JEWEL IN THE CROWN, THE, EPISODE 1: CROSSING THE RIVER (TV)
Summary
Part one of this epic fourteen-part drama which chronicles the final turbulent years of English rule in India from 1942-1947. Based on author Paul Scott's "The Raj Quartet," this mini-series concentrates on the intricate personal relationships of British and Indian characters against the backdrop of India's struggle to assert its sovereignty from the declining British Empire. In the first episode, "Crossing the River," which is set in Mayapore, India, in 1942, English nurse Daphne Manners relocates to India following the death of her father and brother and makes the acquaintance of Hari Kumar, a young Indian journalist educated in England, and Ronald Merrick, a prejudiced district superintendent of police, who has previously harassed Kumar on a specious charge. This contentious meeting between the two men took place when the inebriated Indian was brought to the Sanctuary health clinic by Sister Ludmila -- a mysterious, saintly woman who cares for India's indigent and ill. There he was questioned as a crime suspect by Merrick.
Once free from police custody, Kumar is invited to a party at the home of Lady Chatterjee, who is Daphne Manners's host. Manners pursues a friendship with Kumar and is received warmly in the home of the young man's aunt. This courtship is threatened, however, when Manners pays a social visit to the awkward Merrick, who surprises her with an abrupt marriage proposal. But the young woman spurns his offer, feeling a greater affinity for Kumar, who introduces her to an Indian temple and to Ludmila's Sanctuary. The racist Merrick, whose lower-class birth makes him jealous of Kumar's proper English education, warns Manners about her association with the Indian, predicting that angry Indians will become violent towards the English should Mahatma Gandhi's campaign for independence be squelched. Manners indeed sees the results of this anger at Mayapore General Hospital when she cares for a battered missionary named Edwina Crane, who was brutally attacked by a band of hoodlums the day of Gandhi's arrest.
(This series also aired on PBS under the umbrella of "Mobil Masterpiece Theatre" from December 16, 1984 through March 17, 1985.)
Details
- NETWORK: Granada (United Kingdom)
- DATE: November 30, 1983
- RUNNING TIME: 1:46:03
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: T86:1230
- GENRE: Drama
- SUBJECT HEADING: Drama; Drama, historical; India - History - Drama; International Collection - United Kingdom; Rape
- SERIES RUN: Granada (United Kingdom) - TV series, 1984
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Denis Forman … Executive Producer
- Christopher Morahan … Producer, Director
- Milly Preece … Associate Producer
- Jim O'Brien … Director
- Irene Shubik … Series Devised by
- Lesley Beames … Researcher
- Paul Scott … Writer, Based on "The Raj Quartet" by
- Ken Taylor … Adapted by
- George Fenton … Composer
- Tim Pigott-Smith … Cast, Ronald Merrick
- Susan Wooldridge … Cast, Daphne Manners
- Art Malik … Cast, Hari Kumar
- Om Puri … Cast, Mr. De Souza
- Matyelok Gibbs … Cast, Sister Ludmila
- Siddharth Kak … Cast, Rajendra Singh
- Sallyann Webster … Cast, Babs
- Susan Field … Cast, the Matron
- Kamini Kaushal … Cast, Aunt Shalini
- Rowena Cooper … Cast, Connie White
- Jeremy Child … Cast, Robin White
- Zohra Segal … Cast, Lili Chatterjee
- Madan Choughoy … Cast, Raju
- Renee Goddard … Cast, Dr. Anna Klaus
- Tony Arjuna … Cast, the Sergeant
- Dev Sagoo … Cast, Vidyasagar
- Tanveer Ghani … Cast, Bapu Ram
- Marne Maitland … Cast, Pandit Baba
- Rashid Karapiet … Cast, Judge Menen
- Roly Lamas … Cast, Ramaswami
- Dominic Jephcott … Cast, Reggie
- Paul Geoffrey … Cast, Tony
- Paul Williamson … Cast, Brigadier Reid
- Dev Sagoo … Cast, Vidyasagar
- Kamini Kaushal … Cast, Aunt Shalini
- Karan Kapoor … Cast, Colin Lindsey
- Jane Henfrey … Cast, Edwina Crane