Our People

Ishwari Arambam

MAP, Bengaluru, India

Ishwari (aka Eva) is one of five MAP trainees on the OSCH traineeship programme. She aspires to create and foster lively meaningful exchanges on contemporary art and youth culture with significant research. She previously worked at the Kochi-Muziris Biennale as an art mediator and the Kigali Photo Fest, Rwanda.

Bibi Hajra Arbab

The Colony, Lahore, Pakistan

Bibi has a Masters degree from San Francisco State University where she majored in Film and Electronic Media. She leads Business Development and Legal Affairs at The Colony. Bibi was project lead on the OSCH project in the Walled City of Lahore.

Changemakers

Glasgow Museums, UK

The Changemakers are a group of young people of South Asian heritage actively working within Glasgow Museums. Critiquing the displays and creating tools to improve museum practice in decolonisation, their vital work is leading to changes in the way the histories and lived experiences of POC are represented in museums.

Miles Greenwood

Glasgow Museums, UK

Miles was Curator of Legacies of Empire and Slavery at Glasgow Museums. His role involved steering the museums’ approach to addressing the legacies of Transatlantic Slavery and the British Empire. Miles worked with the OSCH Changemakers to challenge the dominant narratives of history and introduce decolonising practices.

Dr Sadia Habib

Manchester Museum, UK

Sadia is the Our Shared Cultural Heritage (OSCH) Coordinator at Manchester Museum, where she mentors young people to lead on critical and creative work around identities and belongings. Sadia’s work at the museum revolves around engaging under-represented young people with heritage.

Asad Hayee

Faiz Foundation Trust, Lahore, Pakistan

Asad is an artist and art educator, working nationally and internationally to promote Pakistani contemporary art. From 2018 to 2019, he was the UNESCO-FFT Consultant for the Chitral Museum educational outreach programme. Asad ran the OSCH project for Faiz Foundation Trust in the Walled city of Lahore.

Dr. Asma Ibrahim

State Bank Museum, Karachi, Pakistan

Dr. Asma Ibrahim, the Director of the State Bank Museum’s Archives and Art Gallery department, is a senior archaeologist, museologist and conservationist. She is General Secretary and a pioneer member of the SEAS Pakistan & Centre for Archaeological & Environmental Research.

Hawwa

Manchester Museum, UK

Hawwa is one of the Manchester Museum OSCH Cultural Learning & Participation Officers. Hawwa plans, runs and evaluates OSCH projects, which often relate to identity, heritage and belonging. Her key focus with OSCH is to create a safe and inclusive space for everyone involved, and gain opportunities within the sector.

Tejshvi Jain

Indian Music Experience Museum, Bengaluru, India

Tejshvi wears two hats. She is the Founder-Director of ReReeti Foundation and Head of Partnerships at Indian Music Experience Museum (IME). In both her roles she strives to make museums a space of learning, delight, and meaningful engagement for people of all ages and backgrounds.

Shahana Khaliq-Lyon

Glasgow Museums, UK

Shahana Khaliq-Lyon is the OSCH Coordinator for Glasgow as well as a Learning and Access Curator based in Kelvingrove Museum. As a Scottish South Asian, she understands the barriers of misrepresentation and racism in museums. She is committed to working with young people so that their voices are heard.

Shruti Kondi

MAP, Bengaluru, India

Shruti is one of 5 MAP trainees. She previously worked in the ed-tech space. Art and photography have always been a constant source of inspiration for her; she is particularly interested in the intersection of the museum and digital space.

Debangana Kundu

MAP, Bengaluru, India

Debangana is the video content creator at MAP. She graduated from Srishti Manipal Institute of Art, Design and Technology with a bachelor's degree in filmmaking. Her interest lies in direction and editing and wants to make her own content eventually.

Maya

Manchester Museum, UK

Maya is one of the Manchester Museum OSCH Cultural Learning & Participation Officers. Maya is interested in increasing representation of young people of colour in heritage spaces. She is an ambassador for OSCH and speaks at events about identity, heritage and belonging, ensuring heritage spaces are inclusive to young people.

