Zubaani: South-Asian Parenting Tips and Storytelling

Zubaani speaks to award-winning children's writer, Rukhsana Khan about her life as a writer when few desi books were available. Khan shares her personal griefs, journeys, challenges, and why she continues to tell stories. Guest : Rukhsana Khan Co-hosts : Upasna Kakroo & Salma Hussain Produced by : ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Peerbagh⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Supported by : The podcast episode programming is supported in part by a...

Zubaani speaks to doctor and YA writer, Ahmad Saber on the challenges and joys of writing his debut book. Saber talks about literary tools to showcase a whole spectrum of desi experiences, coming out experiences of a South-Asian teen, and the yo-yo effect of progress. Guest : Ahmad Saber Co-hosts : Upasna Kakroo & Salma Hussain Produced by : ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Peerbagh⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Supported by : The podcast epis...

Zubaani speaks to award-winning children's writer, Meera Sriram on her life as an engineer-turned-writer. The episode discusses the challenges, aches, and hopes of immigrant lives and writing. Guest : Meera Sriram Co-hosts : Upasna Kakroo & Salma Hussain Produced by : ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Peerbagh⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Supported by : The podcast episode programming is supported in part by a Elevate Grant of Austin Arts, Cul...

Zubaani speaks to Canadian-Fijian YA writer, Nafiza Azad on building immersive characters and settings, deeply embedded in South Asian ethos and multicultural worlds. The hosts talk about books that speak to the varied castes, classes, within the diaspora and the subcontinent. Guest : Nafiza Azad Co-hosts : Upasna Kakroo & Salma Hussain Produced by : ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Peerbagh⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Supported by : The pod...

Zubaani speaks to actor, professor, and award-winning narrator with 500+ audiobooks, Vikas Adam on life as a professional code-switcher. Adam talks about the role of audio narration in bringing authentic representation to storytelling. Guidance: This episode is not suitable for young kids. It's meant for parents, educators, writers. Guest : Vikas Adam Co-hosts : Upasna Kakroo & Salma Hussain P...

Michigan-raised historian Dr. Shah Mahmoud Hanifi, talks to Peerbagh about his diasporic experiences as a child of immigrants from two cultures. He talks about his approach of writing on Afghanistan's history through motifs like elephants and water. Dr. Hanifi's essay, Water in Afghanistan, was adapted for Bento children's magazine in April 2026. This mid-season drop of Zubaani celebra...

Michigan-based Suja Sukumar, talks to Peerbagh about the journey of her as an immigrant, doctor, and writer. Suja's debut YA book, When Mimi Went Missing was released in 2024. This mid-season drop of Zubaani celebrates the AAPI heritage month (May) as we interview various artists from the South-Asian diaspora. Guest author: Suja Sukumar Host: Upasna Kakroo Produced by: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Peerbagh⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠...

The National Storytelling Network (NSN) celebrates 50 years in 2026. We sat down for a conversation with the board chair, Rishi Nixon about his personal journey of storytelling and the impact of AI on the artform. We also spoke about the role NSN plays in mentorship, craft development, and NSN's upcoming annual storytelling conference in West Texas. This mid-season drop of Zubaani celebrates t...

We are celebrating the International Mother Tongue Day and dropping a few episodes talking to poets and writers of Hindustani (Hindi/Urdu) language. This mid-season drop has episodes recorded bilingually in Hindi/Urdu and English. Guest author: Abhishek Shukla Host: Upasna Kakroo Produced by: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Peerbagh⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Episode cover art: Ira Nagar Books/media in the episode: Harf-e-awara by Abhishek Shu...

We are celebrating the International Mother Tongue Day and dropping a few episodes talking to poets and writers of Hindustani (Hindi/Urdu) language. This mid-season drop has episodes recorded bilingually in Hindi/Urdu and English. Guest author: Aamir Azher Khan Host: Upasna Kakroo Produced by: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Peerbagh⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Episode cover art: Ira Nagar Books/media in the episode: Delhi Ki Aakhri Shamah by Mir...

White authors aren't tasked with writing stories addressing colonialism, inequality, racism, etc. Desi writers have that burden placed upon them (internally & externally: our readership demands it and the publishing industry rewards it). How do we not feed into trauma porn? How do we nurture and grow a readership that connects with and cares about our "joys" as much as our trauma...

South Asia has had a long history of unique reprepresentation of various genders from the Hijra community to Shikhandi in the Mahabharata, but how are we rep-ing today? This episode deals with the representation of different gender and sexual identities in literature and why they're critical for building inclusive and loving cultures. Guest author: Adib Khorram Co-hosts: Upasna Kakroo & Sa...

