Sunny Hundal
Encyclopedia
Sunny Hundal is a British
blogger.
He was born in London
to Sikh
parents of India
n origin. He describes himself as a vegetarian and a strong environmentalist. He has a degree in Economics from Brunel University
and has written articles for leading British newspapers including The Financial Times and The Independent
. He has been interviewed by ITV News
, Sky News
, and Channel 4 News
.
Sunny Hundal was the founder and editor of the now defunct Asians in Media website. He also set up the now defunct Barfi Culture community website. Both of these websites were instrumental in establishing Hundal's credentials as a commentator on British Asian
identity politics. In 2006 he was one of the founder members of the now defunct New Generation Network
, a short-lived group and manifesto that attempted to challenge the current discourse on race relations in the UK.
Hundal now runs the Pickled Politics weblog, which describes itself as politically progressive, and deals with issues related to his own eccentric brand of activism. He is a regular contributor to Comment is Free on The Guardian
website, and was named as their blogger of the year in 2006. In 2007 he set up Liberal Conspiracy
, a group weblog which features a number of mainly left-of-centre bloggers. His own blog there has been featured in the New Statesman
's "best of the blogs" selection. Other newspapers have described him as a leading blogger and a well-known twitter
er.
Hundal has criticised various religious organisations including the Islamist Hizb ut-Tahrir
, the Muslim Council of Britain
, Muslim Public Affairs Committee UK
, Christian Concern For Our Nation
, Sikh Federation and Hindu Forum of Britain
.
In February 2007 he made a BBC radio documentary Lost in Translation about Asian brides brought to the UK. The BBC also quoted his claim that Shahrukh Khan
's endorsement of skin-lightening creams was "completely immoral".
In 2008, he wrote a blog post saying that non-white voters should consider voting Conservative
, on the basis that "brown people" were being deliberately targeted by anti-terrorism legislation brought in by the New Labour government of Gordon Brown
.
In 2010, on his Liberal Conspiracy blog, he backed the Liberal Democrats
in the UK General Election. The Liberal Democrats went on to form a Coalition Government with the Conservative Party.
About three months after the Coalition Government was announced, Hundal joined the Labour Party in order to influence its political direction. In August 2010 Hundal backed Ed Miliband
in the Labour leadership election.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
blogger.
He was born in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
to Sikh
Sikh
A Sikh is a follower of Sikhism. It primarily originated in the 15th century in the Punjab region of South Asia. The term "Sikh" has its origin in Sanskrit term शिष्य , meaning "disciple, student" or शिक्ष , meaning "instruction"...
parents of India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n origin. He describes himself as a vegetarian and a strong environmentalist. He has a degree in Economics from Brunel University
Brunel University
Brunel University is a public research university located in Uxbridge, London, United Kingdom. The university is named after the Victorian engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel....
and has written articles for leading British newspapers including The Financial Times and The Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
. He has been interviewed by ITV News
ITV News
ITV News is the branding of news programmes on the British television network ITV. Since 1955, ITV's news bulletins have been produced by Independent Television News . The channel's news coverage has won awards from the Royal Television Society, Emmy Awards and BAFTAs. Between 2004 and 2008, the...
, Sky News
Sky News
Sky News is a 24-hour British and international satellite television news broadcaster with an emphasis on UK and international news stories.The service places emphasis on rolling news, including the latest breaking news. Sky News also hosts localised versions of the channel in Australia and in New...
, and Channel 4 News
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
.
Sunny Hundal was the founder and editor of the now defunct Asians in Media website. He also set up the now defunct Barfi Culture community website. Both of these websites were instrumental in establishing Hundal's credentials as a commentator on British Asian
British Asian
British Asian is a term used to describe British citizens who descended from mainly South Asia, also known as South Asians in the United Kingdom...
identity politics. In 2006 he was one of the founder members of the now defunct New Generation Network
New Generation Network
The New Generation Network is a group and manifesto set up to challenge the current discourse of race relations in the UK. The group's manifesto, Race and faith: a new agenda , was published on November 20, 2006 on The Guardian newspaper's Comment is Free website.-Initial Signatories:*Sunny Hundal...