Sadya Mizan

Uronto Artist Community, Rajshahi, Bangladesh

Sadya is an independent curator and researcher, who set up Uronto in 2012. Her curatorial expertise is in facilitating decentralised platforms to identify, reconnect and archive cultural narratives, reflect contemporary social realities and inspire communities through multidisciplinary artistic expressions. Sadya set up and manages the OSCH Rajshahi Youth Board, Bangladesh.

The Manchester Museum OSCH Young Collective

Manchester, UK

The Manchester Museum OSCH Young Collective is a group of 16 to 25 year old young people with diverse ethnic backgrounds who are based in Manchester and beyond, and who meet online and in person to organise events, activities and campaigns relevant to their identities and cultures.

Mounika Nallani

MAP, Bengaluru, India

Mounika is a chemical engineer turned museum trainee turned Development Assistant at MAP. She is interested in learning about the environment, art and photography. Alongside her work at MAP she is working with WeForPaws supporting and promoting the adoption of stray dogs.

Rajshahi OSCH Youth Board

Rajshahi, Bangladesh

Made up of 30 young people (aged 18-25) and with interests ranging from architecture to arts, engineering to literature, they are united in their passion for promoting the cultural heritage of Rajshahi. Working with Varendra Research Museum, they are bringing new audiences to the museum through new and imaginative ways.

Sara Khan Pathan

Department of Visual Studies, University of Karachi, Pakistan

Sara is a multidisciplinary artist and educator. She has worked as an artist with Creativity Culture and Education, Ikon Gallery (England), Vasl Artists Collective and British Council Pakistan. Her work explores the nature of violence, socio-political complexities, identity, and diaspora through contemporising artistic traditions of miniature painting and sculpture.

Barinur Rashid

Manchester Museum, UK

Barinur is a board member for the OSCH programme. He led on the accelerator fund enabling young people to celebrate South Asian Heritage Month and helped to facilitate some of the international collaborations with partners in Pakistan and Bangladesh.

Pivari

Un.Divided Identities: Lesser known stories of the Partition

Pivari is a 2D animator, motion designer and illustrator with a Masters in animation from Srishti Institute of Art, Design and Technology. She specializes in frame-by-frame digital animation, has experience in stop motion animation and is pursing a career as an animator.

Shilpa Vijayakrishnan

MAP, Bengaluru, India

Shilpa is Head of Education & Outreach at MAP. Her work primarily involves building audiences and developing the learning programme. With the support of the five wonderful OSCH trainees she mentors and their fresh perspectives, she hopes MAP will produce new avenues for cultural dialogue amongst young people.

Indian Music Experience Youth Advisory Board

IME, Bengaluru, India

The Youth Advisory Board is a group of young adults (ages 14-17) who work as an advisory council for the IME. They review IME’s activities and make recommendations focusing on audience engagement and public programming. They create events and are ensuring the strategy maintains youth and community centred.

Mehreen Yousaf

MAP, Bengaluru, India

After completing high school, Mehreen moved to Coventry (England), to pursue her undergraduate degree in Media and Communications. Mehreen is one of five trainees at MAP as part of the OSCH traineeship programme.

Mahreen Zuberi

Karachi University, Pakistan

Mahreen is a visual artist and art educator. Since early 2021 she has played a prominent part in facilitating the OSCH/Karachi University/State Bank Museum partnership seeking to create opportunities for young people to engage with the cultural and heritage sectors.

Kartik Ahuja

Un.Divided Identities: Lesser known stories of the Partition

Kartik is a music producer, audio engineer, composer, and musician from New Delhi, India. With a keen sense of exploring sound from a young age, Kartik has been involved professionally with these tangents of music and audio. The majority of his work revolves around scoring for films and producing for artists.

Meher Nandrajog

Un.Divided Identities: Lesser known stories of the Partition

Meher is a graduate of English Literature from Delhi University. She is particularly interested in the literary value and nuances of print and visual forms of creative expression. Meher was a researcher on the Un.Divided Identities project.

