Partition Museum oral histories: begin with the published description

Use the index with a regional question

The Partition Museum’s oral-history index provides short introductions and linked recordings. For a Lahore question, its description of Pran Nevile points towards recollections of music, film and educational life in the 1930s and 1940s. The description of Ijaz Khan concerns a later return by members of his family to Jalandhar and their reception by former neighbours. These are useful leads with different periods and purposes. They should not be collapsed into a single account of migration in August 1947.[1]

The same index also includes memories associated with East Bengal, Karachi and journeys involving other regions. Selecting a museum collection does not by itself select Punjab. Record the named narrator, the place under discussion and whether the account concerns life before departure, a journey or a subsequent visit. These distinctions come from the individual descriptions, rather than from a presumed common experience of every witness.[1]

Keep the Delhi project distinct

The museum separately describes the Amar Nath Sehgal Oral History Project as a collaboration with the Amar Nath Sehgal Private Collection. Its stated themes include uprooting, rebuilding homes, reconnecting with communities and returning to former homes. The page introduces Shukla Sehgal’s account of her husband’s early artistic life and links a migration compilation. This is a separate project description within the museum’s Delhi section. Record that project context rather than treating every linked video as an item from the Amritsar index.[2]

Citing inspected material

A short introduction is not a transcript. For this guide, the museum’s written descriptions were inspected; the complete linked recordings were not. When following one, establish the recording’s title, interviewer, date, language and relevant time range from the item itself, leaving missing details unrecorded.[1]

The Oral History Association recommends contextualising excerpts, checking factual information where possible and citing the location of the full oral history.[3]