Diaspora Dialogues by TOI™

Neil Soni and Amrapali Soni Ryan are the siblings behind Laxmi House of Spices - the family business that brought Indian food to American kitchens. On this episode of Diaspora Dialogues by TOI™, they join Sujatha Padmanabhan to trace how their parents' search for familiar Indian ingredients grew into a brand serving millions of households across North America. What we cover: • Carrying their paren...

From Kerala to Dubai… meet the perfumer who turns memories into fragrance. Yusuf Bhai is a Dubai-based perfumer who can rebuild a person’s past in scent: a childhood home, Kerala after the rain, a favourite meal, someone you love. In this episode of Diaspora Dialogues by TOI™, he sits down with Sujatha Padmanabhan to talk about perfume, memory and identity, and why a great fragrance is about far m...

Saurabh Netravalkar went from India's U19 setup to bowling the USA to a historic World Cup win over Pakistan while working full-time as an Oracle engineer. On this episode of Diaspora Dialogues by TOI™, Saurabh joins Sujatha Padmanabhan to unpack the journey that made him one of the faces of America's cricketing rise. He talks about growing up between Indian and American cultures, choosing en...

On this episode of Diaspora Dialogues by  TOI™, Anirudh Pisharody, Des from Netflix's Never Have I Ever, joins Sujatha Padmanabhan to talk about the role that unexpectedly turned him into a global internet boyfriend and changed how a brown leading man could be seen on American television. Anirudh discusses why audiences connected so strongly with Des, and what it meant to see a South Asian ma...

A restaurant with a nine-second sellout and a 10,000-person waitlist doesn't happen by accident — it's the result of a much longer story. Sujatha Padmanabhan sits down with Vikas Khanna to talk about building Bungalow, growing up in Amritsar, and the two-decade journey of bringing Indian food to the world stage. He opens up about the sacrifices behind the success, the loneliness of building a life...

He was told his name was too difficult for American television. For nearly four years, Raj Mathai became "Roger." Sujatha Padmanabhan sits down with Raj Mathai, the first Indian sportscaster in the United States and a 12-time Emmy Award-winning journalist, for a conversation about identity, journalism, and adapting to a rapidly changing media landscape. Beyond the story behind his name change, Raj...

How do you scale a South Indian restaurant chain without losing authenticity? Jay Jayaraman, founder of the Mylapore brand, reveals how he applied software engineering principles to revolutionize restaurant operations in the USA. In this episode of Diaspora Dialogues, we break down his systems-first approach, moving away from chef-centric models toward centralized kitchens and standardized process...

"I didn't want to just create a workout — I wanted to create a movement that made people proud of where they came from." 🧡 Sarina Jain's journey from personal loss to building a global fitness brand is one of the most powerful stories we've featured on Diaspora Dialogues. Watch the full episode and let us know — what's a moment in your life that changed everything? 👇 Her father died suddenly, of...

Dr. Ram Charan — advisor to the world's biggest CEOs — reveals why business strategy execution, not strategy alone, is what separates winning companies from failing ones. In this episode of Diaspora Dialogues, we break down the real CEO challenges nobody talks about: how China is playing a different economic game entirely, what business schools get wrong about global leadership, and why execution...

Growing up in North America with South Asian roots often means living between two worlds. Kal Penn sits down with Diaspora Dialogues by TOI™ to break down the real pressures of balancing Indian American identity with professional success. Whether it was navigating the stereotypical roles in Hollywood or finding his voice in the White House, Kal’s story is the story of so many in our community. In...

Why is Indian food always expected to be affordable? Chef Vijay Kumar has been asking that question for years, and Semma is his answer. Sujatha Padmanabhan speaks with one of the most celebrated South Indian chefs in the world about food racism, diaspora identity, and the restaurant that made New York rethink Tamil cuisine entirely. From his grandmother's snail curry to a James Beard Award, Vijay...

At a time when America saw chai as a sugary latte, Ani and Ayan Sanyal decided to change the story. Sujatha Padmanabhan speaks with the founders of Kolkata Chai Co. about how they built a million-dollar business rooted in culture, not trends. In this episode of Diaspora Dialogues by TOI™, we go behind the scenes of the Hasan Minhaj partnership and the long road of entrepreneurship - from selling a...

30 trial shows. 6 months of writing. One finished set. What looks effortless on stage is anything but. Sujatha Padmanabhan speaks with Amit Tandon about the unseen side of comedy. This is a conversation about the constant rewriting, the failed jokes, and the discipline behind every performance. From recording every set to rebuilding material night after night, Amit walks us through how a single ho...

Vidya Vox sits down with us for an honest, unfiltered conversation about growing up Indian in America, navigating her desi identity, and building a global music career — entirely on her own terms. From Chennai to California, Vidya's journey is one of the most inspiring Indian American stories on the internet. In this episode, she opens up about the moments that shaped her sound, her viral mashups,...

Not everyone who leaves, leaves completely. Diaspora Dialogues by TOI™ is a podcast about the South Asian experience abroad. The identity, the memory, the ambition, and the quiet pull of where one came from.  Hosted by Sujatha Padmanabhan from The Times of India, each episode is a conversation with someone who has built a life between places. Innovators, artists, entrepreneurs, athletes, and chang...