Samaawat Aseea Khan

Un.Divided Identities: Lesser known stories of the Partition

Samaawat is of Scottish-Bangladeshi heritage currently studying Computer Science at Strathclyde University. They are a commissioned artist in their free time; interests include writing and performing music, voice acting and games development. As well as a programmer for Un.divided Identities, they are a Changemaker at Glasgow Museums.

Malini Chakrabarty

Un.Divided Identities: Lesser known stories of the Partition

Malini is an interdisciplinary artist and media researcher at Stirling University. A former investigative journalist in India uncovering a $4 million scam, she moved to Glasgow to study filmmaking and media arts at Glasgow University. As well as an illustrator on Un.Divided Identities, Malini is a Changemaker at Glasgow Museums.

Shafia Fiaz

OSCH Social Media Coordinator

Shafia is OSCH's Social Media Coordinator and a Digital Producer for Manchester Museum. Her involvement with OSCH has allowed her to further explore her identity and gain confidence – and is sharing her knowledge through her work on social media and with OSCH.

Bhanu Ghalot

Un.Divided Identities: Lesser known stories of the Partition

Bhanu is a cultural practitioner and historical researcher based in Delhi. Her work is rooted in the study of difficult histories of South Asia. Her practice includes discourses on postcolonial museums, cultural appropriation, material culture and cultural exchange in a digital world. Bhanu is project manager for Un.Divided Identities.

Shaunaq Madan

Un.Divided Identities: Lesser known stories of the Partition

Shaunaq is a designer and software developer with an interest in multimedia art, electronic music production and interactive installations. He is the Creative Head for the OSCH project: Un.Divided Identities: Lesser known stories of the Partition.

Maya Uppal

Glasgow Museums, UK

Maya is a poet, facilitator and Learning Assistant based in Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum. They work with OSCH Changemakers to develop a programme of activities within Glasgow Museums relating to identity, representation, and decolonial actions in the heritage sector.

Ish Maini

Un.Divided Identities: Lesser known stories of the Partition

Ish is a researcher on Un.Divided Identities, a social activist, a Changemaker at Glasgow Museums and a history enthusiast. He is currently pursuing a Masters in International Law at the University of Glasgow. He believes in the adage “be part of the change you wish to see in society.”

Aisha Aishgar

Glasgow Museums, UK

Aisha is a Fine Art MA student studying both studio practice and art history and theory. Interested in interdisciplinary creative and collaborative practices, she is the Project Assistant for the Glasgow x Lahore OSCH project CRAFTING HISTORIES. She works closely with the young participants on the project, facilitating and assisting with workshop delivery and discussions.

Nikhita

Un.Divided Identities: Lesser known stories of the Partition

Nikhita completed her undergraduate degree in Economics and International Development Studies from McGill University. She is currently a researcher and freelance writer. Her interests are varied, but include urban history and development of South Asian cities, evolution of culinary practices and rummaging through heavy photo books at her nearest library.

Dr. Angela Massafra

Glasgow Museums, UK

Angela is the Learning and Access Curator at the Gallery of Modern Art (GoMA), Glasgow Museums. She has worked in museums and public engagement for over 10 years. She established and coordinates the GoMA Youth Group, a collective of young people 16-25 influencing GoMA’s exhibitions and public programmes.

Maliha Noorani

National College of Art, Lahore, Pakistan

Maliha Noorani teaches Art History at The National College of Arts, Lahore. Her primary research and curatorial interests are in South Asian colonial visual culture and its intersections with modern art institutional histories. Her most recent projects include curating Taxila Museum’s first special exhibit, Gandhara: Routes and Roots. Presently, her favourite course to teach is Global Modernism: Outliers and Art Histories.

Hattie Kongaunruan

RhythmXchange

Hattie is the Project Manager for a mentorship for young South Asian musicians and their mentors between Manchester and Bangalore. Nurturing their development and wellbeing, specifically through arrangements of virtual activities and travel to India. Providing safe, supported spaces for creativity and youth-led collaboration, that became headlining performances for the ambitious RhythmXchange Festival programme.

