The Ganges

The Ganges episode 3: Sue’s first stop is the ancient city of Patna, capital of Bihar state, along the banks of the Ganges. It was once the centre of the British Empire’s lucrative opium trade. Now that the imperial drug lords have left, Patna produces something far more intoxicating – education. Sue visits the Women’s Industrial Training College, a girls-only college teaching young women to be engineers. She hangs out with some of the students, and they tell her of their dreams to build bridges and drive trains all over the world.     Alternative stream   Leaving the smoggy […]

The Ganges episode 2: In this second episode, Sue is halfway down the Ganges in the ancient city of Varanasi, a place which, for India’s 950 million Hindus, has a unique significance. Sue immerses herself into the complex life of Varanasi, where the power of the Ganges is at its greatest and where life and death exist side by side. But she also discovers that it is here that the river faces its biggest challenges.     Alternative stream   In this intricate human habitat, Sue explores the lives of its people and sets out to understand more about the

The Ganges with Sue Perkins: Sue Perkins goes on an extraordinary journey, spanning over 1,500 miles, from the source of the Ganges high in the Himalayas to the Bay of Bengal. She travels through some of the most extraordinary, chaotic and exciting places on earth, exploring the lives and landscapes of modern India at this crucial point in its history. In this first episode, Sue begins her journey in the highest mountains on earth. She treks to the source of the Ganges river and pokes her nose into the lives of hermits and the wise and wandering holy people that