On Second Thought with Komal Mirani

In this episode, we explore collective intelligence, personal agents, and the Internet of AI Agents with Mahesh Lambe , one of the minds behind Project Nanda . For the last two decades, the internet connected information. What if the next phase connects intelligence itself? We discuss why coordination may be one of the defining challenges of the coming decade, the infrastructure required to enable...

We like to believe we’re rational. That we think, then act. But most of the time, behaviour is shaped elsewhere by habit, perception, context, and a special kind of chaos. In this episode, I’m in conversation with Pratyush Pillai, Head of Behavioural Design at TinkerLabs. We explore what it really means to design for people as they are not as we assume them to be. From irrational decisions to the...

Yash Pradhan is a self-taught illustrator and designer whose creative education happened online. A 90s baby shaped by internet culture, he began his career as an accountant before turning his obsession with design into a full-time practice. What started as small experiments shared online became commissioned work for brands like Coach, Real Madrid, Meta, Kingfisher and lots more!. In this conversat...

PG Aditiya is the Co-Founder and CCO of Talented, one of India’s sharpest and most awarded creative agencies, built on the belief that great work begins with great people. Titles, however, only partly describe his role. His thinking extends well beyond the mechanics of advertising, shaped by a deep reverence for craft, an archival curiosity for its history, and a visible pride in the people behind...

What does it mean to live a life guided by curiosity, taste, and intuition? In this episode, I sat down with Malini Malik , co-founder of General Items in Bangalore and founder of Come Away , to explore a life shaped by art, travel, and trust in the process. Growing up as an army kid, Malini’s world was defined by movement: each new place leaving behind textures, colors, and memories that quietly...

Most people talk about changing the world. A few try to redesign it: system by system, person by person, story by story. Siddhartha Menon is one of those few. As Head of Mission at Tiny Miracles , Siddhartha helps lead a social enterprise with a clear, ambitious goal: enable communities to get themselves out of poverty and stay out. Their model moves beyond short-term aid to tackle systemic change...

What Does It Take to Design a Creative Life? In this episode, we explore what it really means to live the process : to design with intention, to lead with taste, and to build brands and studios that are both joyful and durable. Kritika Trehan opens up about the creative pursuit behind Studio Ping Pong. We cover: 🧒🏽 Origins : Growing up between Kolkata and Bangalore, early sparks of creativity, a...

In a world where culture became a commodity, Varun Patra is working to make it personal again. He’s the co-founder and CMO of Homegrown, one of India’s most influential youth culture platforms. What began as a passion project questioning mainstream narratives has evolved into a multi-dimensional ecosystem—part publication, part creative agency, part community builder—helping shape the voice of Ind...

In this episode of On Second Thought , I speak with Manasi Mehan — co-founder and CEO of Saturday Art Class , an organisation bringing He(art) back into education through visual arts and social-emotional learning (SEL). I’ve spent the early years of Saturday Art Class alongside them — sometimes up close, sometimes from afar — but always as someone who deeply believes in the world they’re building....

We’re all creators now. So what happens when content is infinite, and attention isn’t? For the first episode, I’m speaking with Shephali Bhatt—one of the sharpest cultural reporters I know. She writes long-form stories at the intersection of technology, media, pop culture, and digital subcultures, with a kind of clarity and depth that’s increasingly rare. We explore how the Indian internet is evol...

Join Komal Mirani as she explores the ideas and innovations reshaping our world. On Second Thought is a podcast about what’s emerging at the edges—technologies, movements, and cultural shifts that are quietly (and not so quietly) changing how we live, work, and make sense of the future. Through conversations with the people imagining, building, and questioning what’s next, the show makes the futur...