Swishing Mindsets with Anuradha Varma

In this episode, Jason Lange — a US-based men's embodiment coach, group facilitator, and evolutionary guide — talks about why so many men live "from the neck up," disconnected from their bodies and emotions. Sharing his own breakthrough moment in a men's group that changed the course of his life and work, Jason unpacks the cultural conditioning behind the "man box" that teaches young boys that vul...

In this episode, Upasana Sarraju, author of The Ig Nobel Prizes and The Science That Refuses to Behave (Penguin Random House India) talks about research that "makes you laugh, then makes you think". From zebra-striped cows (which reduced insect bites) to the science of crumpled bedsheets, a galloping horse encoded into bacterial DNA, Upasana takes us through the strangest, funniest, and most unexp...

“Where does my reflection go when I walk away from the mirror?” This question from her toddler put Regina Linke, a Taiwanese American author and illustrator, on the journey of creating her children’s book The Oxherd Boy which started as a webcomic on Instagram. It was followed up by Big Enough and now Little Helper, which combine the East Asian philosophy of Taoism, Buddhism, and Confucianism with...

“Are all beautiful people happy? Are all happy people beautiful?” is something that Guruprasad Kaginele addresses in his book Kaaya , a satirical comment on beauty and identity through the story of a US plastic surgeon caught in the Me Too movement, inspired by a real life incident. It has been translated from Kannada to English by Narayan Shankaran.  Here, they both discuss getting the cultural b...

Namratha Stanley, the debut author of Vineyard Melody, moved to France in 2017 after an abusive marriage in India, to pursue a Wine MBA in Bordeaux. She now runs her wine brand Solicantus—sold in five countries, including India.  A single mom, she talks about the struggle to escape her abusive marriage as “being stuck in a web”, regaining confidence, taking things one step at a time to finally set...

“It’s the child who gives birth to the parent,” says Aditya Tiwari, who adopted his son Avnish, now almost 11, as a single father at the age of 28 in 2016, after a long legal battle. Today, Avnish, who was born with a hole in his heart and has Down Syndrome, has trekked to the Everest Base Camp at the age of seven, and is the youngest National awardee.  Here, while Aditya talks about the practical...

Rukmini Aunty and the R.K. Narayan Fan Club started as a writing experiment, but soon took on a life of its own, with a cast of delightful characters, some of them inspired by the legendary author’s own works. Sita Bhaskar, who divides her time between Madison, US and Mysore, India, where the novel is set, creates an accidental crusader as her fictional protagonist Rukmini Aunty sets out to save t...

There are no external fixes, says Gayathri Narayanan , who is a firm believer in doing the tough inner work. The founder of Myndtree, who stepped away from a career in tech, talks about developing the compassion muscle through mindfulness, and non-violent parenting (42:42), which is all about using conflict as an opportunity to deepen connection.  A Certified Mindfulness Meditation Teacher, Gayath...

“Keenagers” or senior teenagers in their second innings are falling into adventures and passions they may have left behind as they pursued careers, says Dr Corinne Auman, an American gerontologist and care manager who is on a mission to change the conversation around ageing. Her book " Keenagers: Telling a New Story about Aging " emphasises that the years between 55 and 80 are an extended middle a...

“When a family member goes missing, you can’t just go on,” remarks Arun Dohle , who met his birth mother after a search of 17 years, when asked about the urge to look for his biological roots.    Despite a reunion, it remains a tragic story at heart, says Dohle, who is the Founder-Director of Against Child Trafficking (ACT) , a globally recognised non profit that works to prevent child trafficking...

Aa, ja, alength, viewy…these are all valid Scrabble words, says Rajiv Antao, Executive Member, Scrabble Association of India and consistently among the top 100 players in India. He talks about his vision to push the game as a professional sport, while increasing memberships across the country through clubs and tournaments.  Scrabble, he believes, scores over chess as it’s a game of not just logic...

Just like wine and whisky, aged tea is a concept that has been around for years, especially in China, known as “pu-erh” teas that can be over a hundred-years-old. In India, Susmit Pratik, founder of Ketlee , decided to experiment with the variety through tea-growers in Manipur in 2018.  As tea ages, the Ranchi-based entrepreneur tells us, it loses its astringency and bitterness as sweeter, more fr...

