Indian Summers

Epic drama set in the summer of 1932 where India dreams of independence, but the British are clinging to power. Set against the sweeping grandeur of the Himalayas and tea plantations of Northern India, the drama tells the rich and explosive story of the decline of the British Empire and the birth of modern India, from both sides of the experience. At the heart of the story lie the implications and ramifications of the tangled web of passions, rivalries and clashes that define the lives of those brought together in this summer which will change everything.

Indian Summers (2015-2016) is a British period drama series created for Channel 4, set in 1932 across the Himalayan hill stations and tea plantations of Northern India. Julie Walters plays Cynthia Coffin, a formidable British matriarch whose household sits at the heart of the colonial community, while Henry Lloyd-Hughes plays Ralph Whelan, a civil servant caught in a tangle of ambition and marital strain. Nikesh Patel plays Aafrin Dalal, an Indian man whose path crosses the British set in ways that test loyalties on both sides. Jemima West and Alexander Cobb also feature among the principal characters. The engine of the story is a web of passions, rivalries and clashes that play out across a single summer, with adultery, illicit affairs, class divides and the rigid caste system pressing on every relationship. Across two seasons of ten episodes each, it moves between the British and Indian experience of empire, building toward a sense of a world that is about to change. The tone is sweeping yet intimate, melancholic and sumptuous, with a slow-burning dread beneath the lush landscapes. Fans of The Jewel in the Crown and Downton Abbey will find resonance in its colonial-era drama and personal intrigue.

• The Jewel in the Crownsweeping colonial period drama, class and romantic entanglements under the Raj
• Downton AbbeyBritish colonial India, ensemble period drama with intrigue and forbidden love
• The Crownepic historical drama about the decline of empire and personal scandal

Release Date

2015-02-15

Episode runtime

48 min

Rating

7.3 / 10 (45)

What is Indian Summers about?

A 1932 summer on Northern India's tea plantations and hill stations tangles British colonists and Indian characters as empire begins to crack.

What is Indian Summers like to watch?

Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Indian Summers as measured, its intensity as moderate and its storytelling as layered.

Is Indian Summers violent?

Somewhat. Ember rates the violence in Indian Summers as moderate.

Which shows are like Indian Summers?

Shows with a similar feel include The Jewel in the Crown, Downton Abbey, and The Crown.

How long is Indian Summers?

Indian Summers: 2 seasons, 20 episodes.

Is Indian Summers still running?

No, Indian Summers has ended.

Where can I watch Indian Summers?

In United States, Indian Summers streams on PBS, PBS Masterpiece Amazon Channel, Thirteen, WETA+.