What do Cornelia Sorabji, the first Asian woman to study law at a British University, Dr Chunilal Katial, the first Asian mayor in Britain and Dadabhai Naoroji, the first Asian Member of Parliament, have in common? They are all people of Asian descent who achieved historic ‘firsts’ that feature in a new exhibition, Notable Asians in Camden.

The exhibition explores the interconnected lives of a number of people of Asian descent who came to the London Borough of Camden to live, study and work over the past 200 years. Each of them went on to make a tremendous impact on the lives of others, both in Britain and also in India and Pakistan in the fields of arts, politics, medicine and law.

Councillor Nasim Ali, Executive Member for Community Engagement, Camden Council said: "I am delighted to welcome the Notable Asians in Camden exhibition. In 2003 I was honoured to be the first Bangladeshi and Muslim Mayor of Camden, but the achievement of some of the people in this exhibition is overwhelming. The London Borough of Camden is a very diverse area and the Asian community is the largest black and minority ethnic community in the borough. This exhibition will help to promote the achievements of some of the people from the Asian community who have lived, worked and studied in Camden over the past 200 years."

The exhibition is produced by Camden Council’s Arts and Tourism team and was researched by local historian Mimi Romilly. Mimi started by exploring her mother’s family and discovered that she was descended from Sir Samuel Romilly (1757-1818), the lawyer and law reformer. Later, when she read an article in the local newspaper about the unveiling of a plaque to Ali Mohammed Abbas - her father - whom she had not seen since she was 6 years old, she began to research his history too. Ali Mohammed Abbas was a barrister for 30 years before his death in 1979, and one of the moving forces behind the creation of Pakistan. During her research Mimi Romilly became fascinated by connections and similarities between her father and other notable Asian figures she encountered along the way. This exhibition tells the stories of their lives.

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