Episode One
Returning from work, Karim's father Haroon invites his English wife, Margaret to an event at Eva Kay's house where he will speak on Oriental philosophy. She declines the invitation and Karim agrees to accompany his father instead. Eva greets Haroon with enthusiastic kisses. Charlie (Eva's son and Karim's sixth-form class-mate) and Karim tire of Haroon's Buddhist meditation lesson and go upstairs to Charlie's room where they get stoned. Karim discovers Eva and his father having sex in the front garden. Back in Charlie's room, Karim becomes turned on by Charlie and manually stimulates him.
At Haroon's next session, at the home of Eva's friend Marianne's, Karim, unable to find Charlie, meets Marianne's daughter, Helen. Helen and Karim take some acid and are tripping when they attend the session. Afterwards, Helen gives Karim her address and Karim discovers a physically much altered Charlie huddled in the corner of the conservatory reading to a girl. Karim is eager to hear Charlie's news, but Charlie seems uninterested in talking.
The next day, desperate to escape the unhappy atmosphere at home, Karim bikes over to Helen's house. Helen's father forbids Karim from seeing her, subjects him to racist insults, and slams the door in his face. Karim's next stop is the house of Auntie Jean (Margaret' sister) and Uncle Ted. Auntie Jean expresses her concern at Haroon's behaviour and its detrimental effects on her sister, and urges Karim to talk to his father.
Karim visits his best friend Jamila at her family-owned corner shop and home. She takes Karim upstairs to see her father, Anwar, who is on a starvation diet to make Jamila agree to an arranged marriage to a 30 year-old Indian man called Changez. Karim returns home to find the situation between his parents has worsened.
Outside the college gates, Charlie and Helen chat and Charlie gives Karim the cold shoulder. An angry Jamila turns up looking for Karim who was meant to meet her. Helen drives Jamila and Karim to Karim's house, seeking Haroon's advice on Jamila's dilemma. At a bus shelter that evening, Helen tells Karim that she thinks Jamila will give into her father's blackmail and marry Changez. Karim believes she won't. Karim and Helen have sex.
