Welcome to Hard Talk from the BBC World Service with me, Stephen Sacker. In early adulthood, my

guest today made a life-changing choice which cut him off from his family and homeland for the

foreseeable future. He's known as Badigutsal. It's not his real name, but that is something he chooses

not to use. He was born in Shanghai

to a family tainted in the eyes of the Communist Party by a dissident past. In particular, a grandfather

who was a screenwriter condemned to hard labour under Chairman Mao. In the 1990s, Bad Yud Sao

saw a clandestine copy of a documentary film

detailing the massacre of student protesters in Tiananmen Square in 1989. In 2009, he got permission

to study in Australia. He left and never came back. He began drawing political cartoons, lampooning Chinese Communist Party

propaganda, and he built an audience and a reputation, both in Australia and far beyond. In 2018,

he learned that the Chinese authorities knew his real identity. Family members in China were being threatened and Bad Yud Sao faced a choice.

Stop his creative career in order to protect his family or continue. Ultimately, he chose the latter.

He cut all contact with family to protect them and a year later revealed his identity in an Australian TV documentary.

Since then, his international reputation has grown. He's had exhibitions in Australia and a host

of European cities, but he feels that too many major galleries and museums, especially in Australia,

choose not to feature his work for fear of upsetting the Chinese government.

He's also cataloged a series of incidents which he says suggest the Chinese authorities are out

to intimidate him, if not worse. His latest work is a graphic novel depicting a future conflict

between the US and China over Taiwan. He says he will never trade being

truthful to himself and his art for security. But how does insecurity impact his creativity?

Well, he joins me now on the line from Taipei. Bad Yudsao, welcome to hard talk. Thank you. It's a pleasure to be here.

It's a pleasure to talk to you. Now, you are an internationally renowned illustrator and artist

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