India, Dec. 14 -- In August 1947, India was partitioned into India and Pakistan. What was intended to be a political solution to terminate colonial control resulted in one of history's largest, most violent, and most inhumane partitions, fuelled by religion. Millions were uprooted; communal riots, massacres, abductions, forced conversions, and sexual assault ensued as people fled over hastily formed borders. The human toll-lives lost, families fractured, and communities torn apart-became the defining tragedy of the subcontinent's fall from empire.

A History of Cultural Integration

Long before 1947, the Indian subcontinent was a layered, composite civilisation. Over many centuries it assimilated migrants and conquerors. India developed a...