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The Story of India : Complete BBC Series [DVD]
 
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The Story of India : Complete BBC Series [DVD]

DVD ~ Michael Wood
4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (52 customer reviews)
RRP: £24.99
Price: £10.99 & this item Delivered FREE in the UK with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions
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The Story of India : Complete BBC Series [DVD] + Ganges (BBC Series) [DVD] + Wild China [DVD]
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The Story of India : Complete BBC Series [DVD]
87% buy the item featured on this page:
The Story of India : Complete BBC Series [DVD] 4.4 out of 5 stars (52)
£10.99
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Product details

  • Actors: Michael Wood
  • Format: PAL
  • Language English
  • Region: Region 2 (This DVD may not be viewable outside Europe. Read more about DVD formats.)
  • Number of discs: 2
  • Classification: Exempt
  • Studio: 2 Entertain Video
  • DVD Release Date: 5 Nov 2007
  • Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (52 customer reviews)
  • ASIN: B000VA3IZI
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 1,475 in DVD (See Bestsellers in DVD)

    Popular in these categories:

    #3 in  DVD > Documentary > Travel
    #8 in  DVD > Documentary > History

Reviews

Synopsis

For more than two thousand years, India has been a massive component in world history. But what are the country's origins and how did it come to be what it is today? These are just two of the questions that Michael Wood tries to answer during his quest across the country.

DVD Descripton

For over two millennia, India has been at the centre of world history. But how did India come to be? What is India? These are the big questions behind this intrepid journey around the contemporary subcontinent. In this landmark series, historian and acclaimed writer Michael Wood embarks on a dazzling and exciting expedition through today's India, looking to the present for clues to her past, and to the past for clues to her future. The journey takes the viewer through majestic landscapes and reveals some of the greatest monuments and artistic treasures on Earth. From Buddhism to Bollywood, from mathematics to outsourcing, Michael Wood discovers India's impact on history - and on us.

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Customer Reviews

52 Reviews
5 star:
 (39)
4 star:
 (5)
3 star:
 (3)
2 star:
 (1)
1 star:
 (4)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.4 out of 5 stars (52 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
39 of 39 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars A very enjoyable series, 5 Mar 2008
By KN (Lancs. UK) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   
Having watched this DVD I must say that this is a very impressive series. The presenter, historian Michael Wood, is really passionate about India and has an energetic style that makes this series a joy to watch. He also does well to go back as far as he does, starting off in the South and working his way around other areas of the Indian subcontinent, including Pakistan.

This series has the following 6 episodes on 2-discs.

1. Beginnings - Ancient rituals in South India and the Indus Valley Civilisation (3000BC) are explored
2. The Power of Ideas - covers the emergence of Buddhism around 500BC and the first Indian Empire led by the Maurya rulers.
3. Spice Routes and Silk Roads - India as a trading partner of Ancient Rome and Greece.
4. Ages of Gold - The Gupta and Chola Empires which marked the Golden Age of Indian history around 300-600AD.
5. The Meeting of Two Oceans - Covers the period of Mughal rule including Akbar the Great around 1600AD.
6. Freedom - covering British rule and the struggle for independence.

It is a great advert for India and it's rich history, placing it on a par with other civilizations like the Egyptians, Greeks, Persians, Romans and Chinese. There are aspects (Aryan Migration Theory and Indus Valley Civilisation) that some Indian historians will be very unhappy about (as Wood mentions briefly) but until some-one makes a comparable series with evidence to support alternative ideas, this is the best documentary out there. The reason I gave it only 4 stars was because I felt it could have had more content - I personally wanted more coverage of certain eras (such as 1000BC to 200AD) but I still recommend it highly.
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68 of 70 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Fabulous series full of insight and information. A 'must see', 9 Oct 2007
By Hooligween "Rowena the Red" (Kernow, Great Britain) - See all my reviews
(TOP 50 REVIEWER)   
The BBC produced a whole range of TV series this summer based around the anniversary of the partition of India and Pakistan. Michael Wood's series is by far the best in every aspect. It's excellent television (goodness me, it's what we pay our licence fee for!).

