From 18 July, the UK has been celebrating South Asian Heritage Month (SAHM), which was set up in 2019 to recognise and acknowledge the contributions the communities have made to Britain.
The theme this year is 'Free to Be Me' and there are many special events being held around the UK to mark the occasion. South Asian culture has had a huge impact, with millions of people of South Asian heritage live in Britain, with many moving from South Asian countries in the decade following the Second World War and also after Indian independence and Partition in 1947.
South Asia is made up of eight countries, which includes India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, The Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka. SAHM Founding Patron, Anita Rani, said: "South Asian Heritage Month is about the next generation of children growing up in the UK and for them to be able to feel empowered in their identity and proud of who they are."
Rishi Sunak (pic) became the UK's prime minister in October 2022. His parents are both Indian and moved to the UK from east Africa.as the MP for Richmond, in Yorkshire, he made history by becoming the United Kingdom's first British Asian leader.
Before which, he was Britain’s first-ever Indian Chancellor of the Exchequer. Malala Yousafzai was shot by an extremist group called the Taliban in her hometown in Pakistan, in 2012, when she was just 14 years old - because she was championing the idea of girls staying in school and getting an education, which the ruling Taliban wanted to ban.
Having recovered from her injuries, she started campaigning around the world to encourage girls to get an education. In 2014, she became the youngest winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, sharing the prize with Indian child rights campaigner Kailash Satyarthi.
In 2021 she graduated from Oxford University and continues to fight for girls' rights around the world.
Asmita Ale made history when, aged 18, she became the first Nepalese footballer to sign a professional contract in English football. The daughter of a former Gurkha soldier, Ale joined the Aston Villa academy at the age of eight and was rewarded with a contract in 2019.
The 22-year-old defender went on to become an important part of the Villa side that gained promotion to the Women's Super League in 2020. Ale, now at Leicester after a stint at Tottenham, remains the only Nepalese-heritage player in the WSL and was the only footballer from Britain's South Asian community - male or female - to play top-division football in England last season, as well as representing England at various youth levels and was most recently involved with England for the inaugural U23 European League.
Sunil Chhetri is a professional footballer, who is the captain for the Indian national team and the Indian Super League team Bengaluru. He is the third-highest international goal scorer among active players, behind only Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi and is also India's all-time top goal scorer and most-capped player.
Satya Narayana Nadella was born in Hyderabad, India, but now lives in Washington in the US. The Indian-American businessman is the Executive Chair and CEO of Microsoft – the huge computer and technology company behind lots of business software and Xbox games consoles.
He took on the job in 2014 and is seen to have turned the company's fortunes around, making it one of the most successful in the world again.
South Asian Heritage Month runs until August 17.
