Individual results

Interviewee: Raj Kumar Malhotra
Interviewer: Stacey Bains

Track 1
Born 16 Nov 1947, in Mukerian Punjab Shalpur district. Lived with Parents. Lower-middle class. Father ran cafÉ. Mother housewife. Four sisters, one brother. Poor family. Basic life. Managed to do higher secondary in Science subjects. Electricians course. Asian culture meant he had to contribute to family so couldn't go on to higher education. Job at BR Stam Heital project. Twenty miles from town. 18 years old. Played cricket.

Track 2
National game. Evenings in school grounds. Didn't have toys like now. Played marbles. Went around town centre. Free sugar cane from farms. Enjoyed school. Parents illiterate so couldn't ask him questions. Understood his responsibility. Father good influence. Mother busy in house. Father worked hard. More in common with Dad. Told him stories of Gurus. Equality. Work for living.

Track 3
Siblings fought when small. Loved each other. Brother youngest so loved by everyone. Big family. Quite close. Still are. Earned 175 rupees per month, only kept 15. Father used money to marry sisters. Enjoyed his job. Well liked. One and a half years. Had to move to Ludyahna for father's treatment. Relatives there. Hard to deal with at that age.

Track 4
Relatives suggested move to start up business. Sold house and cafÉ. Sisters married. Siblings attached to Mukerian. Wanted to move as had ambitions. Cramped house. Struggle to settle. Ran small hosiery company. Didn't need much capital. Money from house sale. Bought a few machines. Hard work. Now realised father had confidence in him to look after family.

Track 5
Father died. Embroidery machinery at home. Sister worked for him. 22 years old when he died. Became representative. Hosiery samples around India. Got travel bug. Read in paper of people travelling around world by boat. Spoke to friend. Decided to do it on pushbike. Rode everywhere on bike. Started planning. Wrote letters.

Track 6
Mrs Gandhi etc. Ministry of Internal Affairs helped. Went to New Delhi to finalise arrangements. Notified Embassy's. 27/02 started trip. Wanted to go through Pakistan but Bangladesh conflict prevented it. Went to Amritsar and flew to Kabul. Afghanistan to Iran,

Track 7
Tehran, Turkey, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia, Hungry, Austria, West Germany, France to England. Finished trip in Canada. 1974. Finished in November. Flew to Canada. Gudwara in Smethwick bought them tickets. Hospitality of Asian community. Made provisions to look after family. Made bike models he sold on trip. Stayed in hostels/peoples' houses. Even sent money back. Couldn't work but could sell art.

Track 8
Amazing. Everyday extraordinary. Very educational. In Afghanistan language problems. Interpreter helped to learn keywords. Regional dialects picked up.

Track 9
People friendly but backward. Thought India was poorest country. Shocked. Iran and West Germany, best hospitality. In England relatives arranging his marriage. Wanted to finish trip. Opposes arranged marriage now. Didn't have guts to say no. Came back to England and got married. Liked Coventry most.

Track 10
In-laws wanted him to live in London. Lots of friends here. Small but near countryside. Newly built. Mother didn't mind him moving. Didn't want to move. Visited him. He visited India. Already knew about European living from travelling. Asian community was real attraction. Dinner invitations. Friends. Hospitable. Midlands more friendly than London.

Track 11
Good reception everywhere apart from Turkey. Religious fanatics in East. Poverty. Bulgaria was communist. No problems. Worked at Motherpride Bakery as a casual. Job at GEC Spon St as storekeeper. Needed English qualification to be electrician. Paid to retrain. Job at GS Chin Aircraft Company in Exhall. Worked there ever since.

Track 12
Only Asian person. Must have had nice personal. Not easy to get job but lots of jobs around. Hostility from white community. Entered England at New Haven. Wanted to heat up food but shut door. Racial remarks. Shocked. In Europe no problem. English was poor. But knew some so expected it to be easier.

Track 13
Caused by ignorance/ education. Helped by friends. Lived with them and found him rented accommodation. Bought House. Unable to have children. IVF treatment. Wife conceived but lost baby after four months.

Track 14
Costly treatment. Thought about adopting. Immigration problems if wanted child from India. Was Councillor so asked social services colleagues. Wanted White, Black and Asian children. Social worker laughed. Problems for children. Adopted two children. Boy and girl with Asian backgrounds. Happy family. Aware of background. Adopted as babies.

Track 15
Very happy. People say it's a good thing. Done for selfish reason, his happiness. Didn't want a child from family member. Believes only one race, the human race. Adoption party at Barris Club. Councillors Mayor. Telegraph promoted adoption, as many Asian children need homes. Should be adopted by Asians or lose cultural identity.

Track 16
Asian community appreciated adoption. Families supportive. Realised racial tension and problems. Life difficult for Asians. Not getting fair share. Increasingly interested in politics. Joined Indian Workers Assoc. Not based on caste or politics. Progressive. Gurdave Singh Tamey educated him. His Guru. Joined Indian Youth Assoc. Fighting for equality and against racism. Low pay for Asian women in rag trade. Exploited as language difficulties.

Track 17
Organised and unionised them. Realised local authority unfair. Leaders not interested. Colleagues in Labour movement encouraged him. Joined Labour Party. Stood in election. Won Lower Stoke in 1987. Elderly people in homes didn't have the right food. Couldn't speak to anyone in their own language. Weren't taken to mosque etc. Didn't realise needs were different. Community paid tax.

Track 18
Didn't have equal opportunities policy like others. Not enough black people in jobs. And no Black experts to help them formulate policy. Need to be employed on every level. Lack of will power. Racism rife. At Hare and Hounds pub, Gulson Road skinheads attacked his friend. Stabbed.

Track 19
Two murders. Dr Dahri and Satnam Gill. Elderly couldn't go to city centre. Spat on. Abused. If lived on council estates life made hell. Part of life. No academic background. Support of Asian community and socialist parties. Helped to formulate equal opportunity policy. Ram Lakha helped him. Six monthly report to see how each department doing. Monitored situation. Never thought he'd be a Councillor. Spontaneous.

Track 20
Realised what missing when left the Council. Wife very supportive. Secretary. Wife said he needed to look after the children now. Most cases were outside his ward. All Asian people came to him. Couldn't refuse. Good colleagues. Didn't understand how government work. Trip very educational dealing with Indian government. Different countries had different systems. Gurdave Singh Tami made him aware of problems.

Track 21
Taught him how to deal with problems. Never had aspirations. Didn't realise importance of Councillor. People trusted him so needed to do best to serve them. Believes if not white you are black. People try to divide black community to weaken them. Wanted to unite community. Feels proud. Scared when got elected. Many people helped. Took too much on.

Track 22
Wanted to change the world. Realised other responsibilities when he stopped. Politics in his blood. Keeps eye on things. Giving more attention to kids and wife. Two heart attacks. Double bypass surgery. Industrial accident. Retired on medical ground. Wanted to go back. Wasn't prepared to slow down until had heart attack. People don't know the channels. Slowed down after first attack but didn't last. Wife warned him. Very lucky he's still alive.

Track 23
People complain, not as involved anymore. Not fair on the family. Thankful to his political Guru Gurdave Singh Tami and socialist colleagues. Helped to bring changes his community, is enjoying. Message to next generation not to be complacent. . Take interest in politics and always be on guard.

Coventry Lives Oral History Project, date of birth: 19/11/1947