Haimanti Roy: Why was India split into two countries?

Why was India split into two countries?

In 1947, the British viceroy announced that after 200 years of British rule, India would gain independence and be partitioned into Hindu India and Muslim Pakistan. What followed was one of the largest and bloodiest forced migrations in history: an estimated 1 million people lost their lives. What caused this violent aftermath? Haimanti Roy details the lasting legacies of the Partition of India. [Directed by Jagriti Khirwar & Raghav Arumugam, narrated by Safia Elhillo, music by Salil Bhayani].

The division of India and Pakistan in 1947 unleashed chaos, as more than a million people died in the violence that followed independence. British colonial policies, especially rigid religious categorization and rushed planning, deepened mistrust and fueled one of history’s largest forced migrations. Families fractured, women suffered horrific violence, and millions were permanently displaced. Decades later, the region remains scarred by disputed borders and the enduring pain of separation.