Aisha Khan

Walled City of Lahore Authority, Pakistan

Aisha has been working with the Walled City of Lahore Authority, where Ishe has put her skills and abilities to good use by creating a difference in the lives of people. Aisha is the lead for OSCH from WCLA across onsite management and execution.

Arpita Shah

Glasgow Museums, UK

Arpita Shah is an artist and educator, her work explores the intersections of culture and identity. Collaborating with individuals and families across the UK, Shah’s work centres on exploring notions of home, belonging, migration and memory. Her work is held at the National Galleries of Scotland and Birmingham Museum’s Trust.

Morweena Kearsley

Glasgow Museums, UK

Morwenna Kearsley is a Glasgow-based artist working predominantly with photography. She photographs objects that reveal part of who we are, as individuals and communities, from museum artefacts and personal effects to discarded scraps and textiles. She often collaborates with other people via workshops, evening classes and community arts projects.

Zainab Hassan

MANACHI - University of Karachi, Pakistan

Project lead for MANACHI from KU side. She took the reigns and delivered the cross border engagement and with Manchester Museum also co-curating the creative collection of Manachi. Her role was to oversee communications between the two teams, manage emails, arrange workshops at Karachi University, keeping track of all operations and updates from the KU side.

Yaruk Mehmood

MANACHI - University of Karachi, Pakistan

Yaruk has worked with OSCH as an Art and design coordinator and a co-curator for the creative book “Manachi”. He worked alongside OSCH colleagues to arrange workshops, collect visual data from Karachi university students . Yaruk was responsible for monitoring and updating all the social media platforms as well as designing and arranging the open calls for Manachi submissions.

Beenish Sarfaraz

MANACHI - University of Karachi, Pakistan

Beenish is a multidisciplinary artist and educator based in Karachi, Pakistan. Her interests include cultural and heritage stories. Currently, she is a faculty member at Visual Studies, Karachi University. Her contribution for the OSCH programme included mentoring the young contributors and designing the visual anthology "Manachi: These Kingdoms Never Slept”.

Rana Ali Haider

Walled City of Lahore Authority, Pakistan

Rana has been a part of Walled City of Lahore Authority for the past 3 years. He has worked as the lead coordinator from WCLA’s side in the OSCH collaborations ensuring delivery and coordination between partners.

Sarvar Kahlon

RhythmXchange - Indian Music Experience Museum, Bengaluru, India

Sarvar is arts administrator and musician, currently working as Program Officer with the Indian Music Experience Museum. As the India Project Lead for RhythmXChange her role was to co-manage all aspects of the project from grant application, artist onboarding, mentorship exchange to music festival operations, with an active involvement in programming.

JAVA

RhythmXChange

J.A.V.A. stands for Joash (UK), Aditi (IN), Vinthya (UK), and Ashwin (IN), four distinctive creatives with a shared passion for music and south Asian heritage. The India and UK-based artists perform genre-fluid pieces, combining their individual musical styles: Carnatic vocal, Western Classical, Hip-Hop/RnB, contemporary, electronic dance and folk music. This new quartet was born out of the partnership project between Manchester Museum and Indian Music Experience Museum, as part of British Council’s India UK Together season.

Md. Abdul Kuddus

Varendra Research Museum, Rajshahi

Md. Abdul Kuddus is working as the Deputy Chief Conservation Officer of the Varendra Research Museum, Rajshahi. His scope of work includes - Preventive and Remedial Conservation, Store Management, Research of Antiquities etc. He has been a key part in supporting the OSCH youth board with the researches on museum artifacts and history.

Tooba Ashraf

Crafting Histories - Lahore

Tooba Ashraf is an artist and researcher based in Lahore, Pakistan. She is working with OSCH as a project assistant alongside her role as visiting faculty member at NCA. Among her list of literary accolades is her contribution to the anthology, Waba ke Dor Mein (In the Time of Pandemic), published by the Vasl Artist’s Association, Karachi.