤ ਵਿੱਚੋਂ ਹੈ।…
8 May 2026 · 17 min

‘You start to merge those two identities’: Between two worlds in a Punjabi-Australian family - 'ਦੋ ਪਹਿਚਾਣਾਂ ਦਾ ਸੁਮੇਲ': ਨਰਿੰਦਰ ਦੇ ਪੰਜਾਬਣ-ਆਸਟ੍ਰੇਲੀਅਨ ਹੋਣ ਦੀ ਦੋਹਰੀ ਪਹਿਚਾਣ ਦੀ ਕਹਾਣੀ

Growing up as a Punjabi in 1970s regional Australia, Narinder Singh reflects on her family’s migration journey that began when her father arrived in 1956. Her parents married in Cairns in 1965, building a life in Far North Queensland while holding closely to their faith, language and traditions. Narinder recalls balancing Punjabi life at home with Australian life at school, saying, 'As children, we were woken up quite early at home to listen to kirtan and paath records,' traditions she came to appreciate more deeply as she grew older. Now a parent herself, she says she has learnt to “merge”…
24 Apr 2026 · 19 min

'I built a life here’: A grandmother and granddaughter on migration, identity and language across generations - ‘ਚਿੱਠੀਆਂ ਤੋਂ ਫੋਨ ਤੱਕ ਦਾ ਸਫਰ’: ਇੱਕ ਦਾਦੀ ਅਤੇ ਪੋਤੀ ਦੀ ਪੀੜ੍ਹੀ ਦਰ ਪੀੜ੍ਹੀ ਭਾਸ਼ਾ ਤੇ ਅਪਣੱਤ ਨਾਲ ਜੁੜੇ ਰਹਿਣ ਦੀ ਕਹਾਣੀ

In this interview, Simar Kaur recounts her migration from Punjab to Australia in 1973, her early encounters with an unfamiliar country, and the life and business she built in Far North Queensland. Alongside her journey, her granddaughter Jaspreet Kaur reflects on growing up between cultures, sustaining Punjabi language and identity, and how belonging evolves across generations. - 1949 ਵਿੱਚ ਫਗਵਾੜੇ ਨੇੜਲੇ ਪਿੰਡ ਮੰਧਾਲੀ ਵਿੱਚ ਜਨਮੀ ਸਿਮਰ ਕੌਰ 1973 ਵਿੱਚ 23–24 ਸਾਲ ਦੀ ਉਮਰ ਵਿੱਚ ਆਸਟ੍ਰੇਲੀਆ ਆਈ। ਸੰਚਾਰ ਦੀ ਘਾਟ ਅਤੇ ਵੱਖਰੇ ਸਭਿਆਚਾਰ ਦੇ ਬਾਵਜੂਦ ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਨੇ ਫਾਰ ਨਾਰਥ ਕੁਈਨਜ਼ਲੈਂਡ ਵਿੱਚ ਆਪਣਾ ਪਰਿਵਾਰ ਵਸਾਇਆ ਅਤੇ ਕਾਰੋਬਾਰ ਖੜ੍ਹਾ…
2 Apr 2026 · 19 min

Jagindro recalls arriving in Australia as a two-year-old in 1957, when many Punjabi women were often recorded as ‘Singh’ instead of ‘Kaur’ - 1957 ਵਿੱਚ ਜਦੋਂ 2 ਸਾਲ ਦੀ ਉਮਰ ‘ਚ ਜਗਿੰਦਰੋ ਆਸਟ੍ਰੇਲੀਆ ਪਹੁੰਚੀ, ਤਾਂ ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ਔਰਤਾਂ ‘ਕੌਰ’ ਨਹੀਂ, ‘ਸਿੰਘ’ ਵਜੋਂ ਦਰਜ ਹੁੰਦੀਆਂ ਸਨ

Jagindro Kalkat’s family’s connection to Australia goes back generations when her father’s nana ji, Mangal Singh, arrived in Australia by ship in 1878 and worked for years cutting trees and clearing land for vegetation and cultivation in Gordonvale and the Tablelands in Far North Queensland. In this episode, she reflects on her own migration journey, arriving in Australia as a two-year-old with her mother to join her father in regional Queensland. She shares hardships women faced on remote farms, hard work of the Sikh families and why many Punjabi women like her and her mum were recorded as…
2 Apr 2026 · 20 min

‘In those days, nobody knew about Australia’: Surinder Kaur Sodhi’s unique migration story - ‘ਉਹਨਾਂ ਦਿਨਾਂ 'ਚ ਆਸਟ੍ਰੇਲੀਆ ਬਾਰੇ ਬਹੁਤੇ ਲੋਕਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਪਤਾ ਨਹੀਂ ਸੀ‘: 1967 ਵਿੱਚ ਆਈ ਸੁਰਿੰਦਰ ਕੌਰ ਸੋਢੀ ਦੀ ਅਨੋਖੀ ਮਾਈਗ੍ਰੇਸ਼ਨ ਕਹਾਣੀ

