BBC marks 60 years of South Asian programming with special celebrations
The BBC will celebrate 60 years of South Asian programming this month with a special night of classic shows on BBC Four and BBC iPlayer.
The programming will look back at six decades of stories and creativity that have reflected the lives of British South Asians across generations.
The BBC first began dedicated South Asian programming in 1965 with shows such as ‘Make Yourself at Home’ and ‘Nai Zindagi Naya Jeevan’. Later programmes including ‘Network East’, ‘Desi DNA’, and the comedy ‘Goodness Gracious Me’ became widely recognised through the 1980s and 1990s.
More recent contributions include live coverage of Eid celebrations from Bradford and new titles such as ‘Amol Goes to the Ganges’, crime drama ‘Virdee’, comedy ‘Juice’ by BAFTA-winner Mawaan Rizwan, and children’s animation ‘Nikhil & Jay’.
South Asian talent is also represented across BBC radio, music and podcasts, from BBC Asian Network presenters Nikita Kanda and Haroon Rashid to ‘Woman’s Hour’ presenter Anita Rani, Radio 2’s Romesh Ranganathan, and the Radical with Amol Rajan podcast on BBC Sounds. This year’s ‘Proms’ also featured a performance by sitarist Anoushka Shankar. Rima Ahmed, on BBC Radio Leeds and 5 Live, brings sharp interviews and a deep connection to communities while Anita Rani on Woman’s Hour and Romesh Ranganathan on Radio 2 highlight South Asian talent on flagship shows.
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The BBC’s anniversary celebrations will be a journey through the archives from landmark with Meera Syal taking an affectionate look back at the Asian programming she grew up watching in ‘Network East’ with Meera Syal and Asian Network DJ Bobby Friction sharing his love and knowledge of South Asian music with a journey back through the archives in South Asian Music at the BBC celebrating some of the genre’s most important, enduring and spectacular acts from across the decades.
Jessica Schibli, BBC Head of Creative Diversity said: “60 years of South Asian programming across the BBC is a significant moment — celebrating pioneering shows that launched trailblazing talent, to today’s bold storytelling woven across our content. This anniversary is a celebration of the journey so far and a reaffirmation of the BBC’s mission to serve all audiences and reflect modern Britain, including South Asian voices on air and in shaping our creative output.”
Looking ahead, South Asian storytelling remains at the heart of the BBC’s creative plans. The upcoming new drama series ‘Film Club’ launching on 7th October stars Nabhaan Rizwan and explores love, family and friendship. Later this year, Guz Khan will star in a new Christmas comedy ‘Stuffed’ and ‘The Split Up’ introduces fresh British South Asian voices to drama and the upcoming BBC Film ‘Hamlet’, features Riz Ahmed and Anjana Vasan and presents a contemporary take through a South Asian lens, on Shakespeare’s story.
