चाय पर होने वाली बातें
Live shows and conversations

अच्छी संगत बैठ कर, संगी बदले रूप

जैसे मिल कर आम से, मीठी हो गई धूप

(निदा फ़ाज़ली)

One of the biggest benefit of live conversations is that - there is interaction, and when there is interaction, there is learning. There is also an exchange of stories and new stories are made, effortlessly. So this is what I have been doing on most of my weekends for last two years - hosting shows on poetry, Hindi literature, stories, future of energy, podcasting in India, etc., apart from being a guest speaker on several podcasts and live shows. Mentza has been my go-to app for such conversations, for her unique idea of setting conversations to 20 minutes. Beyond that, the weapon of mass distraction in our pockets starts craving for attention :-) You can check out all such sessions on my Mentza audio portfolio. Here are some of the key sessions that I host or been a part of.

Mahabharat - the retelling of the epic

This is a show hosted by Uday Kiran and I. We tell the stories of Mahabharat in a summarized and simplified way (we try to). Uday speaks in English and I cover in Hindi. We are going from one Parv to another, just as the sequence in Mahabharat is. There have been 50 episodes and we are at Virat Parv right now. Join us every Saturday at 10pm.

Join live discussion here | Past episodes on Spotify

Kitaab Ghar - a Hindi book club

It's more a discussion than review, and we discuss only Hindi books in this forum. We don't criticize or find faults with books. We talk about the parts we like about the book of the week. These books can be both old and new literature, ranging from Yashpal, Agyeya to Nirmal Verma and Amrita Pritam to today's Manisha Kulshreshtha, Praveej Jha and Sushobhit. Some of the key books we have discussed in this forum are Antim Aranya, Raag Pahadi, Rineshan, Chandrakanta, Mallika, Ban-Kissa, Nadi ke Dweep, Ibne-Batooti, Ambpaali, etc. We also invite some of the authors to get to know them better, like, Manisha Kulshreshtha, Hema Bisht, Dr Nidhi Agrawal.

Join live discussion here | Past episodes on Spotify | Find out more

Future of Energy - discussion on the latest in energy transition

This is a channel hosted by Sarai Bose, a seasoned energy professional based in the UK. I join the panel alongside Suvendu Lenka, Sayanima Kisku, Anjan Ray and Anand Parameswaran. We discuss a topic related to energy transition, sustainability and renewables every week. The current technology, the economics, the viability, how are countries fairing, the role of oil & gas industry, etc. We have 70+ episodes so far and have covered topics like nuclear energy, green hydrogen, carbon capture, circular economy, wind vs solar debate, COP meetings, the role of activism in climate debate, latest innovation, sustainable supply chain, and a lot more. Join us every Sunday if this topic interests you. You can also check out the past recordings.

Join live discussion here | Past episodes on Spotify

TGIF After Hours - nostalgic Friday music

This is a fun channel to unwind for the weekend! We started this as a forum to take a walk down memory lane, from the 80s and 90s. Now, we dive into yesteryear's music. We pick a theme every week and play 'Farmaishi' music on that. People send live recommendations, just like the old times radio (फरमाइशी गीतों का कार्यक्रम) and we play the songs they suggest. Themes range from love, chhed-chhad / mischief, artists like Kishore, Lata, Rafi, Bhupinder, etc., and a lot more. It's a fun night with non-stop comments and chit-chat and some trivia. We have done 75+ episodes and counting. Do join us on any Friday night at 9.30pm IST.

Join live discussion here | Listen to the past episodes

Podcasting in India - interviews with young podcasters of India

I started this channel as a forum to share the best practices in Podcasting. Now, I interview one young Indian podcaster every week. Podcasting is a booming audio platform in India with nearly 100% growth each year. It's only logical to understand the basic know-how and to know from people how their journey as first-time podcasters has been and also to know about niche Podcasts, such as, Baap-Beeti, Birth Stories, Sutta-Buddy, Itihaas ke Panno se, and a lot more. Join us for a live conversation every Sunday or check out the past recordings. If you are a podcaster yourself, even more fun, come and share your journey!

Join live discussion here | Listen to the past episodes

Madhushala Live - poetry, stories, life experiences

In this live session, we discuss a few poems (Rubaai / Chatushpadi) from Madhushala. We discuss the essence, the possible meanings (Bhavarth), life stories and Bachchan's experience or inspirations related to that. However deep we have gone, there is always something new we find every session. We have had 60+ of these sessions and counting. Join us every Sunday at 8pm on Mentza app.

Join live discussion here | Listen to the past episodes