A psychic medium is like a radio between this world and the next, explains  June Edward , an American medium and relationship expert. She talks about a friendly woman (a spirit) keeping her company as she did the dishes as a child, having bread thrown at her by a ghost because she wouldn’t entertain him during “non-working hours”, solving missing persons cases, and the hierarchy of the spirit worl...

Indian-origin, US-based  Anil Gupta , internationally known as The Love Doctor, shares his Happiness Formula to take relationships to the next level and increase one’s vibrational energy.  The author of  Immediate Happiness talks about hitting rock bottom, being plagued with suicidal thoughts, and finding inspiration once again to continue to help others be the best version of themselves. He also...

A major contemporary Asian playwright, Stan Lai has over 40 plays to his credit, including the eight hour-long A Dream Like a Dream, for which the plot came to him in a flash at Bodh Gaya. His book  Creativitry , on teaching creativity, has sold one million copies in the Chinese language, and has now been published in English. Born in the US and raised in Taiwan, with a career spanning the Chinese...

At 21, Russell Van Brocklen struggled with learning, at a reading ability of a six-year-old. However, an epiphany during a college class helped him work through his challenges and develop a system that has helped several others. The American believes that dyslexia is not a reading problem, but merely a symptom. A dyslexia researcher, whose initial project was New York State Senate‑funded, he belie...

Happiness is a consequence of doing the right thing, says Robin Singh , author of Happiness Happens: Happiness for Those Who Have Everything Else . He returned from a successful tech career in the US with a mission to not have a job dictate his hours and found purpose after a chance encounter at Auroville. This led him to set up Peepal Farm , an animal rescue centre at Dhanotu village, near Dharam...

The longevity strategy is the growth strategy for companies, believes Mehbs Remtulla , the Founder & CEO of What's neXT 50 , which is on a mission to empower "builders" or mid-late career individuals and self-described retirees to lead an engaged life full of vigour, intent and purpose. Based in Canada, he talks about finding purpose as a “transitioner”, rather than a retiree, finding somethin...

Life outside the kotha is really quite drab, remarks Manish Gaekwad , son of Rekha bai , the subject of his book “ The Last Courtesan: Writing My Mother's Memoir ”. Here, he chats about its sequel “ Nautch Boy: A Memoir of My Life in the Kothas ”, giving flashes of a life that sounds straight out of a Bollywood potboiler.  The radio, according to the journalist-author-scriptwriter, never stopped p...

Queer, trans or gender fabulous, there should be a safe space for everyone at the workplace, says Canadian  Michael Bach , an internationally recognised thought leader in diversity, inclusion, equity, and accessibility.  Here, he talks about his own journey of coming out as queer, and decodes the ever expanding “alphabet soup” of gender and orientation — “LGBTIQCAPGNGFNBA”, while advocating for us...

One can find their partner in six months if they’re doing it right, assures Shalini Singh , founder of andwemet , building a community for Indian singles over 28 to find serious relationships. First, however, Indians must learn how to date and not look for that elusive instant connection or finding that “perfect” partner. Instead, look for shared goals and compatibility, she says. And while marria...

Maxwell Ivey, better known as The Blind Blogger, grew up in a large extended family, which managed carnival rides. Now a serial online entrepreneur, he is an American accessibility expert advocating for more inclusion of people with disabilities. Here, the 59-year-old talks about how a small button being relocated on a screen can throw off his screen-reader and send his day into chaos, the importa...

At 27, Maya Raichoora is one of UK’s top mental fitness and visualisation experts and the author of VISUALISE: Think, Feel, Perform Like the Top 1% . When she was younger, a debilitating encounter with ulcerative colitis left her bed-ridden and with zero confidence. The turning point came when a nurse asked her what she would rather do if she wasn’t confined to a hospital bed. Despite finding the...

“I’m on a mission to put pressure on companies to be better places to work,” says Leigh Branham , international bestselling author of four books including The 7 Hidden Reasons Employees Leave: How to Recognize the Subtle Signs and Act Before It’s Too Late and Re-Engage: How America’s Best Places to Work Inspire Extra Effort in Extraordinary Times . Here, he talks about how the “burn and churn” phi...

We’re all living longer, but how do we constructively utilise these extra years? Neeraj Saga r, Founder & CEO of WisdomCircle , which is building a post-retirement work marketplace, talks about creating space for retirees in corporate systems, the value of intergenerational teams, and the “price per unit of wisdom”. Currently at over 100,000 registrations, with 2,500 white-collar jobs from nea...