As we wrap up our summer programme, Sampad Executive Director Bhavik Parmar looks back on a brilliant partnership with the Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust.
Sampad were thrilled to be part of this event, hosted at the Midlands Metropolitan University Hospital to mark South Asian Heritage Month, and filled to the brim with creativity, connection and celebration. It was a delight to support Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust’s EDI and wellbeing initiatives for their healthcare workers. Our work sought to showcase the richness of South Asian arts and culture, whilst also providing moments of joy, reflection and togetherness.
Too often overlooked, the arts have a powerful impact on mental health and wellbeing — whether through the rhythm of dance, the emotion of music, or the immersion of storytelling. This partnership gave staff, patients and visitors the chance to experience that first-hand, and what made this truly special was seeing something members actively join in with all our activities.
The theme of this year’s celebrations was Roots to Routes, which we brought to life through a vibrant mix of performances and participation:
- Ananya Bolar & Shriya Sharma – Bharatanatyam & Bollywood dance
- Kali Chandrasegaram – Interactive performance and participatory dance/movement workshops
- Asha Valambhia – South Asian songs and Bollywood hits
Alongside live performance, we shared poetry from our anthology My City My Home and installed our exhibition City of Empire to City of Diversity. Together, these offerings created a space to celebrate heritage while sparking conversations about identity and belonging.
The event opened with a welcome from Library and Knowledge Services Manager Preeti Puligari, who spoke about the importance of celebrating South Asian Heritage Month. Taking place in the main hospital concourse, the event attracted a wonderfully diverse audience, from trainee doctors to passing staff and visitors.
Our favourite moments? Watching junior doctors dancing along, colleagues smiling as they stopped to join in, and the ripple of energy that spread across the concourse as the music and movement filled the space.
We also took the opportunity to share Sampad’s wider aims: to inspire participation in South Asian arts across the city. We aim to be role models, change-makers and amplifiers of voices, and everyone who engaged with us during the event became part of Sampad’s growing story.
This collaboration showed how the arts can bring joy and connection into everyday spaces — even a busy hospital. We’re so proud to have partnered with Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust, and look forward to building on this. In just a few weeks, we’ll be back at the Midlands Metropolitan University Hospital as part of their one-year-on anniversary event.