From the first sailing of its ships to India in 1607, the English East India Company began a movement of people, goods and ideas that has linked the imaginations and fortunes of the people of Britain and the Indian subcontinent for 400 years. Mukti Jain Campion explores the extraordinary social legacy of the Company and of the early travellers who crossed the kala pani, into the unknown. (3 x 28′)
First broadcast January 2002 BBC Radio 4
Contributors include: Dr Huw Bowen, Dr Kate Teltscher, Rozina Visram, Professor Om Prakash, Rudrangshu Mukherjee, Dr Laxshmi Subramanian, Dr Indira Ghose and Tapati Guha Thakurta.
Readers: Vincent Ebrahim, Christopher Holmes & Malindi O’Rorke
Producers Mukti Jain Campion & Chris Eldon Lee
A compelling listen – Paul Donovan, The Sunday Times
1: Identity How the Company changed the way Indians and Britons looked at themselves, and each other.
2: Sex The Company’s role originated many of the enduring myths about each country’s sexual behaviour.
3: Wealth How the Company changed the fortunes of millions of Indians and Britons.
Radio Choice: The Guardian, The Mail on Sunday, Time Out, The Sunday Times
Radio 4 Pick of the Week