The Indian Edit

My supercharged guest Kaamna Bhojwani helps people explore and express their sexuality by connecting more deeply with their inner selves. Are you ready for a shake-up of your relationship with your body (and hopefully your partner too)? Tune in to this chat where we explore South Asian attitudes toward sex, how to speak to your kids about it, and so much more! Listen now on your favorite podcast a...

“What we needed was somebody who was willing to fail, somebody who was willing to experiment, and somebody who wasn't afraid to build the plane and fly it at the same time.” My latest guest Megha Desai brought her sense of adventure and decades of experience in the corporate world to her family’s foundation when she took the helm. She’s since propelled The Desai Foundation to new heights and heads...

Growing up in Lagos, Nigeria, then living in London, Singapore and now India, my guest Bharti Lalwani believes her outsider status is key to ‘speaking truth to power’ - the job of an art critic. Now experimenting in art criticism through perfumery, Bharti brought Mughal and Rajput paintings to life through a study of their gardens, flowers, and scents with her collaborator Nicolas Roth. Join me in...

So many of us think “Why hasn’t someone created this already?” yet so few go ahead and create it ourselves. My latest guest Jyoti Rajan Gopal is an educator who began writing picture books when she found frustratingly little diverse choices for her kindergarten class. Jyoti taps into her international upbringing and deep experience with young children to create these gems. Having published two bea...

Growing up in Morocco, then studying in England, France and Spain have all shaped artist, writer, and illustrator Karishma Chugani Nankani in countless ways. Among the many stories she has shared is one of her widespread Sindhi clan which she tells through her art and her books. Karishma also guides others in connecting with their own stories and artistic expression through workshops in person and...

Such a delight to meet someone who continues to pursue a wide range of interests while specializing enough to be a University Professor! Usha Raman is Professor of Communication at the University of Hyderabad, Vice President of the International Association for Media and Communication Research, Editor of ‘Teacher Plus’ magazine, writer for ‘The Hindu’, and a core team member of the Hyderabad Liter...

Ready to cosy up your house this Fall? Boston-based interior designer Vani Sayeed joined me to share her love of art, textiles and design in this landmark Episode 75! Hear how Vani followed her doctor husband from India to the midwest, then San Francisco and finally to Boston, and managed to break into a notoriously closed industry in all these places as both an employee and independent designer....

Having lived across 3 continents (moving from Malawi to the UK and finally to New Zealand) and having had multiple fascinating careers, it’s no surprise my latest guest does not take NO for an answer! Join me in this chat with inspiring mother of two Ashia Ismail-Singer who has taken her passion for food and ‘can-do’ attitude to publishing TWO (traditionally published!) cookbooks while working ful...

“Pan-gender to me means any gender expression that exists right now, I identify with in some way. So there are days where I feel more masculine, I feel more feminine, I feel non-binary. It depends on where I'm at internally. I don't like to limit myself to one gender. So pan-gender feels the most accurate.” — Sushma Saha Energetic and inspiring, my latest guest Sushma Saha is one you don’t want to...

“If some teachers can create magic in the classroom, then why not all?” Anju Saigal founded the non-profit CEQUE (pron. Seekhey) to upskill teachers in underprivileged communities in India after working in the education space for decades. Trained at Harvard’s Graduate School of Education and in field work through Pratham (one of India’s largest education focused non-profits), Anju shares how obser...

“I was behind the desk, but my heart was really in the garden. So I tried to work as little as possible so that I could spend every free moment tending my garden.” Curious about gardening and growing your own food in small spaces? Or how someone published THREE books in three years!!? Join me as Gardenerd founder and debut novelist Christy Wilhelmi shares how she pivoted from a desk job to followi...

Boston-based author Sena Desai Gopal is a long-time journalist and first-time novelist. She’s set her debut novel ‘The 86th Village’ in her ancestral village in Karnataka which has been devastated by flooding caused by the Upper Krishna dam project. Hundreds of villages have already been completely submerged, and Sena’s beloved hometown is next. She's taken her skills as a science and travel journ...

“A witty, gentle, original and very modern quest for the magical (not the mythical) in Britain’s landscape, which both made me laugh and moved me.” - Robert Macfarlane I was delighted to have this chance to speak with writer Jini Reddy about her yearning to connect with the landscape of Britain, her adopted homeland, which resulted in her delightful and thought-provoking book ‘ Wanderland ’. Jini’...

