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Imperial Illusions is a film about how Britain created a fantastical illusion about empire, in order to justify control and imperial exploitation, and how when that imperial illusion was crumbling, Britain attempted to bury the past and create a new fantasy.

They say history is written by the victor, but sometimes more important than victory is to retain control of your past. The British Empire was a violent affair, but today this violence is often forgotten and Empire romanticised. Imperial Illusions investigates Britain’s imperial narrative in the 20th century and explores how official secrecy, propaganda and the law were first used to attempt to legitimise and obscure British actions in the Empire and later used to shape an imperial legacy.

Participants

Chao Tayiana Maina

Chao Tayiana Maina

Historian
Chao Tayiana Maina is a Kenyan historian and digital heritage specialist. She uses digital technologies to deepen engagement with African histories, unearth previously hidden or suppressed historical narratives and make these accessible to a wider audience. She is the founder of African Digital Heritage and a co-founder of the Museum of British Colonialism.
Mridula Mukherjee

Mridula Mukherjee

Historian and Author
Mridula Mukherjee is an Indian historian known for her work on the role of peasants in the Indian independence movement. She is an ex-chairperson of the Centre for Historical Studies at the Jawaharlal Nehru University, Delhi, and former director of the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library.
Mohamed Elmaazi

Mohamed Elmaazi

Journalist
Mohamed Elmaazi is a journalist who has covered Julian Assange's extradition hearings. His work has appeared in Consortium News, Declassified UK, Jacobin, The Electronic Intifada, and The Real News. He is also the editor of Truth Defence, an initiative supporting progressive political voices against smears, lawfare and disinformation.
Partha Chatterjee

Partha Chatterjee

Political Scientist
Partha Chatterjee is an Indian political scientist and anthropologist. He was the director of the Centre for Studies in Social Sciences, Calcutta from 1997 to 2007 and continues as an honorary professor of political science. He is also a professor of anthropology and South Asian studies at Columbia University, USA.
Stephen Dorril

Stephen Dorril

Researcher and Author
Stephen Dorril is a British academic, author, and journalist. He is a former senior lecturer in the journalism department at Huddersfield University. He has written numerous books, mostly about the UK’s intelligence services. He is the co-founder of the magazine Lobster.
Manasi Pophale

Manasi Pophale

Founder of History Speak
History Speak is a Creative consultancy specialising in contested heritage and decolonising spaces. Manasi Pophale started History Speak as a university project in response to the dissonance in collective memory she experienced as an international student in Britain.
Francis Gooding

Francis Gooding

Journalist and Film Historian
Francis Gooding is a writer and researcher in music, art and film. He is a contributing editor to the London Review Of Books and Critical Quarterly, and a regular columnist at The Wire. He worked as a researcher and author on the Colonial Film: Images of the British Empire project (colonialfilm.org.uk).
Ciarán McAirt

Ciarán McAirt

Author and Activist
Ciarán McAirt is a published author and human rights campaigner. He runs the charity Paper Trail. Paper Trail offers free advocacy and training to victims and survivors of the conflict in the north of Ireland. Helping ordinary families access official information buried in archives.
Evalyne Wanjiru

Evalyne Wanjiru

Historian
Evalyne Wanjiru is a descendant of a Kenyan freedom fighter and a researcher on the experiences of Kenyan women during the Mau Mau Emergency.
Davis Malombe

Davis Malombe

Executive Director KHRC
David Malombe is the Executive Director of the Kenya Human Rights Commission. He is a distinguished political scientist specialising in governance.
Anuraag Saxena

Anuraag Saxena

Anuraag Saxena is an Indian activist, author and commentator. He is a founder of the India Pride Project, a volunteer effort to return to India archaeological artifacts taken out during the colonial period.
Hana Wanjuku Muchemi

Hana Wanjuku Muchemi

Hana Wanjuku Muchemi is a Kenyan of the Kikuyu tribe. During the Kenyan Emergency she was interned in a British "colonial village".
Joseph Muriuki Waigwa

Joseph Muriuki Waigwa

Joseph Muriuki Waigwa is a Kenyan of the Kikuyu tribe. During the Kenyan Emergency he was incarcerated by British colonial forces and subjected to torture and ill-treatment.

Production

Michael Oswald

Director, Co-Producer and Writer

Michael Oswald is an independent documentary filmmaker based in the UK. He produces narrative documentary films inspired by investigative journalism, essay films and surrealism. Previous films include Behind Closed Doors (2023), The Man Who Knew Too Much (2020), The Spider’s Web (2017) and Princes of the Yen (2014).

Garima Raghuvanshy

Co-Producer

Garima is an independent academic, writer and documentary filmmaker from India based in the UK. She has worked on major documentaries for the BBC, Channel 4, ARD Germany, and independent theatrical release. As Co-Producer on Imperial Illusions, she contributes her experience as a documentary producer as well as her insights from studying the impact of colonialism on India. 

Simeon Roberts

Co-Producer

Simeon Roberts is an independent journalist and filmmaker with an interest in themes relating to history, culture and politics. He enjoys exploring unheard narratives to bring new perspectives to audiences about past events in history through articles and documentary films. He was an Executive Producer on the feature documentary The Spider’s Web (2017).

Charulata Maitra

Associate producer and India Camera Operator

Having grown up amidst cinema and literature, Charu studied English Literature at Fergusson College and while at it, she did a short screenplay writing course from FTII. Her career began with research and writing, took her into a corporate space and landed in the thick of filmmaking. With experience in writing, directing and producing, Charu is a person who views life as a constant learning process where her experience remains ever-evolving.

Jamie Pereira

Music and Sound

www.jamieperera.com

Voice Over (Name)

Voice Over

Voice Over (Text)