The Dusty Mic Chronicles

This episode, hopefully, is a more cheerful and optimistic view of what needs to be done - by me -in 2026. We can hold on to hope, even if the situation seems grim. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.rajivchopra.in/subscribe

Even though politicians are scum, we can learn from them. Politicians are scum, and there is almost nothing anyone can do or say to change my mind. Yet, even if we detest their morals, we must admire their administrative and other related skills. I used politicians’ techniques to promote our business. Years back, when I was a young Area Sales Manager, selling our products in Uttar Pradesh (a crazy...

In this year-beginning message, I was to deliver an uplifting message, and I failed! So I will deliver Part Two next week, but in this podcast, I urge all of you to keep your courage and keep striving to make the world a better place, even though everything seems to go mad. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.raj...

One memorable journey. Four posts. I had planned to write a blog post about my memories of several journeys or incidents that are now just amusing recollections. Still, the sudden memory of a long-dead t awaif jerked me away from that direction, and put me on the path to writing a four-part essay about a young, insignificant – and dusty – town called Azamgarh in the eastern part of Uttar Pradesh i...

I have taken the time to reflect, just a tiny amount, on 2025, the year that is about to die on us. While I am satisfied with what I have done, I realize there is much to do. We can, as individuals and creators, choose to make the world a better place, each in our own way. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.raji...

My last boss was an ass. The founding and brief history of Jaunpur. “Firoz Shah devoted himself to the founding of cities, forts, mosques, colleges and gardens… He restored prosperity to regions that had fallen into ruins.” Barani, Tarikh-i-Firoz Shahi, mid 14th century. Almost no one knows of the Delhi Sultanate. The Delhi Sultanate consisted of five dynasties that ruled Delhi and parts of North...

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.rajivchopra.in/subscribe

I have based this week's episode on an idea I got from a book called "Basti & Durbar." In her stories of Delhi, she describes Delhi as a city of stories. But all towns have stories, and while I briefly tell the story of Delhi, I ask you: what stories do you know of your city? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.r...

This will be my final post about Allahabad. I ramble. With this post, I will conclude the series of articles/essays/posts about Allahabad. I’ve been reading articles on JSTOR, and it transpires that my earlier research was correct. Even though the Chinese pilgrim Xuanzang visited the area in the seventh century, the city did not enter the historical record until Akbar built his fort on the banks o...

I made this recording into my phone while at Chandni Chowk, and was talking about some of the action on the street, and how people have become very suspicious. I don't blame them but, it makes life difficult as a photographer! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.rajivchopra.in/subscribe

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.rajivchopra.in/subscribe

I continue to be an oblivious fool, like many around me. I will continue confessing my obliviousness to everything but the work at hand. I have mentioned that I had been to Allahabad several times, yet I never once stopped to research the city’s history. My continued failure always prevents me from pointing the gun at people, yelling, “Ignorant fool!! You should be ashamed of not studying your cou...

Tramping in India is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. I shot the above photo at Janpath, New Delhi, but I recorded the audio in a parking lot in Gurgaon. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.rajivchopra.in/subscribe

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.rajivchopra.in/subscribe

Blind as a Bat. With due apologies to Meat Loaf Scientists say that bats are blind. Scientists also state that bats have excellent navigational skills because of their sonar capabilities. The same men and women also inform us that bats have robust immune systems. I am inferior to a bat in many ways, and it pains me to make this confession. We humans implicitly claim to be gods and to rule the plan...

In this episode, which I hope, gives some food for thought, I talk about classification, and why people love to classify everything and put them in boxes. But life is fluid and sometimes it is impossible to place people and things into rigid boxes. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.rajivchopra.in/subscribe

Adolescent memories of Allahabad and the discussions we had. Humans are strange. I consider myself stranger than most people. You may have the impression that I intend to launch into a dissertation on why people are strange and why I am crazy, but I won’t. When I was twelve, the Army transferred my father to a small village called Chheoki. He was in charge of the Ordnance Depot and Factory and was...

In this episode, I start by introducing a Dutch word I discovered a few months back - Niksen. It means, doing nothing. We have become so overwhelmed by busyness, we forget to switch off and do nothing. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.rajivchopra.in/subscribe

Albert Camus, Seriousness & Fun Unleash Your Creativity: Break Free from Photography Norms! I have been discussing Albert Camus and his speech, ‘Create Dangerously.’ The speech is serious and can create the impression that the artists must send a profound message into the universe for us to consider them authentic and worthy of being presented to the public. This injunction can weigh on an artist’...

In this latest episode of 'The Dusty Mic Chronicles' I continue discussing the 'Create Dangerously' speech of Albert Camus and here, I state that you, the artist, must stand for something. Or, you can choose to stand for nothing but easy fame and proximity to power. The choice is yours, and yours alone. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to...

Every old town in India is ancient Every city, town, village, or place in India with some mythological or religious significance is considered ancient. It does not matter if you can establish a historical connection or not: we will ascribe divine connections to the place if we deem fit. Our ancestors roamed the Earth for a few million years, and many places on Earth are considered ‘ancient’, but w...

In this episode, I dive - superficially - into Albert Camus's speech called 'Create Dangerously.' While the obvious dangers are authoritarian voices, society, and social media apply subtle pressure also. Can you break the mould and find yourself as an artist? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.rajivchopra.in/sub...

We visited Hong Village in Ziro. One of the ways we spent our time in Ziro was visiting the Hong Village, accompanied by a very uninterested guide. Our travel operator had enlisted her services, and I do not believe she had any interest in being our tour guide, probably because we were not going shopping and there was no way she could earn any money from us. Tribes and languages in Arunachal Prade...

I seem to have lost the part where I was to upload the transcript! This episode has a few editing flaws. But, it is a two part episode where I discuss a photo walk at the Qutb Minar. Many people believe that the Mughals built the Qutb Minar but, the Qutb predates the Mughals by over 300 years! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus epi...

We must slow down, breathe, look around, and lower our blood pressure. Think! We allow busyness to overtake our lives, forgetting to relax! Berathe. In this episode I talk about time, and the importance of slowing down, letting go of busyness and your phone if you want to get things done properly. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus...