Partition In India

[Caran]

What an interesting programme, I had no idea what went on 70 years ago in India. Very moving some of the stories.
Some tales were horrific. The man who as a 14 year old eldest son had the job of setting fire to his dead father, he said he had to start with setting his top lip on fire first.
What a memory for someone to have for 70 years.
There was film of bodies lying in the streets being attacked by vultures.
Did anyone else see this programme?

[Mamyalynne]

I did it was very moving on many levels and yes, informative too.

For some their first journey there and for some their very last.

[Old_Geezer]

Didn't see it. Had intended to. How long a period of history did it cover ?

[Mamyalynne]

It was this programme OG.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0916mmk

[Caran]

It was about relatives today going back to the continent and discovering old family homes their families had to leave due to partition. Also meeting people living there who knew and remembered their families. It is continued next week with the presenter Anita Rani going on her own journey with her mother.

[Old_Geezer]

Cheers.

[tamborine]

They want independance then complain Brit troops didnt stop the massacre.

[Mamyalynne]

I won't miss next week's Caran.

[Mamyalynne]

^ that apostrophe is wrong - oops.

[Caran]

Me too Mamya, really looking forward to it.

[Peter Pedant]

// They wanted independence then complain Brit troops didnt stop the massacre.//

not a bad summing up

in the good old days of the British Raj by around 1930 it was obvious the British would go but no one had a clear idea of when

At Cambridge the colonial officers' course chuntered on in the fifties as "it was obvious that Africa would require administrators for around 200 years" hem yes.....

Gandhi and Jinna realised that if they didnt agree they would be given their own countries to ogvern.

Mountbatten perked up in 1947 as the new Viceroy and shocked everyone by saying the departure date was Aug 1947 come hell or high water

( there is a bit of this in Slumdog Millionaire but it is time-shocked)

Millions were displaced the blame for which was squarely laid at Mountbatten's feet but he cared not a jot.

Minimum 250 000 dead - I think they are putting it at 1 000 000.

[my grandfather turned down the governorate of Bahrein in 1929 - the Indian Civil Service ( ICS) ran some of the arab states for reasons lost in history]

[tamborine]

I hope the woman whose father's life was saved by a poor Bangladesh fisherman gave him more than a hug.

[Caran]

What more could she give him apart from a hug and many thanks?

[tamborine]

Gold bangle, money. She is from a wealthy background, I think a gp?

[tamborine]

When I visited India and changed sterling, the rupees were so dirt smeared I gave them to beggars. Theyre a hazard to hold, yuk!

[Mamyalynne]

The journey for these people wasn't a monetary exercise but an emotional one.

[Caran]

Well said Mamya.

[tamborine]

No excuse mamya when you see the poverty that is everywhere.

[Mamyalynne]

I don't need an excuse, we are discussing a TV programme in the Media topic - you didn't like it, that's fair enough.

[Caran]

It was a very interesting programme that enlightened a lot of people to what went on. We do not need to pontificate on the why's and wherefores of it.

[trt]

I have recorded it, as I find India fascinating.

I have seen the good, and the bad side, and when I went to Bangalore, which some parts are quite modern, I was given a kind of studio flat.

Being tired after the flight & car journey, I dozed off on the sofa, only to be disturbed by a noise coming from a small cupboard.
Then the door opened, and a boy about 16ish came out, and in broken English, asked me did I want a cup of tea.

It turned out he was my houseboy for 24 hours a day, and lived & slept in the cupboard, which was about 6 foot x 4 foot, with a bit of carpet for a bed.

Nobody had told me, as its apparently normal there. :-(