Indian Muslim Community in Birmingham

Where they come from

Islam has been part of Indian life for more than a thousand years, and India has one of the largest Muslim populations in the world. Indian Muslims in Birmingham include Gujarati families who came via East Africa, and more recent arrivals from Kerala, Hyderabad and other regions.

The community in numbers

At the 2021 Census, out of a city population of 1,144,919, 9,575 Birmingham residents of Indian heritage gave their religion as Muslim.

Working for Birmingham

Indian Muslim families have built businesses in retail, wholesale, property and catering, and many work as doctors, pharmacists, teachers, accountants, engineers and IT professionals. Community organisations run education and welfare programmes open to people of every background.

The city's future rests on the same things as its past: skills, enterprise and people willing to put in the hours. Whether in a hospital, a classroom, a lecture theatre, a van full of tools or a shop on a busy high street, Indian Muslim residents are helping to build that future, and to make Birmingham a stronger, fairer and more welcoming city.

Culture and community life

Ramadan and Eid are the highlights of the year, and mosques are at the heart of community life. Hyderabadi biryani, Gujarati snacks and Kerala-style dishes are shared with friends and neighbours, and the poetry of Urdu and other Indian languages is treasured.

Like so many of the communities that make up modern Birmingham, the Indian Muslim community shows how a city can be home to many cultures at once. Its members are proud of where they come from, and just as proud to be Brummies.