Rapper Sukhdeep Singh Bhogal still remembers the dreaded school bell at 3pm every weekday when his classmates would tease him as he lugged his backpack into his parents car.

It was the mid-90s in south west Sydney, and the son of Indian immigrants stood out for embracing his culture, with his mum and dads Punjabi car tunes offering an example of that.

I can remember my parents picking me up from school and theyd have Sikh music playing in the car, Sukhdeep, aka L-FRESH The LION, told HuffPost Australia.