When the 38th Australian Sikh Games come to Melbourne this April, sport will not be the only thing drawing crowds. Alongside track and field events, kabaddi matches and community gatherings, an art exhibition will quietly tell another story – of Punjab, migration, memory and faith.
Curating the exhibition are two artists deeply rooted in their culture: Shive Shankar Singh Nagah and Simranjeet Singh Sadheora. For Nagah, the journey to this moment has been long and personal.
“I was born in India. Art was always my favourite subject during school,” he says. “I participated and won many art competitions during school and college.”
Art stayed with him even as life moved him across countries. In 2012, he shifted to New Zealand. Like many migrants, practical responsibilities took over. Then came 2020.
“Covid time came as a blessing for me,” he says. During lockdown, he picked up his pencils again after years. The pause became a turning point. In 2022, he moved to Melbourne, carrying a renewed commitment to his craft.
Today, Nagah is a self-trained visual artist known for charcoal portraits and single-line artwork. His pieces are minimal, often quiet, yet emotionally powerful. He also designs furniture and décor, using simple forms to tell stories through functional objects.
Over the years, his work has appeared at community events and exhibitions across Australia and New Zealand, including Melbourne Design Week 2025 and the Geelong Art Show. In 2021, he won First Prize at the NZ Punjabi Art Competition.
His co-curator, Sadheora, shares a similar path. Born in Moga, Punjab, he showed artistic talent from childhood and worked as an art teacher in 2005. After moving to Australia in 2006, life’s demands slowed his creative practice. It wasn’t until 2019, when he joined an art group, that his passion was reignited. Since then, he has not only created art but also facilitated art groups, helping others explore different styles and mediums.
Together, they have shaped an exhibition built around a single, powerful theme: Punjab.
But Punjab means different things to different people. For some, it is the memory of a grandparent’s village. For others, it is the rhythm of bhangra at a celebration. For young people born in Australia, it may be a place known mostly through stories.
“That’s why we chose this topic,” Sadheora explains. “So artists can show what Punjab means to them.”
The exhibition will not present one fixed image. “It will be a combination of both modern and traditional Punjab, expressed through different art forms,” he says.
In Punjabi life, culture and faith are deeply connected. “In Indian culture, art and religion have a very deep connection. Almost every household has a religious painting,” Nagah says.
That connection will be visible throughout the exhibition. There will be works inspired by festivals and traditions, paintings based on folk dances, embroidery pieces, Gurbani calligraphy and abstract artworks shaped by spiritual ideas.
Artists aged between 20 and 60 are participating, working across oil, acrylic, charcoal, craft, embroidery and mixed media. Some were born in Punjab; others in Australia. The range of ages and backgrounds brings layered perspectives – memory, reinterpretation and lived diaspora experience – all meeting in one space.
One of the most delicate aspects of the exhibition is the inclusion of religious art. While faith and daily life are intertwined in Punjabi culture, presenting religious themes publicly requires sensitivity.
“Religious art is tricky,” Nagah admits. “Keeping this in mind, we gave clear instructions that no artwork should hurt anyone’s sentiments.”
He emphasises that religious art is not limited to portraits. It can reflect teachings and values. Artists are exploring faith through abstract forms, Gurbani calligraphy and works inspired by Saakhis – the stories of the Gurus.
So what do they hope visitors will take away before heading back to the Games?
“Visitors will see the traditional Punjab, which is a memory for our elders and a source of historical knowledge for our youth,” Sadheora says. He hopes it also encourages younger viewers to explore their own creativity.
“It will inspire youth to practice art, helping in their self-development, encouraging them to look at things in a different way and express themselves.”
For both curators, art is not separate from community life – it is woven into it.
“We believe art is another form of meditation,” Nagah says.
As thousands gather for the Australian Sikh Games, the exhibition will offer a quieter space – one where colour, line and texture speak of faith, migration, resilience and pride.
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