This community-led heritage project will document and celebrate the lives, memories, and cultural roots of Nepalese people in Burnt Oak. Many in this community have experienced marginalisation and underrepresentation, making it vital to preserve their heritage and ensure their stories are heard. This project builds on To Us It Means, a recent audio and sound exhibition with artsdepot that engaged many elders and Gurkha veterans. During that project, veterans specifically requested video documentation so their stories could be fully captured, and this project responds directly to that need.

BONC will work with a Nepalese-speaking artist/ filmmaker, supported by artsdepot, to co-create short documentary-style films capturing oral histories, lived experiences, and cultural traditions. The films will include the voices of Gurkha veterans, whose service, sacrifices, and journeys are locally and nationally significant but often absent from heritage archives, as well as intergenerational perspectives from the wider community.

The completed films will form a publicly accessible digital archive and be shared at intergenerational community events at artsdepot and Watling Community Centre, fostering dialogue between community members to then be featured within the Light + Flight finale in November 2026, offering Barnet residents meaningful insight into Nepalese heritage. With artsdepot supporting artist recruitment, project management, facilitated workshops, and production, this project will strengthen intergenerational connections, elevate underrepresented voices, and create a lasting, community-owned record of Nepalese heritage in Burnt Oak.