Dilpreet Bharaj was a fourth-year Pharmacology student at UBC when she took part in the “Punjabi in BC” project as an oral history interviewer. She was born in India, but immigrated to Canada at a young age. Although she grew up in a Punjabi-speaking household, Dilpreet mainly converses with her parents in English. However, it was because of her grandparents that she was able to get a grasp of the language. Dilpreet tells us that she struggled with Punjabi at a young age, but by attending Khalsa School she learned to read and write the language, and connect further with Punjabi culture. She still felt uncomfortable speaking Punjabi, however. Shortly after coming to UBC, Dilpreet got involved with Punjabi Studies. Her confidence in the language grew after taking Punjabi classes and ultimately participating in UBC’s annual Harjit Kaur Sidhu Memorial Student Essay Contest, which she won. Dilpreet is strengthening her connection to the Punjabi language by participating in the PURE Project, where she plays an active role as an interviewer and technologist undertaking oral history interviews in the Punjabi-speaking community.
Anne Murphy
Research, projects, and teaching initiatives.
