'Snowballs in Calcutta'

In addition to actuality recordings made for 'Snowballs in Calcutta', there are also a number of tapes of the Indian folk singer, Kali Dasgupta, talking about and performing folk songs from North and East Bengal, and the political and social context in which they were composed. From annotation on the tape boxes, it appears that Charles Parker hoped to use some of these recordings in the broadcast programme, that became 'Snowballs in Calcutta', but was initially titled 'Young India', but they are not featured in the final programme.

The tapes have been arranged as follows:
sequence of actuality recordings arranged according to the numbers on the original boxes (MS 4000/6/1/69/1-10B)
sequence of recordings of Indian folk songs and conversation made with Kali Dasgupta (MS 4000/6/1/69/11-28)
recordings of Indian folk songs and film music used in the programme (MS 4000/6/1/69/29-30)
clips and assemblies (MS 4000/6/1/69/31-37)
versions of 'Snowballs in Calcutta' broadcast programme (MS 4000/6/1/69/38-39)

For related paper files, see MS 4000/2/140.

Broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 22 February 1972. Dilip Hiro interviewed Indian students in Calcutta, Delhi, Bombay and Madras on the eve of the crisis in Bangladesh about the legacy of Britain in India, the first generation of people to grow up since Indian Independence on their views and influences. Recorded during a six month visit to India, exploring the attitudes of students of the first post-Independence generation. The programme was narrated by Saeed Jaffrey and produced by Charles Parker. The initial title for the project was 'Young India'. 'Snowballs in Calcutta' was chosen partly because of a statement made in one of the actuality recordings and partly to reflect the matter of the programme, to express the sense of political issues snowballing.