The Coffee House Experience

"Where the world has not been broken up into fragments, by narrow domestic walls." When Rabindranath Thakur wrote these lines, little did anyone imagine that such walls would be raised against Bengalis. Little did we know that Bengalis will be beaten up, not by oppressive colonialists from a land afar, but our very own home-grown imperialists. In this episode we recount the recent spree of persecu...

The world has seen an unprecedented rise in the generation and spread of false information, and India is arguably at its epicenter. Their creation is quite often deliberate which is when they are called disinformation. At other times they are unintentional, which is when they are called misinformation. Often dubbed as “fake news”, they spread like an information epidemic through social media, befo...

In this episode, we dive into how data-driven decision-making can transform India’s legal system. Joining us is Siddharth Raman from XKDR Forum, a former Bain consultant, whose research focuses on applying actuarial thinking to court management. From optimising how manpower is allocated in lower courts to identifying patterns that can reduce case backlogs, Siddharth explains how smart, evidence-ba...

Join us for an illuminating conversation with Professor Eshan Chattopadhyay of Cornell University, a leading mind in the theory of randomness extractors. After years of pioneering work in this critical area of theoretical computer science, Eshan earned the prestigious Gödel Prize (the first Bengali recipient)—shared with his PhD advisor David Zuckerman—for his breakthrough construction of super-ef...

In this episode, Anushka from the Takshashila Institution joins Souvik to explore India’s evolving strategy toward China. They discuss key issues such as the border tensions and the Galwan incident, India’s trade and manufacturing challenges, and how China’s dominance in sectors like EVs and rare earths impacts Indian policy. The conversation also covers China’s growing military ties with Pakistan...

The Bangla film industry is facing a storm — caught between deepening trade-union (guild) conflicts and a long-standing decline in both artistic quality and commercial viability. While a few standout films continue to shine, the broader picture reveals a troubling trajectory. In this conversation, Debarati and Pratyay engage with renowned filmmaker Indranil Roychowdhury — celebrated for Foring , M...

In this episode, Souvik speaks with Prof. Sumeet from the Jindal School of Government and Public Policy about the history and future of the caste census in India. They explore why the caste census was stopped after 1931, how its absence impacts policymaking and social justice, and the challenges of implementing reservation in today’s largely privatized economy. The conversation also touches on mis...

In this thought-provoking episode of The Coffeehouse Experience, we’re joined by Arindam Goswami, a policy researcher at the Takshashila Institution, where he focuses on technology policy, AI governance, and national security. Alongside hosts Sanjay and Souvik, Arindam unpacks India’s position in the fast-evolving global AI ecosystem. The discussion explores India’s progress in building critical A...

2025 marks Riwtik Ghatak’s birth centenary. To celebrating that we look back at different aspects of Rwitwik Ghatak’s work and life with. In this episode, Debarati and Pratyay engage in a discussion with Prof. Manas Ghosh from Jadavpur University's Film Studies Department, exploring key aspects of Ritwik Ghatak’s cinematic journey. They cover the significance of his first film "Nagarik," which rem...

In this episode, we speak with Deepta Roy Chakraverti—Wiccan, author, and daughter of India’s pioneering priestess Ipsita Roy Chakraverti. Deepta unpacks the origins of Wicca and how it took root in her life, not just as a spiritual path but as a lens through which she views the world. We explore how her supernatural fiction is influenced by her beliefs, and whether her rational, academic backgrou...

In this episode, Prof. Debak Das helps unpack the evolving dynamics of nuclear proliferation in the 21st century. From Cold War doctrines to contemporary strategic rivalries, we trace how major powers like Russia, France, and China shaped their nuclear trajectories — and what lessons were learned (or ignored) along the way. We also examine India's nuclear history, exploring the 24-year gap between...

Join us for an inspiring conversation with Debashish Bhattacharya, whose remarkable journey spans decades of cultural engagement and intellectual curiosity. From his formative years at the India International Centre in Delhi to intimate conversations with some of the world’s most influential figures, Debashish shares how these encounters shaped his outlook on life. In his new book, “Whispers of an...

CHE#60 | Bangla Podcast | Democracy at the Grassroots: Is Panchayati Raj in Crisis? | ​Suvojit Chattopadhyay In today’s episode, we’re diving into the state of the Panchayati Raj system in India — a vision once rooted in grassroots democracy and self-governance, now facing serious challenges. Joining with us today is Suvojit Chattopadhyay , a seasoned development professional currently based in Na...

