Respectfully Disagree

In this week’s episode, the team discusses what Indian TV shows taught us about ideal ‘bahus,’ why young people can’t talk back to uncles and aunties, and how women end up bearing the burden of devotion to elders in families. Credits: Co-Producers: Shrishti Malhotra, Rajvi Desai Cover Art: Anjalee Menon, Hitesh Sonar Executive Producer: Karla Bookman Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See h...

In this week's episode, the team breaks down thirst comments, where to draw the line between objectification and compliments, and whether there can be such a thing as ethical flirting. Spoiler alert: We don't reach a consensus. At all. Credits: Co-Producers: Shrishti Malhotra, Rajvi Desai Cover Art: Anjalee Menon, Hitesh Sonar Executive Producer: Karla Bookman Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz comp...

In this week’s episode, the team breaks down how social media has changed public debate, whether our tone in calling people out matters, and if dunking on problematic people online brings down the level of discourse. Credits: Co-Producers: Shrishti Malhotra, Rajvi Desai Cover Art: Anjalee Menon, Hitesh Sonar Executive Producer: Karla Bookman Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pc...

In this week’s episode, two founding members of Kinky Collective talk to us about misconceptions around kink and what kink communities can teach us about consent. Credits: Co-Producers: Shrishti Malhotra, Rajvi Desai Cover Art: Anjalee Menon, Hitesh Sonar Executive Producer: Karla Bookman Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and...

In this week's episode, the team breaks down our perceptions of infidelity, the gendered pop culture 'cheating' tropes, and why it's time to reframe the narrative around adultery.  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In this week's episode, the team dissects notions of romance in pop culture, the pros and cons of a long-term romantic partnership, and how we can normalise alternatives.  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In this week's episode, pioneering trans rights activist Grace Banu and the director of Mariwala Health Initiative, Raj Mariwala join us to discuss who bears the responsibility for education about social justice, hierarchies within activist movements, and what reckoning with privilege and solidarity in these times actually entails. Credits: Co-Producers: Shrishti Malhotra, Rajvi Desai Cover Art: A...

As protests in support of Black Lives Matter gained strength this week, some parts of the U.S. experienced looting and destruction. This raised questions about whether violence has a place in protest as a valid means of resistance for the marginalised. In this week's episode, we discuss the discourse around violent resistance we've heard in India, and how we might begin to reframe those narratives...

Respectfully Disagree Freaky Friday is our all new RD format, where The Swaddle team members switch sides to argue against their own opinions. First up: capitalism. The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted social inequality, which has exacerbated critiques of capitalism. The Swaddle team dissects if capitalism is to blame, or if we're glossing over deeper issues in pinning our despair on a scapegoat....

Rangita Nandy, Devika Bhagat and Nupur Asthana - the creator-producer, writer and director (Season 2) behind Amazon's web series 'Four More Shots Please' discuss their creative process, how they engage with criticism, and why they wanted to tell a story of women that brings joy. Credits: Co-Producers: Shrishti Malhotra, Rajvi Desai Cover Art: Anjalee Menon, Hitesh Sonar Executive Producer: Karla B...

In this week’s episode, some special guests join us from Pakistan to dissect desi culture, the politics of ‘besharami’, and feminist activism in the midst of a pandemic. Credits: Co-Producers: Shrishti Malhotra, Rajvi Desai Cover Art: Anjalee Menon, Hitesh Sonar Executive Producer: Karla Bookman Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collect...

With the Boys Locker Room incident, the discussion has been about raising boys right, to be ‘good’ men. But how does society define a ‘good’ man who has committed bad acts? The team discusses, on this week’s #RespectfullyDisagree. Credits: Co-Producers: Shrishti Malhotra, Rajvi Desai Cover Art: Anjalee Menon, Hitesh Sonar Executive Producer: Karla Bookman Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company....

Is the lockdown really going to change beauty norms forever, or is this just a temporary vacation? In this week’s episode, the team discusses celeb beauty routines, influencer culture, how the lockdown has changed their own relationships with beauty, and whether it will make the idea of beauty as choice more real. Credits: Co-Producers: Shrishti Malhotra, Rajvi Desai Cover Art: Anjalee Menon, Hite...

