Radio and the End of Empire: The BBC & Decolonisation in India (Prof. Chandrika KAUL, University of St. Andrews)

Building on my monograph, Reporting the Raj, the British Press and India, the focus here is on radio and the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) over the climactic decades 1920s-1940s. It is based on extensive research undertaken for a forthcoming book, Broadcasting the Raj: The BBC and India (OUP 2026).

The talk will examine the ways in which, and explain the reasons why, the imperial state engaged with the soft power potential of radio via the BBC in the twilight years of British rule in the Indian sub-continent. The focus will be on the climactic years after the end of the Second World War leading to Indian Independence in 1947. The role of the last Viceroy of British India, Lord Mountbatten, will be highlighted to demonstrate attempts at imperial control and media manipulation. However, the paper will also argue that important though this was, it is equally significant to recognise the creative and occasionally subversive potential of the medium as well as the message in the hands of the BBC. Further, the relationship of All India Radio (AIR) and the  BBC will be analysed as well as an attempt made to consider potential impact and its legacy in Independent India.

Chandrika Kaul received her doctorate from the University of Oxford and is Professor of Modern History at the University of St Andrews in Scotland. Her research interests focus on British imperialism and decolonisation, the monarchy, media, and popular culture; modern South Asia; and Global history especially international media networks. She has published widely in these areas as well as contributed to national and international media including television, radio, newspapers and podcasts. Her monographs include, Communications, Media and the Imperial Experience: Britain and India in the twentieth century; and Reporting the Raj: The British Press and India 1880-1922 – the first book on the subject. Her edited and co-edited books include News of the World and the British Press; Media and the British Empire; International Communications and Global News networks; Media and the Portuguese Empire; and M.K. Gandhi, Politics, Media and Society; New Perspectives. She is currently completing a major new monograph on the BBC and India to be published by Oxford University Press in 2026.

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