The partition of

cultural history. She’s been attending workshops in the run-up to the big day. As she explains: “My family came from Kashmir in Pakistan when I was one and we have never talked about partition. In school we learned about the German wars but nothing about what happened in India. I don’t think many people know much about it.

“In workshops we were asked to imagine what it would be like to leave your home; to have a couple of hours to decide what to take with you. People came in from the community who had an interest in the subject and we did various activities.”

Sameena says that she too believes few young people of Pakistani or Indian heritage living in the UK understand much about partition.

She added: “I knew about it from reading, but it’s not widely known about. I was born in England but wanted to learn more of my history.

“While there was a line drawn between Pakistan and India and it divided people, lines are also meeting points. Every morning the soldiers on either side of the Radcliffe Line (border) salute each other. We have not just looked at the negatives, we have also looked at the positives, like the sports and games that have survived.

“There were so many atrocities that you can see why people don’t want to talk about it, but I think it’s important for the next generation to know about their history.”

Partition may have happened two generations ago, but there are still mass migrations of people from all over the world going on today and this, says Susan, makes Drawing the Line particularly poignant and relevant. “Lines have always been drawn and still are. Brexit, for example; black, white. There are divisions in society. Ultimately our (drama) piece offers hope and humility, demonstrating how diversity can also bring people together.”

The idea for Drawing the Line originally came from oral historian Mandy Samra, who felt that the anniversary of partition should be marked in some way in Huddersfield, which has a large Asian com-