Ishita Tiwary’s book, published by Oxford University Press in 2024, offers a groundbreaking exploration of India’s analog video era. Through interdisciplinary methods—including oral histories, archival research, and recovered tapes—it reconstructs the evolution of analog video culture. The book also provides crucial insights into the socio-political landscape of the time, addressing gaps often fou...

🔴 Can You Hack Indian EVMs? | CHE#58 | Bangla Podcast ft. Subhashis Banerjee 🔴 🎙️ The Coffee House Experience Can Indian Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) be hacked? 🤔 Does VVPAT matching actually ensure transparency? 🗳️ Is India's electoral process truly beyond manipulation? ⚖️ What about voters' lists—are they foolproof or prone to tampering? And why does an EVM’s battery charge matter in ele...

Autism in India - From Denial to Empathy | Bhismadev Chakrabarti 🎙️ The Coffee House Experience What is autism, and how do we move from misunderstanding to empathy? In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Bhismadev Chakrabarti, a leading neuroscientist specializing in autism and social behavior. The process of socialization in human beings has us responding to social stimuli and reinforcing those be...

In this episode, we are honoured to host Dr Manas Ray, a renowned cultural theorist and storyteller, who revisits his childhood as a refugee in the vibrant yet tumultuous Netaji Nagar of Kolkata. From the struggles of displacement to the shaping of a unique cultural ethos, Dr. Ray offers an intimate glimpse into his personal experiences and reflections. Join us as we explore the profound stories t...

Today we are joined by Anirban - the founder of “ the Painted Sky “ which is an art-based training organization and the “ UBQT Design Thinking School “ (one of the first design thinking schools in India). He has been an executive coach and an experienced facilitator in various art-based behavioural programs for many corporate clients across geographies. He has also mentored different organizations...

Manu Bhagavan is a historian and professor of history and human rights at Hunter College and the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. He is also a senior fellow at the Ralph Bunche Institute. Bhagavan's research focuses on 20th-century India, intellectual history, human rights, and constitutional history. In this episode we discuss about his latest book ‘Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit’ publi...

Indian politics today - a ringside view Youtube: https://youtu.be/Y3mKoJIPMVk Hosted by: Srinjoy Ganguly Special #thecoffeehouseexperience #englishposdcast #srinjoyganguly #Indianpolitics #ruchigupta #bjp #congress #kejriwal

In this unique episode, we discuss the evolving situation in the unprecedented situation in Bangladesh, with Sharmee Hossain, a Bangladeshi and Soumik Pal, an Indian, both faculties of North South University in Dhaka. Note: This was recorded on August 10, 2024 Youtube: https://youtu.be/N6LDGIT96p0 #bangladesh #Bangladeshquotareformmovement #quotamovement #sheikhhasina # #Bangla #bengalilanguage #b...

While the festivities around the national election just came to an end, there were many facts that did surprise/puzzle/mesmerize us. For example: amateurs like ourselves were much closer to predicting the accurate outcome (see here: https://youtu.be/fKMHjVM9L50?si=I_tmG_VDaQVDH_AP for our data-based prediction for Bengal) than the poll giants; despite all the social media hype CPIM is yet to open...

Like many, Kasturi and Dwaipayan, an independent documentary filmmaker couple, were shell-shocked when the 2019 election results came out, especially by the huge surge in support for right-wing politics in West Bengal. From then on, they dedicated themselves totally to building long-term socio-cultural fronts to resist the neo-fascist right-wing hegemony. Using their forte in documentary film-maki...

Srinjoy and Pratyay analyze the 2024 Lok Sabha elections in West Bengal using voting statistics since 2011. The predictions are also informed by qualitative insights such as anecdotal evidence, candidate selection and varied local issues. This is the first endeavour in amateur psephology by the hosts and should only be taken as a quasi-pedagogical exercise. In other words, don't take the predictio...

Analyzing ancient DNAs of different populations led to many astonishing discoveries about the past of our species. Unsurprisingly, like other areas, scientific findings through genome analyses collided with conventional wisdoms leading to cultural and political battle. This is especially true for India where a certain political ideology, deeply rooted in conjectured indigenousness, has been gainin...