Should The Queen's Honours List be scrapped?
(24th September 2002)

Back: Sir Gulam K Noon, Moni Varma. Front: Shri Hinduja, Lakshmi Mittal

The difference between being an Asian Man and an Asian Woman is that if you are a man like Gulam Noon of Noon Products plc (pictured left), Knighted by The Queen in this year's honours list, then you get a celebratory dinner hosted for you with the hoi polloi of the Asian Rich List. Whereas if you are a woman awarded an OBE, like Parminder Vir of Carlton Television then you have to turn up at the Nehru Centre to explain why you have been so singled out to disenfranchised members of 'Equity' (the Actors Union) and the cynical ethnic media. Or worse, you might have to make do with a CBE like Perween Warsi of S & A foods.

There has been much criticism of Sir Gulam's Knighthood in the National Press in Britain. The charge is that he was put forward by Prime Minister Tony Blair as "pay back" for the hefty donations made to the Labour party. Whilst this belittles Sir Gulam's efforts to help the community through the charitable Noon Foundation, it does highlight the weakness of the whole selection process. Exactly how do you get chosen by The Queen?

Obviously, Government's recommendations have a large part to play. This explains why several MBEs are awarded each year for work largely unknown to the UK Asian Public. This year, for example, sixteen of the twenty-four (67%) MBEs were awarded for community services and race relations. Ms Urmila Banerjee, a member of Cabinet Office Management Board was awarded a CBE for her work in modernising the Civil Service. So obviously being known among civil servants helps!

This leaves large sections of the Asian community nonplussed. Why are some of the most prominent Asian figures in the Arts not being selected? Last year, Meera Syal was awarded an MBE and yet her colleagues from hit-show Goodness Gracious Me, Sanjeev Bhasker, Nina Wadia and Kulvinder Ghir, were passed over. When will the hugely-talented actor Om Puri, currently starring as Samad Iqbal in the TV adaptation of Zadie Smith's White Teeth' and best known as the father in 'East is East' be in the running?

Nitin Sawhney and Talvin Singh have both done a huge amount, bringing classical Asian musical knowledge into mainstream British pop. It seems that for Asian Authors, winning the Booker Prize is easier than being chosen by The Queen. Don't believe me? Consider Arundhati Roy (God of Small Things), Preethi Nair (Gypsy Masala) and the ever-favourite Vikram Seth (Suitable Boy)?

There are theatrical personalities like Jatinder Verma of Tara Arts, Sudha Buchar (Tamasha Theatre Company), Uzma Hameed (The Big Picture Company), Shobana Jeyasingh (Shobana Jeyasingh Dance Company) who help to break down the barriers between Asian communities and the British population. Film Directors like Gurinder Chadha (Bend it Like Beckham) and Theatre Directors like Indu Rubasingham apply the same principle to the stage and screen. Playwrights like Tanika Gupta and Gurpreet Bhatti weave Asian storylines for everyday soap operas and have you noticed how many Asians are now appearing regularly on television? Asian Arts is no longer considered "fringe" and yet many are still awaiting recognition they deserve.

Receiving an honour from the Queen not only looks good on your personalised stationery, it helps add credibility and gains you greater recognition!

Parminder Vir deserves her OBE. She is acutely aware of the need to bring cultural diversity to broadcasting. Having managed to get all the heads of the major TV stations together, she claims that her greatest success has been in convincing them that cultural diversity is "their" issue rather than just hers. Not one to shrink from a challenge she was even prepared to give advice to wannabe actors, producers and directors on how to network effectively. Of course, the greatest advantage of honouring Parminder Vir is that she is now in the position to advise on next year's selection.

So should The Queen's Honours List be scrapped? Well let us see the changes Parminder can bring about with her Majesty first!

Click here to read a biography of Parminder Vir.