British-born Padma Shri Pepita Seth acquires Indian citizenship in Kerala

THRISSUR: British-born Padma Shri awardee Pepita Seth has officially acquired Indian citizenship after residing in Kerala for over 50 years, marking a significant milestone in her long association with the state’s rich culture and heritage.

Seth, who initially came to India from the UK and grew interested in the local culture, had applied for citizenship in 2024. District Collector Arjun Pandian said, “She has been staying here for over 50 years, and she applied for Indian citizenship in 2024. By citizenship acquired by naturalisation, we hand over the certificate today”.

Pepita Seth expressed her happiness to be an Indian citizen. She said, “I am happy to be here and happy to have become an Indian citizen. My dream. Buddy.”

#WATCH | Thrissur, Kerala | Padma Shri awardee Pepita Seth says, “I was born and brought up in UK. I came to India and gradually, I arrived in Kerala… Slowly I grew interested in the culture here and wrote many books… I stayed here for nearly 12 years…” (06.02) https://t.co/96oBzpVFuP pic.twitter.com/8aHrpsBeSu

— ANI (@ANI) February 7, 2026

Sharing her journey, Papita Seth said, “I was born and brought up in the UK. After some time, I developed an interest in travel and came to India. Gradually, I travelled from Delhi to Bombay and then on to Kerala, North Kerala and then all over Kerala. Saw Kathakali like everybody coming here, went to see Theyyam, went to see other cultural activities, got to know people, saw Melams, saw Uttralikkavu, things like that and gradually got interested more and more and more in the Kerala culture and began taking photographs and began writing about it and I stayed in Thrissur because it was a very good focus point to travel to and from and now I came to this flat here and I have stayed here for 12 years or something. I have written two books, one on Guruvayur and one on Theyyam, and generally, I am interested in Kerala culture. I have said as much as I can about how I got here”.

Pepita Seth is a British-born writer and photographer. Her photography includes the temple arts and rituals of Kerala and the captive elephant, Guruvayur Keshavan. In 2012, the Government of India honoured her with the Padma Shri, the fourth-highest civilian award, for her work in art and culture. (ANI)