In this week’s episode the team takes a detour from disagreeing, and respectfully comes together to discuss some of the biggest conspiracy theories about the origins of Covid19. Credits: Co-Producers: Shrishti Malhotra, Rajvi Desai Cover Art: Anjalee Menon, Hitesh Sonar Executive Producer: Karla Bookman Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our...

In this edition of Remote Respectfully Disagree, the team talks about the national work from home experiment during lockdown, and whether it will impact our work culture long-term. Credits: Co-Producers: Shrishti Malhotra, Rajvi Desai Cover Art: Anjalee Menon, Hitesh Sonar Executive Producer: Karla Bookman Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about...

From Katrina Kaif doing jhaadu and bartan to Gal Gadot posting an embarrassing “Imagine” celebrity montage, has the coronavirus pandemic and the national lockdowns that have followed in its wake made celebrities more relatable, or has it laid bare their privilege? Tune in to this week’s episode to listen to The Swaddle team break down our celebrity crisis. Credits: Co-Producers: Shrishti Malhotra,...

From panic stockpiling, to quarantining, to communicating information, in this week’s episode, the team thinks through the pandemic and the role of the individual vs. the state. Credits: Co-Producers: Shrishti Malhotra, Rajvi Desai Cover Art: Anjalee Menon, Hitesh Sonar Executive Producer: Karla Bookman Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our...

Ever since the internet took over our lives, catfishing has been an integral part of online interactions. But is it okay to fake your virtual identity to forge a relationship with another person? The Swaddle team weighs in on this week’s episode, where we also reach an important realization about catfishing in Bollywood, and a team member reveals herself to be a catfish (kind of). Credits: Co-Prod...

After the anti-Muslim riots in Delhi, social media was awash with images and videos of gruesome violence that have played an important role in documenting poof, especially of state and police brutality. On the other hand, their circulation unleashes concerns about the privacy and dignity of those depicted. In this week’s episode, The Swaddle team discusses the ethics of taking and circulating thes...

From whether the moon landing was a hoax, to if Subhas Chandra Bose is still alive, who doesn’t like a good conspiracy theory? In this week’s episode, the team respectfully conspires about some of our favorite conspiracies, why we believe, and what these stand for in an era of fake news. Credits: Co-Producers: Shrishti Malhotra, Rajvi Desai Cover Art: Anjalee Menon, Hitesh Sonar Executive Producer...

When the Aam Aadmi Party swept the Delhi elections last week, an unexpected talking point was the way Arvind Kejriwal celebrated the victory with his wife. This got us thinking about how Indian politicians rarely display their personal, romantic sides and why. Tune in to this week’s episode to listen to us pick apart Indian politicians’ love and sex lives, and whether we should care. Credits: Co-P...

Extremist groups are attacking Valentine’s Day again. This year, the Bajrang Dal in Hyderabad have threatened to disrupt celebrations, asking the youth to commemorate the killing of soldiers in the 2019 Pulwama attack instead. In a country where premarital sex is still taboo, and extremist groups threaten and attack couples enjoying the holiday, is celebrating Valentine’s Day a revolutionary asser...

Last week, comedian Kunal Kamra heckled conservative Republic TV news host Arnab Goswami on a flight, and it became national news. While the reaction by private airlines and the Indian government was criticized by national and international media, many people seemed to be divided on heckling as a means of protest. In this week’s episode, we discuss the method and its effects and implications. Cred...

The way early 2020 is shaping up, cancel culture is going to continue to play a part on our social discourse. In this week’s episode of #RespectfullyDisagree, we ask: Is cancel culture a harmful result of social media mob mentality, or is it one of the few ways for the marginalized to express rage online, and hold public figures accountable? Credits: Co-Producers: Shrishti Malhotra, Rajvi Desai Co...

Everyone seems to get drawn in by celebrity gossip today. But does it have any cultural impact? And what does the way we gossip tell us about where we are as a society? The team weighs in on this week’s episode of Respectfully Disagree.⁠ Credits: Co-Producers: Shrishti Malhotra, Rajvi Desai Cover Art: Anjalee Menon, Hitesh Sonar Executive Producer: Karla Bookman Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz co...