Partition Voices

Untold British Stories

By: Kavita Puri

Narrated by: Kavita Puri

Length: 8 hrs and 19 mins

Publisher's Summary

Dotted across homes in Britain are people who were witnesses to one of the most tumultuous events of the 20th century. Yet their memory of India’s partition has been shrouded in silence. Kavita Puri’s father was 12 when he found himself one of the millions of Sikhs, Hindus and Muslims caught up in the devastating aftermath of a hastily drawn border. For 70 years he remained silent - like so many - about the horrors he had seen. 

When her father finally spoke out, opening up a forgotten part of Puri’s family history, she was compelled to seek out the stories of South Asians who were once subjects of the British Raj, and are now British citizens. Determined to preserve these accounts - of the end of Empire and the difficult birth of two nations - here Puri records a series of remarkable first-hand testimonies, as well as those of their children and grandchildren whose lives are shaped by partition's legacy. With empathy, nuance and humanity, Puri weaves a breathtaking tapestry of human experience over a period of seven decades that trembles with life; an epic of ruptured families and friendships, extraordinary journeys and daring rescue missions that reverberates with pain, loss and compassion. 

The division of the Indian subcontinent happened far away, but it is also a very British story. Many of those affected by partition are now part of the fabric of British contemporary life, but their lives continue to be touched by this traumatic event. Partition Voices breaks the silence and confronts the difficult truths at the heart of Britain’s shared history with South Asia.

©2019 Kavita Puri (P)2019 Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

Critic Reviews

"With a masterful mix of history, biography and contemporary reportage, Puri crafts a fascinating account of the living memory of South Asia in modern Britain. This book brings together a rich and disparate chronicle of lives ripped apart and remade by the trauma of partition, and deftly traces how the diaspora of post-colonial India and Pakistan helped to reshape the UK. Perceptive, enriching, shocking and joyful, Puri’s is a powerful and courageous book for multicultural Britain." (Tristram Hunt)

"An intimate, moving and important book by a daughter of partition. Kavita Puri reveals untold stories of those who lived through one of the most violent political earthquakes of the twentieth century. These are stories we need to hear." (Kirsty Wark)

"A powerful and timely work. Kavita Puri coaxes often unspeakable and unspoken memories from a time of unimaginable trauma. A must-read for those interested in the fault lines in today's geopolitics - Anita Anand Powerful, compelling and heartbreaking - these are stories of division and conflict rescued from the past that offer valuable lessons for the present." (Sarfraz Manzoor)

Hidden history

Poignant first-person accounts of forced migrations—and attendant barbarism—after WWII when all Muslims in India had to move to Pakistan and all Pakastani Hindus and Sikhs had to move to India .

Every school needs copies of this book

If the UK education system continues to exclude partition from the syllabus - at least include copies of this book for students to understand colonisation.

A captivating story of a bygone era

Until I met my Desi partner, I wasn't aware of any violence between Hindus and Muslims during partition. These stories are so powerful, I can almost see the places, people and events.

Shouldn't have been a book

This would have been better as a set of unedited interviews with the participants. The author can't pronounce a lot of Punjabi names and words, and I'd have preferred to hear their unabridged accounts in full rather than her retelling of them. She also repeats herself a lot. Some good material, just not the right format for them.

A gripping read

An important history book that focuses on the stories of ordinary people. Beautifully written and narrated, it's easy to listen to because the topic of Partition is so engaging - I knew so little about it. Highly recommended.