Exploring India’s Treasures with Bettany Hughes: release date, destinations and everything we know

Exploring India's Treasures with Bettany Hughes is a fascinating two-part documentary coming to Channel 4 which sees Bettany connecting the archaeological, architectural and cultural treasures of India, including the iconic Taj Mahal, to its people's ideas, beliefs and emotions.

Here is everything you need to know about the new documentary including how to watch and where Bettany will be visiting in the series...

Exploring India's Treasures with Bettany Hughes release date

Exploring India's Treasures will be shown in two parts on Channel 4 from Sunday, July 9, 2023. It will also be released as a box set on All4.

What is Exploring India's Treasures with Bettany Hughes about?

In her new two-part travelogue, historian Bettany Hughes showcases some of the cultural treasures of India, but rather than just admiring their beauty and recounting their history, she sets out to connect them to the ideas, beliefs and emotions of India’s people.

‘It’s not just the what and the how, but the why,’ explains Hughes. ‘I’m asking: “Why do these beautiful places matter?”’

What are some of the highlights of Exploring India's Treasures with Bettany Hughes?

VARANASI

Hughes’ first stop, in the holy city of Varanasi, is a particularly emotional experience because it’s an opportunity to honor her late mother in a ceremony of remembrance. "The ceremony is called the Pind Daan," she says. "It’s performed for the liberation of the souls of deceased loved ones. One blessed pind, or rice ball, is offered for the soul of the departed. So I'm feeding my ancestors, and I’m given wool to clothe them. The idea of taking the offerings to the river is that the deceased is dissolving back into the universe. It’s about a cycle of life and love."

TAJ MAHAL

Also in episode one, which focuses on northern India, Hughes uncovers a lesser-known aspect of the famous Taj Mahal in Agra, which is also associated with loss, since it was built to house the tomb of Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan’s wife.

"Everybody’s heard of the Taj Mahal and seen that famous image of the building that appears on postcards," says Hughes. "But not many people have gone to its lost gardens, which were a private place for mourning. This is a series about finding treasures that make us care, and the Taj Mahal is a monument to love and loss."

THE TODA PEOPLE

In episode two’s journey through the south, Hughes takes a train up into the Nigri mountains to meet the women of the indigenous Toda people. "It’s not just about getting on the train and watching the landscape go by," Hughes explains. "It’s appreciating the people whose territory you’re going through. The Toda women were pleased to have me because I’m a woman and a vegetarian. And I’ve got long naturally curly hair, and they showed me how to use buffalo milk to deal with hair frizz in that climate!"

CHOLA BRONZES

Also in episode two, at a thousand-year-old temple in Thanjavur, Hughes sees the local sculptors using traditional techniques to create the stunning Chola bronzes.

"They carve these beautiful sculptures out of beeswax, and put them in these moulds," says Hughes. "Then they melt the wax and fill it with metal instead. It was very exciting for me, because in the Greek and Roman worlds, there is this mysterious technique called the 'lost-wax process', which is how some of the exquisite sculptures for the Acropolis in Athens were created."

What else will I see across the two episodes?

In episode one, Bettany heads to New  Delhi to experience immersive celebrations of Sufism and uncover the backstory of one of India’s greatest rulers, Akbar the Great. At his epic capital of Fatehpur Sikri, Bettany explains why Akbar attempted to unite India’s multiple faiths, how his  wife Jodha Bai supported his mission and questions why these magnificent ruins

Bettany also follows in the footsteps of James Bond to visit the glorious lakeside Palaces of Udaipur where she receives a Royal welcome. She finishes her exploration of North India in Amritsar, joining throngs of Sikh pilgrims at the city’s Golden Temple before being invited to eat at the Langar, a thriving community kitchen offering free food to Temple visitors for almost 500 years.

In southern India in episode two, Bettany explores the 500-year-old abandoned city of Hampi in Karnataka and joins pilgrims at Thanjavur’s thousand-year-old granite temple.

Her epic journey ends in Kerala, where she stays up all night at a Theyyam dance,  in which elaborately-dressed dancers fall into a trance and become gods before exploring Kerala’s backwaters.

Is there a trailer for Exploring India’s Treasures with Bettany Hughes?

No, sadly there isn't a trailer yet, but as soon as one has been released we will add it to this guide.