Tanmanjeet Singh ‘Tan’ Dhesi
Member of Parliament
British Labour Party | Slough (UK)
Ancestry
Raipur, Jalandhar (Punjab)
Birthplace & Residence:
Slough (UK)
INTEGRATING THE DIVERSITY
His parents moved to England for a better life, little knowing that one day their son would become Britain’s first turbaned Sikh MP.
We’re born alone, we live alone, we die alone. Only through our love and friendship can we not be alone, but, for sure, with our wise actions we can have everything in life. This is what I have learnt from life.
Punjab taught me love for various languages
My parents, Sardarni Dalwinder Kaur and Sardar Jaspal Singh, were born in Punjab. They moved to the UK and worked in various factories and offices until they started a construction company. As time went by, both my parents started spending their time in community service. Like my grandfather, Dad, in fact, became the President of the UK’s largest single-sight gurudwara complex, Guru Nanak Darbar Gurdwara, Gravesend, and taught all of us siblings to serve the society.
I was born on 17 August 1978 in the Slough area and named Tanmanjeet, meaning victor of mind and body, by my grandfather. I spent my formative years in Chalvey. Along with my two siblings, Saheb and Gulkomal, I grew up in a traditional joint family with cousins. When I was four, my parents sent me to a boarding school in Punjab. There I developed a love for culture and languages, Punjabi, Hindi and Urdu. It was because of this that I was later able to learn eight languages.
At age nine, I moved back and completed my school education in Gravesend, England. Mathematics was my favourite subject and I loved sports, even represented my school in Hockey, Cricket, Rugby, Football and Chess. My often used nickname is Tan.
Once someone in school tried to pull off my turban. This incident upset me deeply but my friends and family helped me to eventually overcome it. My grandparents and I often engaged in long discussions about socialism, capitalism, Sikh faith, current affairs, which gave me self-confidence and my interest in politics arose.
When I was 16, Dad took me to a construction site in a van and I thought this is what we would do all our life. Determined to become a successful businessman, I attended University College London to earn a degree in Mathematics with Management studies. On graduating, I joined Keble College, Oxford University, to study MSc in Applied Statistics and gain a degree in Master of Philosophy in History and Politics (of South Asia and its connection with Great Britain) from Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge University.
After universities, I set up my small construction business in Scotland and lived there for three years.
Without her, life is incomplete
In 2005, Manveen and I were introduced by our relatives. We got married in 2005. I love the fact that she loves Indian cinema and has different interests than me. We spend quite some quality time over movies! We are blessed with two sons, Jugaad and Suhaab.
From Scotland, I moved back to Kent, but then I realised my calling in life was to serve society. So in 2007, I stood for elections as councillor and later became the Chairman of the Local Labour Party, and finally became the Mayor of Gravesham in 2011. I contested for the parliamentary seat of Gravesham, but was not successful during the 2015 general election. It was this defeat that taught me that failures are an opportunity for the future. I had faced racism along the way but I never let negativity get me down. Remembering my mother’s lessons on optimism, I tried to surround myself with positive people who helped me contest in 2017 general election and I became Britain’s first turbaned Sikh MP. My maiden speech in the House of Commons on 18 July 2017 was a watershed moment.
If you are community-oriented, you are a good person
I have learnt this from Dad. He also taught me skills of diplomacy and how to bring different communities together. Over the years, I have served in various voluntary roles as a school governor in a couple of schools, as a trustee of Alzheimer’s and Dementia Support Services, etc. As I started serving different societal causes, the issue of mental health especially touched my heart. Enrolling myself as a member of Mencap Society, which dealt with people with mental health issues, I realised how grave yet so unaddressed it was back then.
In 2018, when one of my Sikh friends visited me from India, someone outside the UK parliament tried to pull off his turban too. Deeply hurt by it, I worked with like-minded people to have a turban awareness day in the Parliament. So we turned a negative into a positive, with dozens of MPs wearing a turban as an annual event.
I am humbled and honoured to have this opportunity of serving the people of the UK. People who try to divide the society on the basis of faith, gender or sexuality make me angry. Avoiding them, I try my best to serve humanity at large. Integration (not assimilation) has always been very important for me. I feel we should always be proud of our identity but at the same time we should be proud of our shared heritage that binds us together. I look forward to breaking down barriers to stand up for everybody and bring all communities together.
Philosophy
Take time for your family and wider community. It is not about making ourselves happier or richer when our families and society are not
I love…
Reading. On weekends, I play sports and spend time with my family and community.
Success Mantra
Success is a state of mind like happiness. So it’s important to be happy with what you are doing.
I’d suggest the youth…
To learn as much as they can and do what they are passionate about. Also, volunteer sewa!
The world doesn’t know that…
I am not only Britain’s first turbaned Sikh MP, but also the first ever turbaned Sikh in any European parliament.
AKA
Labour MP Slough | First turbaned Sikh MP | Tan Dhesi
Gallery
ISBN : 9788193397695