Programme 5: The Meeting of Two Oceans
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“Michael Wood continues his infectiously enthusiastic portrait of India’s cultural history.”
Time Out
“The penultimate episode of Michael Wood’s brilliant series is perhaps the most visually beautiful yet, as the indefatigable historian explores the wonders of the Moghul Empire...”
Weekend Daily Mail
The fifth episode of the story of India takes us to the time of the Renaissance in Europe, when India was the richest, most populous civilization in the world.
We visit the desert cities of Rajasthan and travel among the fabulous Moghul cities of Delhi, Agra and Fatepur Sikri. At the Taj Mahal-just voted one of the new Seven Wonders of the World by 100 million voters worldwide- Wood demolishes an old myth about the Taj and offers a startling new theory about its construction.
Exploring the legacy of the Moghul empire that stretched across today’s political borders Michael Wood tells the tale of the early Moghuls, starting with the redoubtable Babur, founder of the dynasty, and his grandson Akbar the Great, ‘one of the very greatest figures in history’, a Muslim king who tried to make India a multi racial and multi-religious state.
His aim was to achieve a Hindu-Muslim equilibrium based on the brotherhood of mankind with no one religion holding the ultimate truth- a message for our own time if ever there was one.
The story of the Moghuls has some of the most fascinating characters in all of history but ends in tragedy as two brothers fought over Akbar’s legacy, in a battle that in the end broke Akbar’s dream. While waiting in the wings to pick over the spoils were ………the British. 
Written and Presented by Michael Wood
Producer Rebecca Dobbs
Editor Gerry Branigan
Music Howard Davidson & The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Filmed and Directed by Jeremy Jeffs