, a short-lived group and manifesto that attempted to challenge the current discourse on race relations in the UK.
Hundal now runs the Pickled Politics weblog, which describes itself as politically progressive, and deals with issues related to his own eccentric brand of activism. He is a regular contributor to Comment is Free on The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
website, and was named as their blogger of the year in 2006. In 2007 he set up Liberal Conspiracy
Liberal Conspiracy
Liberal Conspiracy is a left wing political blog established in 2007 and edited by Sunny Hundal. Writing in the Guardian, Hundal claimed he set up the site to help "think past single-issue campaigns and work together to push a progressive agenda for Britain ... We have to rebuild the grassroots...
, a group weblog which features a number of mainly left-of-centre bloggers. His own blog there has been featured in the New Statesman
New Statesman
New Statesman is a British centre-left political and cultural magazine published weekly in London. Founded in 1913, and connected with leading members of the Fabian Society, the magazine reached a circulation peak in the late 1960s....
's "best of the blogs" selection. Other newspapers have described him as a leading blogger and a well-known twitter
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
er.
Hundal has criticised various religious organisations including the Islamist Hizb ut-Tahrir
Hizb ut-Tahrir
Hizb ut-Tahrir is an international Sunni. pan-Islamic political organisation but keeps it open for all including shias,some of its beliefs are against sunni school of thought, whose goal is for all Muslim countries to unify as an Islamic state or caliphate ruled by Islamic law and with a caliph...
, the Muslim Council of Britain
Muslim Council of Britain
The Muslim Council of Britain is a self-appointed umbrella body for national, regional, local and specialist organisations and institutions from different ethnic and sectarian backgrounds within British Islamic society. It was established in 1997 to help Muslims, to increase education about the...
, Muslim Public Affairs Committee UK
Muslim Public Affairs Committee UK
The Muslim Public Affairs Committee UK is a not-for-profit British Muslim organization set up to address a perceived under-representation of Muslims in British politics...
, Christian Concern For Our Nation
Christian Concern For Our Nation
Christian Concern is the trading name of CCFON Ltd, a Christian organisation in the United Kingdom which seeks to introduce a 'Christian voice' into law, the media and Government...
, Sikh Federation and Hindu Forum of Britain
Hindu Forum of Britain
The Hindu Forum of Britain is an organization that represents over 275 Hindu groups throughout Great Britain with joint annual income of at least £34 million...
.
In February 2007 he made a BBC radio documentary Lost in Translation about Asian brides brought to the UK. The BBC also quoted his claim that Shahrukh Khan
Shahrukh Khan
Shahrukh Khan , often credited as Shah Rukh Khan, is an Indian film actor, as well as a film producer and television host. Often referred to as "the King of Bollywood", Khan has acted in over 70 Hindi films....
's endorsement of skin-lightening creams was "completely immoral".
In 2008, he wrote a blog post saying that non-white voters should consider voting Conservative
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
, on the basis that "brown people" were being deliberately targeted by anti-terrorism legislation brought in by the New Labour government of Gordon Brown
Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown is a British Labour Party politician who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 until 2010. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Labour Government from 1997 to 2007...
.
In 2010, on his Liberal Conspiracy blog, he backed the Liberal Democrats
Liberal Democrats
The Liberal Democrats are a social liberal political party in the United Kingdom which supports constitutional and electoral reform, progressive taxation, wealth taxation, human rights laws, cultural liberalism, banking reform and civil liberties .The party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the...
in the UK General Election. The Liberal Democrats went on to form a Coalition Government with the Conservative Party.
About three months after the Coalition Government was announced, Hundal joined the Labour Party in order to influence its political direction. In August 2010 Hundal backed Ed Miliband
Ed Miliband
Edward Samuel Miliband is a British Labour Party politician, currently the Leader of the Labour Party and Leader of the Opposition...
in the Labour leadership election.
External links
- Sunny Hundal on twitter
- Asians in Media
- Liberal Conspiracy
- Pickled Politics
- Column archives in The GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...