Dame Meera Syal has graced our screens, bookshelves, and stages for decades - but behind the wit, brilliance, and groundbreaking work is a woman who has spent her life quietly and powerfully defying expectations.

In the very first episode of Sisters of Defiance, Anita sits down with Meera to talk about identity, ambition, belonging, and what it meant to grow up feeling caught between cultures while trying to forge a path that didn’t yet exist for women like her. From the creation of Goodness Gracious Me and The Kumars at No. 42 to navigating a divorce in a culture which views it as deeply shameful, Meera reflects on the highs, the challenges, the moments that shaped her voice, and all the work still to come. If you can’t be what you can’t see, thank god Anita saw Meera aged 14. This one is personal.

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Meera - @meera.syal

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Sisters of Defiance is nourished by Ancient & Brave

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Presented by Anita Rani

Producer: Flossie Barratt

Technical Producer / Editor: Will Gibson Smith

Social Media Manager: Anna Richmond

Graphic Design: Sunny Formats

Sisters of Defiance is an Illuminaunty production.

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