Podcast · History

SikhArchive

by Sukhraj Singh · English · History

A series of interview-based episodes with academics, authors, historians, activists and journalists on their topics of expertise with respect to Sikh and Panjabi history; hosted by Sukhraj Singh.

New episodes: Every two weeks
Typical length: 1 hr 2 min
Latest: 16 Jul 2025
Language: English

Latest episode

16 Jul 2025 · 1 hr 49 min

The Philosophy of Death and Dying in Sikhi with Professor Balbinder Singh Bhogal

Hi, I’m Sukhraj Singh from SikhArchive and welcome to the 68th episode of our Podcast series of conversations with historians, authors, academics, researchers, and activists on topics related to their areas of expertise on Sikh or Panjabi history. In this episode, we are joined by Professor Balbinder Singh Bhogal, who is a professor in Religion and the holder of the Chair in Sikh Studies at Hofstra University. His research interests include decolonization, modernity, philosophy, yoga and Sikh studies, to name but a few. He has been on the podcast twice before; the first time to discuss Sikhi…

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Earlier episodes 29 most recent

S1 · E67 · 10 Jul 2025 · 42 min
Revolutionaries on Trial with Professor Aparna Vaidik
Hi, I’m Sukhraj Singh from SikhArchive and welcome to the 67th episode of our Podcast series of conversations with historians, authors, academics, researchers, and activists on topics related to their areas of expertise on Sikh or Panjabihistory. In this episode, we are joined by Professor Aparna Vaidik, who is an Indian historian, author, and educator. Professor Vaidik is a scholar with significant public presence known for her extensive writings on history of the Andaman Islands, the Indian revolutionaries, histories of social and mythic violence, and histories of seditious conspiracies.…
S1 · E66 · 24 Jul 2024 · 52 min
Farmers Protest in Panjab and the Role of Women with Sangeet Toor
Hi, I’m Sukhraj Singh from SikhArchive and welcome to the 66th episode of our Podcast series of conversations with historians, authors, academics, researchers, and activists on topics related to their areas of expertise on Sikh or Panjabi history. In this episode, we are joined by Sangeet Toor, who by profession is a cybersecurity analyst based in Chandigarh but beyond this, she is an activist and journalist who documents the history of land rights and peasant struggles in Punjab. She has also been working closely on the ground with the most recent farmers protest in Punjab. Today we discuss…
S1 · E65 · 15 Jul 2024 · 1 hr 8 min
UAPA in Panjab with Advocate Jaspal Singh Manjhpur
Hi, I’m Sukhraj Singh from SikhArchive and welcome to the 65th episode of our Podcast series of conversations with historians, authors, academics, researchers, and activists on topics related to their areas of expertise on Sikh or Panjabi history. In this episode, we are joined by Jaspal Singh Manjhpur, who is the proprietor of @PanjaabLawyers in Ludhiana and is also the Advocate for several Sikh Political Prisoners. He has recently released a list of those detained by Panjab Police online. We discuss today his personal life, how he became a legal counsel for political prisoners, a brief…
S1 · E64 · 13 Jul 2024 · 1 hr 26 min
On Violence and The Sikhs with Professor Arvind Pal Singh Mandair
In this episode, we are joined by Professor Arvind Pal Singh Mandair, who is a prolific author, a philosopher by training, and a Professor of Sikh Studies at the University of Michigan. Arvind has recently released a book titled, “ Violence and the Sikhs” which is published by Cambridge University Press as part a larger series that examines religion and violence. In this conversation, we discuss the motivation behind professor Mandair’s writings on the philosophy of violence in Sikhi, how it isunderstood as modern and premodern conceptions of violence, and finally inclosing, how we try to…
S1 · E63 · 4 Mar 2024 · 35 min
Who was Lord Mountbatten? with Andrew Lownie
Hi, I’m Sukhraj Singh from SikhArchive and welcome to the 63rd episode of our Podcast series of conversations with historians, authors, academics, researchers, and activists on topics related to their areas of expertise on Sikh or Panjabi history. In this episode, we are joined by Andrew Lownie; who is an author and prize-winning historian that also runs his own literary agency, and in 2019 he published the book, “The Mountbattens” which is a biography on the lives of Lord Mountbatten and his wife Edwina Mountbatten. We discussed today to learn about who exactly Lord Mountbatten was, what…