In 1967, Surinder Kaur Sodhi migrated from Hoshiarpur, Punjab, to Far North Queensland, at a time when the White Australia Policy was still in place. In this interview, she reflects on her unique one of a kind grand wedding in regional Queensland, her early experiences of arriving in Australia, her husband’s family’s Punjabi roots dating back to 1888, their transition from hawking to sugarcane farming in North Queensland, and the ways she held on to her identity in a new land. - ਸੁਰਿੰਦਰ ਕੌਰ ਸੋਢੀ 1967 ਵਿੱਚ ਜੱਦ ਹੁਸ਼ਿਆਰਪੁਰ ਤੋਂ Far North Queensland ਆਏ ਤਾਂ ਉਸ ਸਮੇਂ ਵਾਈਟ ਆਸਟ੍ਰੇਲੀਆ ਪਾਲਿਸੀ ਹਾਲੇ ਲਾਗੂ…
1 Apr 2026 · 29 min

Devo Singh's 1964 journey to Australia: A Far North Queensland migration story of courage and opportunity - ‘ਗੰਨੇ ਦੇ ਖੇਤ ਵੇਖ ਕੇ ਲੱਗਿਆ ਜਿਵੇਂ ਪੰਜਾਬ ਹੀ ਹਾਂ': 1964 'ਚ ਆਸਟ੍ਰੇਲੀਆ ਆਈ ਦੇਵੋ ਸਿੰਘ ਦੀ ਦਿਲ ਟੁੰਬਵੀ ਕਹਾਣੀ

In this episode of Punjabi Pioneers, we hear Devo Singh’s journey from a small village in Nawanshahr, in India’s northern state of Punjab, to Australia in 1964. Devo recalls seeing a plane and telephones for the first time, navigating strict household expectations, and making sure her three daughters received the education she never had. Arriving in Cairns, the sugarcane farmland reminded her of Punjab, grounding her memories as she built a new life. In this interview, she shares her story, reflecting the courage and resilience of Punjabi women who helped shape early Punjabi life in…
31 Mar 2026 · 2 min

Punjabi Pioneers: Tracing Punjabi journeys in Far North Queensland - ਆਸਟ੍ਰੇਲੀਆ ਦਾ ਮੁੱਢਲਾ ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ਪਰਵਾਸ: ਫਾਰ ਨਾਰਥ ਕੁਈਨਜ਼ਲੈਂਡ ਦੀਆਂ ਅਣਸੁਣੀਆਂ ਕਹਾਣੀਆਂ

Punjabi Pioneers is an SBS Punjabi podcast series uncovering the untold stories of Australia’s earliest Punjabi settlers. The first season of the podcast series brings to light the voices of Punjabi women from early Sikh families in Far North Queensland, whose courage and contributions helped shape Punjabi life in Australia. - SBS Punjabi ਦੀ ਇਸ ਪੌਡਕਾਸਟ ਸੀਰੀਜ਼ ਰਾਹੀਂ ਅਸੀਂ ਫਾਰ ਨਾਰਥ ਕੁਈਨਜ਼ਲੈਂਡ ਵਿੱਚ ਪੀੜੀ ਦਰ ਪੀੜੀ ਵੱਸਦੀਆਂ ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ਔਰਤਾਂ ਦੀ ਜ਼ੁਬਾਨੀ ਉਹਨਾਂ ਦੇ ਵਸੇਬੇ ਨਾਲ ਜੁੜੀਆਂ ਦਿਲਚਸਪ ਆਪਬੀਤੀਆਂ ਨੂੰ ਸੰਜੋਇਆ ਹੈ। ਇਸ ਦੇ ਨਾਲ ਹੀ ਆਸਟ੍ਰੇਲੀਆ ਵਿੱਚ ਪੰਜਾਬੀਆਂ ਦੀ ਮਾਈਗ੍ਰੇਸ਼ਨ ਦੇ ਸ਼ੁਰੂਆਤੀ ਦੌਰ ਦੇ ਕਈ ਅਹਿਮ ਪੱਖਾਂ ‘ਤੇ ਵੀ ਚਾਨਣ…

About Punjabi Pioneers

Punjabi Pioneers is a Punjabi history podcast from SBS. Melo plays each episode straight from the publisher's own feed — no ads added, no account needed — and remembers where you stopped, in this browser only.

Publisher: SBS
Language: Punjabi ਪੰਜਾਬੀ
Category: History
New episodes: Daily
Typical length: 26 min
Latest episode: 28 Aug 2026
Feed: RSS — paste into any podcast app
Apple Podcasts: podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1890030950
Website: sbs.com.au/language/punjabi/en/podcast/punjabi-pioneers

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Punjabi Pioneers

Latest episode

Earlier episodes 9 most recent