Our (Asian) culture has a fascination with "good" children. Obedience and co-dependency is baked into our idea of what makes a good and bad life or child. In this episode we talk about these model minority myths and how we can subvert these limiting narratives of what success means. Guest author: Annika Sharma Co-hosts: Upasna Kakroo & Salma Hussain Produced by: ⁠⁠Peerbagh⁠⁠ Episode...

In this episode of Zubaani we talk with full time writer and a full time model, Jyoti Rajan Gopal who dazzles the world with grace and gray hair. And importantly, we discuss, how do we break the European beauty standards and notions of what is pretty in our desi communities? What does it take to reclaim our self-worth and build safe spaces of belonging no matter how we look? Guest author: Jyoti Ra...

In DDLJ, the father says "ja, Simran, ja." Was that not every desi father telling his daughter, 'go follow your heart?' We swoon. We die. We believe Shah Rukh Khan is a global treasure. Almost every South Asian writer is writing about love in one way or another. How does it show up in our homes? How does it work along lines of gender, caste, class, and age? Guest author: Uzma Jal...

Welcome to Season 2 of the Zubaani podcast by nonprofit ⁠⁠⁠⁠Peerbagh⁠⁠⁠⁠ . Season two takes a deep dive into the topic of intergenerational storytelling with writers Salma Hussain and Upasna Kakroo as cohosts. Episode 5, Season 2: Stories of Conflict In this podcast episode, we talk about stories of internalized or external conflict that are often hidden in families. Books we discuss may work as t...

Welcome to Season 2 of the Zubaani podcast by nonprofit ⁠⁠⁠Peerbagh⁠⁠⁠ . Season two takes a deep dive into the topic of intergenerational storytelling with writers Salma Hussain and Upasna Kakroo as cohosts. Episode 4, Season 2: Festivals & Folklore In this podcast episode, we talk about festivals and folklore from South Asia in today's times. Festivals present an easy entry point into sha...

Welcome to Season 2 of the Zubaani podcast by nonprofit ⁠⁠Peerbagh⁠⁠ . Season two takes a deep dive into the topic of intergenerational storytelling with writers Salma Hussain and Upasna Kakroo as cohosts. Episode 3, Season 2: Rewriting Narratives In this podcast episode, we discuss retellings that are being written for South Asian settings. We also talk about what makes these retellings authentic...

Welcome to Season 2 of the Zubaani podcast by nonprofit ⁠Peerbagh⁠ . Season two takes a deep dive into the topic of intergenerational storytelling with writers Salma Hussain and Upasna Kakroo as cohosts. Episode 2, Season 2: Food Memories In this podcast episode, we discuss the role of food in storytelling and building cultural identities. We also feature children's books that bring this aspect of...

Welcome to Season 2 of the Zubaani podcast by nonprofit Peerbagh . "Zubaani" in Hindustani translates to "through the language" or "by means of language". Season two takes a deep dive into the topic of intergenerational storytelling with writers Salma Hussain and Upasna Kakroo as cohosts. Research shows intergenerational storytelling is like a resource (similar to air...

Episode 5: Hindustani In this episode of Zubaani by Peerbagh , we speak to Urdu educator and influencer, Tamania Naqi. The episode is in Hindustani and English. We talked about contextualizing and modernizing language and stories for children in a new generation and those in the diaspora. Naqi talks about raising multilingual children that helps wire their brains to be more creative. She also shar...

Episode 4: Born Confused? In this episode of Zubaani by Peerbagh , we talk about the experiences of families in the diaspora that straddle two worlds between the subcontinent and the immigrant culture they're a part of. Researchers believe that the community-oriented culture of South Asians often clashes with the individualistic experiences in the West with elders and youth having different prefer...

Episode 3: Passing the Torch This episode of Zubaani by Peerbagh talks about the tools and resources parents can use to encourage storytelling and creative imagination in kids. We spoke to educator and children's book author, Natasha Padhiar who shared how children imitate their family members and how family storytelling can develop a love of stories and reading. We also discussed the role of dive...

Episode 2: Roots of Wisdom This episode of Zubaani by Peerbagh delves into intergenerational storytelling and how memory-sharing helps parents or elders pass on wisdom to the next generation. Researchers argue that intergenerational storytelling is a developmental resource and is often inequitably available. This injustice impacts everyone but marginalized communities that need them the most. We s...

The first season of Zubaani is produced by ⁠Peerbagh⁠ with Upasna Kakroo as the host. "Zubaani" in Hindustani translates to "through the language" or "by means of language."  The first season talks about South-Asian parenting tips and storytelling for our future- showcasing folk, personal, and regional stories that build our common myths and community as people. Episode 1: Far from the tree This e...