S1 · E62 · 28 Feb 2024 · 57 min
The Rural Transformation of Panjab with Professor Surinder Singh Jodhka
In this episode, we are joined by Professor Surinder Singh Jodhka, who is a prolific academic in sociology based in Delhi at Jawaharlal Nehru University specialising in structures of social inequality regarding caste and agrarian society. Today we will be discussing a number of topics, for example the meaning of Rural transformation and also the historical timeline of Panjabi agriculture, the influence of the west, migration, both internal and external, and how power structures and land control have evolved over time in the region.
S1 · E61 · 19 Feb 2024 · 1 hr 2 min
Who was Jaswant Singh Khalra? with Gurmeet Kaur
Hi, I’m Sukhraj Singh from SikhArchive and welcome to the 61st episode of our Podcast series of conversations with historians, authors, academics, researchers, and activists on topics related to their areas of expertise on Sikh or Panjabi history. In this episode, we are joined by Gurmeet Kaur, who is an Panjabi American author and publisher known for creating a series of children's books under the project Fascinating Folktales of Punjab. And in 2020, she wrote and published a book about Jaswant Singh Khalra in order to commemorate his 25th martyrdom, which will be the topic of the…
S1 · E60 · 7 Jul 2023 · 1 hr 8 min
Allegory – A Tapestry of Guru Nanak’s Travels with Amardeep Singh
Hi, I’m Sukhraj Singh from SikhArchive and welcome to the 60th episode of our Podcast series of conversations with historians, authors, academics, researchers, and activists on topics related to their areas of expertise on Sikh or Panjabi history. In this episode, we are joined by Amardeep Singh, who is an Independent Visual Ethnographic Researcher with a background in in the Financial Services sector for 25 years and who was also the Head of the Asia Pacific Region at American Express for Revenue Management. He has authored two books, ‘Lost Heritage, The Sikh Legacy in Pakistan’ and ‘The…
S1 · E59 · 27 Feb 2023 · 1 hr 4 min
Masculinity, Sexuality and Transnationality in Panjab with Professor Harjant Singh Gill
Hi, I’m Sukhraj Singh from SikhArchive and welcome to the 59th episode of our Podcast series of conversations with historians, authors, academics, researchers, and activists on topics related to their areas of expertise on Sikh or Panjabi history. In this episode, we are joined by Harjant Singh Gill, who is an award-winning documentary filmmaker and visual anthropologist. He makes films which cast a spotlight on urgent and often overlooked social issues, and makes marginalized members of society feel less isolated and more understood. We discuss his personal life, the three documentaries he…
S1 · E58 · 24 Feb 2023 · 1 hr 1 min
Faith, Gender and Activism: The Wheatfields Still Whisper with Mallika Kaur
Hi, I’m Sukhraj Singh from SikhArchive and welcome to the 58th episode of our Podcast series of conversations with historians, authors, academics, researchers, and activists on topics related to their areas of expertise on Sikh or Panjabi history. In this episode, we are joined by Mallika Kaur, who is an author, lawyer, teacher and community organizer who focuses on human rights with a specialization in gender and minority issues. She is also the author of the book “Faith, Gender, and Activism in the Punjab Conflict: The Wheat Fields Still Whisper”, which we will be discussing today. We…
S1 · E57 · 13 Dec 2022 · 1 hr 11 min
Panjab: Journeys Through The Fault Lines with Amandeep Sandhu
Hi, I’m Sukhraj Singh from SikhArchive and welcome to the 57th episode of our Podcast series of conversations with historians, authors, academics, researchers, and activists on topics related to their areas of expertise on Sikh or Panjabi history. In this episode, we are joined by Amandeep Sandhu, who is a Panjabi journalist and the author of the book, “Panjab: Journeys through the fault lines”, where, on a journey to understand Panjab, he looks at the past and present of Punjab, including the backdrop of the Green revolution, State of Emergency, Panjab insurgency and the present. We discuss…
