North America's oldest Little India is Vancouver's Punjabi Market

The Secret Life of Canada31:56S4: The Punjabi Market

The Punjabi market is considered to be North America's oldest little India. But how did it start, and why is it located in Vancouver?

In the latest episode, The Secret Life of Canada looks at some of the early history of South Asian people in B.C including: the stories of those first to arrive, the long fight for voting rights and the account of the Komagata Maru.

With the help of Naveen Girn from The Nameless Collective Podcast they explore how the neighbourhood of Kitsilano became home to some of Vancouver's first South Asian immigrants.

Then, an interview with Gulzar Nanda chair of The Punjabi Market Collective to learn why the area went from being an epicentre of theSouth Asian community in the 70s into decline in the early 2000s and what the next generation of the market's community is doing to revitalise the neighbourhood.

Also check out:

Key References

• The Punjabi Market 50th Anniversary Celebration The Punjabi Market YouTube Channel
• The Punjabi Market Collective
• Kitsilano The City of Vancouver
• The little-known history of Squamish Nation land in Vancouver by Angela Sterritt, CBC
• Conversations with Khahtsahlano, 1932-1954 by August Jack Khahtsahlano and J.S.Matthews
• The Vote: The South Asian Franchise in Canada The South Asian Canadian Heritage Website
• SACHA The South Asian Canadian Histories Association
• The Free Hindusthan South Asian American Digital Archive
• Komagata Maru The Canadian Encyclopedia
• The Komagata Maru: Continuing the Journey The Department of Citizenship and Immigration Canada and Simon Fraser University Library
• The Nameless Collective Podcast Hosted by Naveen Girn, Milan Singh, Paneet Singh