Donna and Vikesh Amey Bhatt: Lands of Belonging
Donna and Vikesh Amey Bhat are the husband and wife team who wrote Lands of Belonging, a history of the South Asian countries that are intertwined with British history.Vikesh is a Creative Director with a background in design who has worked in advertising for over 18 years. He loves exploring the past and retelling the somewhat strange stories from his childhood, and is passionate about accurate cultural representation in children’s books. Donna writes the kind of things she loves reading; funny stories, books about people completely different to her, and collections of facts that can be used later to impress both friends and strangers at any social occasion. In the run-up to the 75th anniversary of the partition of India, Donna and Vikesh joined Nikki Gamble In The Reading Corner to talk about the importance of filling in the knowledge gaps that many people have about India's rich history and its interconnectedness with British history.About Lands of Belongingthis book is a unique exploration of the rich and complicated history of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Britain. There are many ways of telling the same story, and how you tell it depends on your point of view. Some stories are so complicated, or difficult to explain, that they're not often told at all.Like the story of how a company ended up running a country, or how one man drawing a line on a map could change the lives of millions of people forever. This book aims to piece together the interesting, surprising, and sometimes very sad story of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Britain, and how these countries have shaped one another over the centuries. From exploring the vast empires and amazing inventions of ancient India to revealing the challenges faced by South Asian migrants to Britain - or celebrating the amazing culture, innovations, inventions, and achievements of British people of South Asian heritage today - this book shows how the past, present and future of these four countries will always be intertwined.Support the Show.Thank you for listening. If you enjoyed this podcast, please support us by subscribing to our channel. And if you are interested in the books we have featured, purchasing from our online bookshop Bestbooksforschools.comIn the Reading Corner is presented by Nikki Gamble, Director of Just Imagine. It is produced by Alison Hughes.Follow us on Youtube for more author events YouTube.com/@nikkigamble1For general news and updates, follow us on Twitter @imaginecentreFull details about the range of services we provide can be found on our website www.justimagine.co.uk