S1 · E56 · 9 Dec 2022 · 1 hr 20 min
Music in Colonial Punjab with Professor Radha Kapuria
Hi, I’m Sukhraj Singh from SikhArchive and welcome to the 56th episode of our Podcast series of conversations with historians, authors, academics, researchers, and activists on topics related to their areas of expertise on Sikh or Panjabi history. In this episode, we are joined by Radha Kapuria, who is an Assistant Professor in South Asian History at the University of Durham. Her current research analyses the impact of the 1947 Partition on musicians’ lives India and Pakistan, with her interests centring around South Asian social, cultural and gender history; migration, displacement and…
S1 · E55 · 8 Dec 2022 · 1 hr 27 min
Janamsakhis of Guru Nanak with Professor Harjeet Singh Grewal
Hi, I’m Sukhraj Singh from SikhArchive and welcome to the 55th episode of our Podcast series of conversations with historians, authors, academics, researchers, and activists on topics related to their areas of expertise on Sikh or Panjabi history. In this episode, we are joined by Harjeet Singh Grewal, who is a professor of Asian Religion and Sikh Studies at the University of Calgary and Comparative Literature courses at MacEwan University and his PhD thesis was titled, “Janamsakhi: Networks of interpretation. And so today we will be discussing Janamsakhis, their origins, their significance…
S1 · E54 · 7 Nov 2022 · 1 hr 42 min
Sikhi and Jainism with Professor Nirinjan Kaur
Hi, I’m Sukhraj Singh from SikhArchive and welcome to the 54th episode of our Podcast series of conversations with historians, authors, academics, researchers, and activists on topics related to their areas of expertise on Sikh or Panjabi history. In this episode, we are joined by Nirinjan Kaur, who is a professor of theological studies at the Loyola Marymount University. Her work examines both historic and modern Sikh devotional music with particular attention paid to the mystical and embodied realms of performative practice as well as the ideological debates and identity politics…
E53 · 22 Aug 2022 · 1 hr 15 min
Life and Work of Guru Arjan with Professor Pashaura Singh
Hi, I’m Sukhraj Singh from SikhArchive and welcome to the 53rd episode of our Podcast series of conversations with historians, authors, academics, researchers, and activists on topics related to their areas of expertise on Sikh or Panjabi history. In this episode, we are joined by Pashaura Singh, who is a professor of religious studies at the University of California, Riverside. He is a leading scholar in Sikh studies where his research interests and expertise include the Adi Granth, Gurmukhi script and Sikh history. Today we will be discussing his book, namely the Life and Work of Guru…
E52 · 22 Aug 2022 · 58 min
Lost in History: 1984 Reconstructed with Dr. Gunisha Kaur
Hi, I’m Sukhraj Singh from Sikh Archive and welcome to the 52nd episode of our Podcast series of conversations with historians, authors, academics, researchers and activists on topics related to their areas of expertise on Sikh or Panjabi history. In this episode, we are joined by Dr. Gunisha Kaur, who is an anaesthesiologist specializing in human rights. Her research interests focus on displaced populations such as migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers. She is also the author of the book, 1984: Lost in History which will be discussed today. The book documents the events of 1984, before,…
17 Aug 2022 · 1 hr 8 min
Communism in Punjab and The Ghadar Party in Russia with Professor Ali Raza
Hi, I’m Sukhraj Singh from Sikh Archive and welcome to the 51st episode of our Podcast series of conversations with historians, authors, academics, researchers and activists on topics related to their areas of expertise on Sikh or Panjabi history. In this episode, we are joined by Ali Raza, who is a historian specializing in the history of modern South Asia from the Lahore University of Management Sciences. His research and teaching interests include the social and intellectual history of South Asia, comparative colonialisms, decolonization, and post-colonial theory. Today we will be…
26 Jul 2022 · 39 min
Police Torture in Punjab with Professor Ami Laws
