Demons of the Punjab

"Family history and time travel. Very tricky."

Writer: Vinay Patel
Format: TV
Broadcast: 11th November 2018
Series: 11.06

Featuring: Thirteenth Doctor, Yaz, Ryan, Graham

Synopsis

India, 1947. The Doctor and her friends arrive in the Punjab, as India is being torn apart. While Yaz attempts to discover her grandmother's hidden history, the Doctor discovers demons haunting the land. Who are they, and what do they want?

Verdict 

Demons of the Punjab was an excellent episode to continue Series 11! I really like a modern historical and this was certainly no different. The idea of Yaz wanting to use her friendship with the Doctor to go and see her grandmother back in time was lovely and I loved how the Doctor was debating whether she should go and knew, really, that they shouldn't but couldn't quite resist the temptation. Yazmin's Nani keeping secrets about the mysterious watch that she gave to her favourite granddaughter was intriguing and I liked how eager Yaz was to know. The arrival into August 1947 was really good and I loved that the story dealt with the partition of India. It's an extremely sensitive subject and seeing it get explored in Doctor Who will hopefully shed some light on it and offer some knowledge to those that might have been unaware. I'm a History graduate currently studying for a Masters so I know my stuff, but this was something that I wasn't taught about until my second year at university and that's only because of the British Empire module I chose. It should be well-known but this episode offered some education on it which was really good. The Thijarians were a great alien race and I liked how they went from assumed assassins to just witnesses. They looked quite impressive and I liked how even the Doctor was affected by their initial method of communication. Graham and Ryan didn't have a great deal to offer in this episode but that was absolutely fine. I did like how the former tried to console Yaz when she knew that her Nani wasn't marrying her grandfather here. She hadn't expected that. Learning about what happened to the Thijarian home world was quite horrifying and seeing that they kept every last remnant of their planet as one in a jar was quite touching. The Doctor was rather apologetic after she'd been running around with it as a means of protection. Umbreen was a lovely character and her determination to marry Prem was fantastic to see. The marriage of a Muslim and Hindi would have been hugely controversial during this time with the creation of Pakistan for the Muslim population of India. Some weren't happy about it and went to extreme means to prevent it. Namely, Manish. He couldn't allow his brother to marry a Muslim and shot him dead on the spot. It was horrifying after he kissed Umbreen goodbye as she headed for Lahore and safety. She would make it but for history to stay on track, and for Yaz to be born, the Doctor and co couldn't do anything to stop it. It was a devastating moment and seeing the Thijarians arrive to witness it made it more inevitable. It was a hugely emotional moment but I liked how Yaz was talking to Nani about her past and how she was the first woman to marry in Pakistan. Overall, a brilliant episode!

Rating: 9/10