Our pro-Indian hero tries to pull out all the official stops in an attempt to prevent this event from happening. One thread of the storyline finds Ash wanting to save an Indian Princess from the practice of Suttee, whereby the widow of an Indian man accompanies her husband on his funeral pyre. Yet the second example of modern concepts being thrust upon a Nineteenth Century character cannot be so easily appreciated. Now, it is perhaps possible to forgive the vagaries of love (even in the 1870s). Yet, he systematically breaks about every Indian taboo that it is possible to break and endangers his friends and adopted families credibilities and livelihoods by persisting with his dangerous liaisons. He is supposed to escort this (and another) Princess and their dowries through India to the castle of the Prince. First of all, he falls in love with a Princess who is betrothed to a rich and powerful Indian Prince. There are two aspects which illustrate these inconsistencies. Yet, he spends most of the series breaking the customs and laws of the Indians that he so wants to protect from the British. (if perhaps a bit too modern for the 1870s) goals. He is forever chastising his British compatriots for failing to appreciate and value the Indian character and mind set. His cross cultural confusions and loyalties play a central part to the series - In fact, despite being a central theme to the series, it is actually one of the most unconvincing parts of the plot. He was rescued by his Aya and brought up for the first 11 years of his life believing that he was an Indian. However, he had an unconventional upbringing after his family were killed during the Indian Mutiny. The hero is Ash who is an officer in the Corps of Guides in the 1870s. This is a lavish six part mini series set in the exotic world of the British Raj.

The far pavilions book review