Wood is an engaging, enthusiastic historian who obviously has a passion for Indian history, Indian culture, and the peoples of India. So the series traces the development of the sub-continent from its earliest days, when men first populated the area, through all the major historical events that have shaped the people and the places. Religion inevitably forms a spiritual spine to the series, but Wood manages to explain the different belief systems without patronising and keeps their impact intact.

Wood also dares to go where other 'presenters' don't dare to tread. In the course of the series he visit Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq (where he's been several times before) and Tibet, in order to better explain the historical context behind the waves of invaders who populated and influenced India. Mind you, I'm not convinced that the footage with the Dalai Lama was a first-person interview...

I found the Ganges series to be pretty but overly dramatic, and the two other 'personality' journeys into India and Pakistan, hosted by well known TV people who were tracing their family roots, to be superficial and overblown. This series is none of those things.

Instead it is colourful, engaging, entertaining and thoroughly enjoyable. My one criticism is that the final episode, which deals with the days of the British Empire and partition, is maybe a little too harsh. But that's obviously because Wood is personally uncomfortable with the history of Empire... and it's a minor point.

Otherwise this is top-class documentary television. Well worth watching several times over.
And if you like it, then try Wood's book on a South Indian Journey, too!
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17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars a super series, 17 Nov 2007
By A. Singh (London, UK) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This series paints a picture of India like a Cezanne painting. Beautiful, enticing but not so packed with detail that the bigger picture is lost. It is very difficult to encompass 5000 years of history in 6 episodes and certainly this is not a comprehensive account of Indian history. Yet that was never the point of this series. It invites you to see the richness of indian civilisation, shows the rise and fall of dynasties, the movement of people, the start and regeneration of religions...
Ultimately we are left with a deeper understanding but wanting to know more... job done I think.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars WOW!
I knew I would not be disappointed buying a BBC product. Great production value, great narration, amazing images. Read more
Published 6 days ago by Luke Niederer

5.0 out of 5 stars Indian richness
Fantastic and overwhelming! what a documentary is this!!! As an indian I have learned the great indus vally civilisation and rest of the history of india. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Sudheer Kottila

5.0 out of 5 stars Michael Wood is just brilliant
I read somewhere that Michael Wood is the history teacher we all wish we'd had. I can only agree. He narrates so well, bringing everything to life with his boundless energy and... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Jeannie

5.0 out of 5 stars Michael Woods best
Watched this when on TV had to have a copy as travelling around India at the moment, great reference material plus enjoyable entertainment, always have admired Michael Wood.
Published 3 months ago by Lesley Ann

5.0 out of 5 stars top marks to Michael Wood
I knew Michael Wood's Story of India would be no disappointment, knowing his previous works and already being a fan of his. Read more
Published 5 months ago by A. Guicciardi

5.0 out of 5 stars You have to see it!
If you like history and are interested in other cultures you need to see this DVD. Fantastic images and a must to know about India history.
Published 6 months ago by Luis Rodrigues

5.0 out of 5 stars A wonderful story
Michael Wood provides a fantastic historical account of India. This is a story that gives a great insight into Indian culture and how the country has developed. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Anony Mouse

5.0 out of 5 stars India
Michael Wood has succeeded in his effort to produce an ordered account of the history of India, that will enable a great many people in the UK, the sub-continent and elsewhere to... Read more
Published 7 months ago by Canonistic

5.0 out of 5 stars "Identity is not static, always in the making and never made"
"The story of India" is a BBC series that follows Michael Wood in his quest to understand that country. Read more
Published 7 months ago by M. B. Alcat

5.0 out of 5 stars A WELL RESEARCHED IN DEPTH OF THE HISTORY OF INDIA
A VERY WELL RESEARCHED DOCUMENTARY OF THE HISTORY OF INDIA FROM THE VERY EARLY DAYS TO THE MODERN TIMES. COULD NOT HAVE BEEN DONE ANY BETTER BY ANYBODY ELSE. Read more
Published 7 months ago by Mr. Mansukh Shah

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