Why RAQS Art Exists
RAQS Art exists because culture is often the first thing communities lose when they are misunderstood — and the last thing they are invited to reclaim.
The organisation was shaped through conversations between Mona Shafique, a bilingual poet, writer and storyteller, and Harmit Singh, Producer at BBC Asian Network. These discussions grew from a shared concern about the gap between the lived realities of British Muslim communities and the narrow narratives that dominate public discourse — shaping belonging, opportunity and wellbeing.
Working primarily with Pakistani and Kashmiri Muslim communities in Birmingham, RAQS Art emerged from years of grassroots practice. Across generations, creativity has thrived in homes, Bethaks, women’s circles, songs, poetry, craft and oral memory, yet remained largely invisible within mainstream cultural life.
RAQS Art was formed to bring these stories into the open without stripping them of context, dignity or complexity. The organisation believes communities are not lacking in culture or creativity — what has been missing is space, visibility and authorship.
Through storytelling, music, heritage and visual arts, RAQS Art creates culturally rooted spaces where communities tell their own stories, on their own terms.
What We Respond To
Many of the communities RAQS Art works with experience multiple layers of exclusion — not only economic or social, but cultural.
This shows up in subtle but powerful ways:
• Feeling unwelcome in mainstream arts spaces
• Seeing identities reduced to stereotypes
• Being spoken about rather than listened to
• Carrying histories that are never archived or valued
Over time, this leads to disengagement — not because communities lack interest in culture, but because culture has not made space for them.
RAQS Art exists to reverse that dynamic.
Our Communities, Our Starting Point
RAQS Art begins with people — not problems.
We work with:
• Women whose creativity has been shaped around care and survival
• Elders whose migration stories live only in memory
• Young people navigating inherited traditions alongside British life
• Communities rich in language, music, humour and resilience
Rather than extracting stories, RAQS Art builds long-term, trust-based spaces where creativity can unfold naturally and collectively.
Why Arts & Heritage Matter Here
For the communities we work with, arts and heritage are not abstract concepts — they are everyday practices.
Storytelling, music, textile work, oral history and shared gatherings have long been ways of:
• Making sense of displacement
• Holding identity across borders
• Passing knowledge between generations
• Building belonging where formal systems fall short
RAQS Art recognises these practices as cultural assets, not informal hobbies — and places them at the centre of our work.
Our Way of Working
RAQS Art is deliberately local, participatory and relational.
We:
• Work in community settings rather than expecting communities to come to institutions
• Value process as much as outcome
• Create spaces that are culturally familiar and emotionally safe
• Support people to see themselves as cultural contributors
Through programmes such as Bethak, Geet Kahani, Stitching Stories and Art Room, participants are not framed as beneficiaries, but as co-creators of shared cultural knowledge.
Why This Matters Beyond Our Communities
When stories remain hidden, everyone loses.
RAQS Art believes that a healthier cultural landscape is one where:
• Difference is understood, not simplified
• Identity is allowed to be layered and evolving
• Communities are recognised as part of Britain’s cultural present — not just its past
By supporting under-represented voices to be seen and heard on their own terms, RAQS Art contributes to stronger social connection and a more honest public culture.
In Simple Terms
RAQS Art exists to:
• Hold space for stories that would otherwise be lost
• Strengthen cultural confidence within communities
• Shift how Pakistani and Kashmiri Muslim lives are understood
• Use creativity as a bridge — not a barrier
This is not about changing who communities are.
It is about changing who gets to speak — and how they are listened to.
