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Good morning. Last week, I met up with some friends for dinner at the India Club restaurant in central London. Going through its doors felt like stepping back in time. Since 1951, this humble venue on the Strand has been a place where people from Indian backgrounds have felt at home, be it because of the cuisine, the languages spoken there, or even the décor which has barely changed over the decades. Sadly, this little piece of British Indian history is closing its doors for the last time next month. The 1950s and 60s saw the first big wave of migration from South Asia to the UK, and it took the new arrivals a while to settle in to what was generally an inhospitable place for immigrants. This was a time when signs saying ‘No Coloureds’ could be found outside guesthouses, and when politicians such as Enoch Powell felt comfortable enough to make divisive and racist speeches. It was against this backdrop that places like the India Club emerged as pivotal social hubs. They gave South Asians a focal point, somewhere they could go to embrace their culture, speak to others for help and advice, or simply to make friends. My grandfather was amongst those pioneers, the first in my family to come to the UK and call this his home. It wasn’t easy for him. Unlike many Sikh men in his generation, he took the decision not to take his turban off or cut his long hair. He wasn’t going to hide his faith or discard his identity just to fit into British society. It was a tough life, but one that he never once regretted. Since he passed away a couple of months ago, I’ve found myself thinking more about how much the world changed during his lifetime, as well as how some of the places he knew as a young man are still around today. That sense of lived history is important. Even though the Sikh faith is only a few hundred years old, most buildings connected to our Gurus have been demolished to make way for newer structures. That sense of a connection with history continues to be lost with each passing day. And yet, I still remember the sense of awe and wonderment when I visited a gurdwara in Punjab where a room from Guru Nanak’s home 500 years ago had been preserved in its basement. The world is ever changing. It isn’t fossilised, and nor should it be. But sometimes, the most unassuming of buildings can speak to us in ways that words can barely do justice. These are rich and living connections to our past. We should do what we can to preserve what still exists from our diverse social history because, as we’ve seen from the loss of so much of our architectural heritage, once it’s gone, it’s lost forever.