An absolute delight to speak with a young Nepali entrepreneur working on TWO start-ups! Join me in this chat with Ishu Dhakras, co-founder of lifestyle brand Ne Nepal and marketing manager of restaurant group Burma Burma! Ishu grew up in Nepal, was educated in the US, and is now based between Bombay and Kathmandu. Loved hearing how she tried many start-up ideas before landing on the winning one wi...

Ever wanted to gather your family’s recipes to celebrate and pass on your unique home culture? My latest guest Sri Bodanapu took a lengthy Word doc and turned it into a beautiful, glossy, bound cookbook for her own family and has now started a company to help you do the same! Founder of Heirloom Project Co., Sri shares her journey into motherhood, nutrition consulting, and now entrepreneurship on...

From Bharatnatyam in India to modern dance at the Guggenheim, my latest guest embodies both range and depth in her movement practice, insights which she now shares with young people in her role as an educator. Choreographer, performer, and founder of Thresh Performing Arts Collaborative, Preeti Vasudevan joins me in this chat about dance, identity, and story telling which will inspire you to move...

Sustainability is on all our minds these days, but sometimes it’s hard to sift through the noise and the greenwashing to make choices that are truly earth-friendly. Shila Wattamwar helps me navigate this important topic by sharing both financial and lifestyle advice based on her expertise in sustainable investing and as founder of the Sustainable Me platform. Hear how this pre-med student veered i...

A great honor to bring you my latest guest author, musician, educator and environmentalist Leela Gour Broome who shares her love of the natural world with children through her books and teaching. Currently based on her farm outside Pune, she brings her deep knowledge of life on the tea plantations of South India to her books Flute in the Forest and The Anaishola Chronicle . Check out all four of h...

Happy 2022! To kick off this New Year, I’m delighted to bring you someone who has energized the online sari world with her style and substance! Amanpreet Birgisson joins me in this chat and shares her journey from her childhood in a Sikh family in Ranchi to designing homes in Washington D.C. where she lives with her Icelandic husband and two sons. Her thoughtful and beautifully styled posts on Ins...

Give kids the gift of an adventurous palate this holiday season! My New York based guest Sarah Thomas has followed her passions from the worlds of Renaissance literature to food and wine and now children’s picture books as founder of a new company Kalamata’s Kitchen. I love her commitment to sharing her knowledge and passion with kids and their grown-ups! Join me as we talk all things food, wine a...

Ever wondered what really goes into a bottle of fine fragrance? Join me down the rabbit hole of niche perfumery with perfume creator, entrepreneur, architect and author Jahnvi Lakhota Nandan. Now based in Paris and Goa, Jahnvi trained with master perfumers in France before launching her own line, available at Good Earth stores in India, and online, including bespoke orders. Learn about the world o...

Grab a cup of chai, a glass of champagne, or go for a walk and hear how my new favorite book series starring Perveen Mistry, lawyer and sleuth extraordinaire, was created! Author of this historical mystery series which includes The Widows of Malabar Hill, The Satapur Moonstone, and The Bombay Prince, Sujata Massey tells me her own story of journalism, Japan and more on the latest episode of the po...

How does someone with an Economics degree turn a love of stories into a career? Tune in to hear Bombay-based Tara, the founder of Bound India, share her journey from book-loving kid to publishing entrepreneur and podcaster. You maybe surprised by her favorite format and time of day for reading, and stay tuned until the end for reviews to find your next amazing read! Listen now on your favorite pod...

Happy October! The podcast is back! Join me and my delightful new guest in a journey to the Great North - Shayan Pandole is a food & beverage industry veteran who found herself leaving New York and moving to Iceland to join her husband’s family restaurant in the remote Westfjords. The Soho House and Ritz Carlton seem a world apart from the fish restaurant in a medieval timber tavern where I me...

I had so much fun speaking with author Sonali Dev, creator of Bollywood-style love stories with a multicultural cast of characters you will definitely root for! I love her Bay Area based, Jane Austen inspired series based on the Raje family - the latest of which just released and is a great end of summer read! Join me in hearing how this architect turned into a full-time author, how being too chat...