Hi, I’m Sukhraj Singh from SikhArchive and welcome to the 50th episode of our Podcast series of conversations with historians, authors, academics, researchers, and activists on topics related to their areas of expertise on Sikh or Panjabi history. In this episode, we are joined by Dr Ami Laws, who is a medical practitioner from California and an adjunct associate professor at Stanford University School of Medicine. Dr Laws is an internationally known expert with a specialization in the practices of abuse and torture. As such, she has interviewed and examined clients from India, countries of…
22 Jul 2022 · 45 min
The History of Migrant Incarceration in USA with Professor Jessica Ordaz
Hi, I’m Sukhraj Singh from Sikh Archive and welcome to the 49th episode of our Podcast series of conversations with historians, authors, academics, researchers and activists on topics related to their areas of expertise on Sikh or Panjabi history. In this episode, we are joined by Jessica Ordaz, who is a professor of Ethnic Studies at the University of Colorado Boulder. She is the author of the book, The Shadow of El Centro: A History of Migrant Incarceration and Solidarity, which fascinated me to host this conversation for two reasons. First, Akaal Security, a Sikh private security company,…
7 Jun 2022 · 1 hr 18 min
Sikhi & Yoga with Professor Balbinder Singh Bhogal
Hi, I’m Sukhraj Singh from Sikh Archive and welcome to the 48th episode of our Podcast series of conversations with historians, authors, academics, researchers and activists on topics related to their areas of expertise on Sikh or Panjabi history. In this episode, we are joined by Balbinder Singh Bhogal, who is a professor of Religious Studies and the holder of the Chair in Sikh Studies at Hofstra University. His research interests include decolonization, modernity, philosophy, yoga and Sikh studies, to name but a few. Today we will be exploring the discussion on Sikhi and Yoga, in…
27 May 2022 · 45 min
On Nehru, High Modernism and Chandigarh with Professor Taylor Sherman
Hi, I’m Sukhraj Singh from Sikh Archive and welcome to the 47th episode of our Podcast series of conversations with historians, authors, academics, researchers and activists on topics related to their areas of expertise on Sikh or Panjabi history. In this episode we are joined by Taylor Sherman, who is a professor of history at the London School of Economics where her research concerns the cultural and political history of South Asia between the 1930s and the 1970s. We discuss today the politics of Nehru and his defining role in the formation of the Indian State with particular reference to…
26 Apr 2022 · 1 hr 11 min
Persianate Age of India with Professor Richard Eaton
Hi, I’m Sukhraj Singh from Sikh Archive and welcome to the 46th episode of our Podcast series of conversations with historians, authors, academics, researchers and activists on topics related to their areas of expertise on Sikh or Panjabi history. In this episode we are joined by Richard Eaton, who is a professor of history at the University of Arizona where his primary interest is the social and cultural history of pre-modern India. He has most recently published the book “India in the Persianate Age” which explores the long-term interaction between the Persianate and Sanskritic worlds,…
16 Apr 2022 · 1 hr 10 min
Marxism in Punjab with Professor Pritam Singh
Hi, I’m Sukhraj Singh from SikhArchive and welcome to the 45th episode of our Podcast series of conversations with historians, authors, academics, researchers, and activists on topics related to their areas of expertise on Sikh or Panjabi history. In this episode, we are joined by Pritam Singh who is a scholar and professor of Economics at Oxford Brookes University where his main areas of teaching interest and expertise are development economics, environmental economics, comparative economic systems and competing economic paradigms. Today we discuss the origins of Marxism in Punjab, its…
16 Apr 2022 · 51 min
Religious Rebels in the Punjab with Professor Mark Juergensmeyer
Hi, I’m Sukhraj Singh from SikhArchive and welcome to the 44th episode of our Podcast series of conversations with historians, authors, academics, researchers, and activists on topics related to their areas of expertise on Sikh or Panjabi history. In this episode, we are joined by Mark Juergensmeyer, who is a professor of global studies, sociology and also religious studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara. He has a plethora of literature relating to the study of South Asian religion and politics, and the one that is being discussed today is called, Religious Rebels in the…
