Episode 3

Available for over a year

Different generations of South Asians reflect on what it means to belong in Britain. Since 2014, Kavita Puri has been charting the social history of this community in post-war Britain. Many came with as little as three pounds due to strict currency controls. Many of these early pioneers expected to return to the Indian subcontinent. Their instinct on arrival was to keep their heads down, work hard, and accept the humiliations that came their way. For their children - many of whom were born here - their relationship to Britain was quite different: this was their home. There was nowhere else for them to go back to. Following this summer's wave of protests after the death of George Floyd, we look at the conversations that have opened up among British South Asians - and the different demands for progress and equality made by the different generations. Producer: Ant Adeane Editor: Hugh Levinson Historical consultants: Dr Florian Stadtler, University of Exeter Dr Edward Anderson, Northumbria University