By: Jiesu Luo, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Milton Reporter
As communities across Ontario — including several in Halton Region — marked South Asian Heritage Month, artist and documentary filmmaker Haris Sheikh found himself at the centre of conversations about memory, migration and belonging. His work — particularly his widely praised Komagata Maru artwork — has become a bridge between generations, reminding Canadians of a painful chapter in history while celebrating the resilience of South Asian communities who continue to shape the country.
Sheikh, a Canadian-Pakistani visual artist whose work is featured in the Permanent Collection of the Surrey Art Gallery in British Columbia, has spent the past several years travelling through Ontario’s towns and cities, including Burlington, Oakville and Milton. He has met with community groups, students and local historians. What began as a personal exploration of identity has grown into a province-wide journey of storytelling, education and cultural connection.
The Komagata Maru — a Japanese steamship carrying 376 passengers from Punjab — was turned away from Vancouver’s harbour in 1914 under exclusionary immigration laws targeting Asians.
For Sheikh, the story is not just historical; it is emotional, symbolic and deeply personal. “The Komagata Maru is a reminder that belonging in Canada was never guaranteed for people who looked like us,” he often tells audiences. “But it is also a reminder of how far we’ve come — and how much responsibility we carry to remember.”
His Komagata Maru artwork has a rich exhibition history. The five‑by‑four‑foot painting was created using oil on wood, with knife strokes meant to capture the trauma and struggle of the journey. The work has been displayed at community events from Mississauga to Windsor, drawing praise for its stark imagery and emotional depth.
The painting depicts the ship not as a static historical object, but as a living symbol — its silhouette emerging from textured waves, surrounded by faint outlines of passengers whose stories were nearly erased.
During South Asian Heritage Month, Sheikh visited cultural centres, libraries and gurdwaras across Ontario, sharing the artwork and the research behind it. In Brampton, elders approached him with stories passed down from their grandparents. In London, students asked how art can challenge racism. In Milton, newcomers told him the piece made them feel seen in a country where their histories are often overlooked.
“Art opens doors that facts alone cannot,” Sheikh said during a recent talk in Milton. “People may not remember dates, but they remember feelings. They remember images. They remember stories.”
Sheikh’s journey is not limited to visual art. As an associate producer of the documentary Fundamental Freedoms, he has long been engaged in conversations about rights, representation and the experiences of marginalized communities in Canada. His travels across Ontario have deepened that work, allowing him to witness firsthand how communities interpret their own histories.
In Oakville, he met a group of young South Asian artists who had never heard of the Komagata Maru until they saw his artwork. In Burlington, a teacher requested permission to use the piece in her Grade 10 history class. In Windsor, a local museum expressed interest in hosting a small exhibit featuring the artwork alongside oral histories from the region’s Punjabi community.
The reception has been overwhelmingly positive — not because the story is easy, but because it is necessary.
“People want honesty,” Sheikh said. “They want to understand the struggles that shaped our presence here. They want to honour the people who came before us.”
As South Asian Heritage Month came to a close, Sheikh reflected on the journey that took him from gallery walls to community halls, from academic discussions to kitchen‑table conversations.
His Komagata Maru artwork, once a personal project, has become a shared space — a place where Canadians can confront the past while imagining a more inclusive future.
“The story of the Komagata Maru is not just South Asian history,” he added. “It is Canadian history. And when we tell it together, we strengthen the country we all call home.”
For Sheikh, the work continues. He is currently developing a mural depicting the 1947 Partition of British India, particularly of Punjab — an event that triggered one of the largest human migrations in history, displacing more than 15 million people and claiming up to two million lives. It is a trauma whose diaspora still carries the pain on both sides of the border and around the world.
More communities have invited him to speak, more educators want access to his art, and more young people are discovering the power of storytelling through his journey. In every city, he carries the same message: remembrance is an act of responsibility — and an act of hope.
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