16 Apr 2022 · 54 min
Paghri Sambhal Lehar to Samyukt Kisan Morcha with Professor Ronki Ram
Hi, I’m Sukhraj Singh from SikhArchive and welcome to the 43rd episode of our Podcast series of conversations with historians, authors, academics, researchers, and activists on topics related to their areas of expertise on Sikh or Panjabi history. In this episode, we are joined by Ronki Ram, who is a professor and leading scholar on the study of Casteism in Punjab. He is a professor at the Panjab University in Chandigarh and has now also more recently been appointed as a visiting Professor at the University of Wolverhampton in the UK. Today, we will be discussing his latest book, Pagrhi…
7 Feb 2022 · 44 min
Australian Indian History with Len Kenna and Crystal Jordan
Hi, I’m Sukhraj Singh from SikhArchive and welcome to the 42nd episode of our Podcast series of conversations with historians, authors, academics, researchers, and activists on topics related to their areas of expertise on Sikh or Panjabi history. In this episode we are joined by Len Kenna and Crystal Jordan who are both from the Australian Indian Historical Society. They have devoted decades of their time into researching the history of Indian migration to Australia and the contribution made in the early days of settlement. They have also authored the book, “Sikh History in Australia”. We…
8 Jan 2022 · 48 min
Influence of the British Raj on the Attire and Textiles of Punjab with Jasvinder Kaur
Hi, I’m Sukhraj Singh from SikhArchive and welcome to the 41st episode of our Podcast series of conversations with historians, authors, academics, researchers, and activists on topics related to their areas of expertise on Sikh or Panjabi history. In this episode we are joined by Jasvinder Kaur, who studied textiles at Delhi’s Lady Irwin College in 1969 and has since been continuously engaged with the subject. She has included consultancy assignments at the Musée d’art et d’histoire and Musée d’ethnographie, in Geneva, Switzerland, and has been lecturing as visiting faculty at the National…
4 Jan 2022 · 34 min
Delhi Fateh Diwas with Dr. Kanika Singh
Hi, I’m Sukhraj Singh from SikhArchive and welcome to the 40th episode of our Podcast series of conversations with historians, authors, academics, researchers, and activists on topics related to their areas of expertise on Sikh or Panjabi history. In this episode we are joined by Kanika Singh, who is a historian with a research focus on museums and heritage in contemporary India, with a particular interest in Sikh museums. Her PhD was on the representation of heritage in Sikh museums with a case study of the museum at Sis Ganj Gurdwara in Delhi. In today’s conversation, we discuss her…
28 Dec 2021 · 54 min
Who was Jahangir? with Parvati Sharma
Hi, I’m Sukhraj Singh from SikhArchive and welcome to the 39th episode of our Podcast series of conversations with historians, authors, academics, researchers, and activists on topics related to their areas of expertise on Sikh or Panjabi history. In this episode we are joined by Parvati Sharma, who is a journalist and the author of the historical biography book, “Jahangir: An Intimate Portrait of a Great Mughal”. And in today’s discussion, we explore both the book and the life of Jahangir, with a particular focus on his upbringing, his role in power and his relationship to his father,…

About SikhArchive

A series of interview-based episodes with academics, authors, historians, activists and journalists on their topics of expertise with respect to Sikh and Panjabi history; hosted by Sukhraj Singh.

SikhArchive is a English history podcast from Sukhraj Singh. 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: Sukhraj Singh
Language: English
Category: History
New episodes: Every two weeks
Typical length: 1 hr 2 min
Latest episode: 16 Jul 2025
Feed: RSS — paste into any podcast app
Apple Podcasts: podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1650366185
Rights: Sukhraj Singh

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