Chai Across Generations

John Schuster calls it "agefulness," staying vital, adaptable, and open to growth at any stage of life instead of accepting decline as the default. John is a coach, teacher, and author, and at one point in the conversation, he poses a question worth sitting with: how many good vibrations have you put out into the world over your life? We talk about how the scorecard for success shifts as...

We chat with Mahesh Panchagnula, a professor at IIT Madras and host of the Professor Mahesh Podcast. Mahesh and Shankar first met in academia, and their friendship has grown into something much more. When Shankar wrote "The Seven Steps to Bliss," he invited Mahesh to be an early reader. We talk about the aspects of the book that resonated most with Mahesh, like the name Jiva for the book...

Music is universal, but in South Asian culture, it's tied to something specific: the movies. That link means songs carry entire stories with them, and they become a soundtrack to our own memories and moments too. We share our experience at the Ilaiyaraja 50 concert, celebrating fifty years of work from one of Tamil music's most legendary composers, caught one night apart in Seattle and L...

Have we really gotten better at talking about mental health in the South Asian community, or just better at using the language? Abhijith Ravinutala joins us again to pick up where we left off in Episode 35, when he first shared his journey with mental health and the loss that led him to create MannMukti. We get honest about what doesn't help, like being told "have you tried this?" o...

We welcome Ravi Ram and Sujit Nair, two friends who joined Nikil for a weekly book club over four weeks to read through Shankar's book, "The Seven Steps to Bliss: A Modern Upanishad." Shankar joined partway through our book club meetings to hear our reactions and answer our questions himself, a rare chance to talk directly with an author about his own book. When we ask Ravi and Suji...

We welcome Tim Bruster, a retired United Methodist pastor, who met Shankar by chance after a delayed flight turned into friendly conversation and, eventually, a real friendship. Tim read Shankar's book, "The Seven Steps to Bliss: A Modern Upanishad," and we wanted to hear what he took from it. Tim shares how the book gave him a deeper understanding of Hinduism, and the three of us d...

We talk about the five great elements: earth, water, fire, air, and space, and how Nikil has come to see them not just as forces in nature, but as elements that live within all of us, forming an Elemental Leadership Framework for understanding our own mindsets and behavior. Nikil shares how he started noticing these patterns in himself, especially in high pressure and high leverage moments. We dig...

We return to the world of Avatar: The Last Airbender to explore one of the most beloved dynamics in all of animated storytelling: the relationship between Prince Zuko and his Uncle Iroh. We trace Zuko's arc from a prince desperately seeking his father's approval to a young man who learns to define honor on his own terms. And we follow Iroh's quieter transformation: from celebrated F...

We talk about one of our favorite TV shows of all time, Avatar: The Last Airbender. A Nickelodeon series from almost 20 years ago, Avatar has captivated and inspired both of us with its brilliant world-building, structural plot, and deep character arcs. In this episode, we dive into the show's incredible cultural depth and explore the fascinating, unique dynamic of seeing your own culture bea...

Join us as we celebrate the official release of Shankar's new book, "The Seven Steps To Bliss: A Modern Upanishad!" We delve into Shankar's experience of getting this book out into the world and how this book can help readers in seven different ways. You can buy a copy of the book here:  https://drshankarauthor.com/ .

We explore the essence of excellence and how to unlock it in our lives, guided by Shankar's transformative course, "Unlocking Excellence." We delve into the unexpected but pivotal role of levity and how it enhances personal growth. Nikil shares his insights and takeaways from the course, highlighting what he plans to carry forward in his journey. We also discuss the profound impact...

We delve into the world of work, focusing on South Asian and minority professionals. We explore the often misleading corporate messaging of being a family and how it reinforces deference rather than decisiveness, mirroring cultural or familial scripts. The contrast between Gemeinschaft and Gesellschaft highlights different perspectives on work and our relationship to it. We also discuss how to tra...

Join us as we dive into Shankar's new book, "The Seven Steps to Bliss: A Modern Upanishad," ( https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/252311323-the-seven-steps-to-bliss ) now available for advance review. Explore the inspiration behind the book, its unique blend of spirituality and practicality, and why it deeply resonated with Nikil. Don't miss your chance to get a free advance...

We are back after having been away from the podcast for more than two years! This episode marks the start of a new generation of conversations, building on the first. Find out why we're back, what has changed since the last episode, and how we'll explore more topics on culture and generations in this new phase of the podcast. Discover how art inspires life and fuels transformation! Plus,...

In honor of MLK Day, we chat about our personal experiences of the holiday and discuss similarities and differences between the histories of African-Americans and South Asians in the US. We also talk about discrimination - especially in the form of colorism - and how it’s important to learn about the histories of other communities. 🍿 WHERE TO WATCH THIS EPISODE: https://youtu.be/GGzSRrTxNiY 🔗 HE...

Happy New Year! We chat about our personal impressions of New Year, how we think about New Year’s Resolutions and goal-setting, and questions to ask other generations to better understand their hopes and goals for the year. 🍿 WHERE TO WATCH THIS EPISODE: https://youtu.be/LKAphYpu3X4 🔗 HELPFUL RESOURCES 🎥 How To Make 2024 The Best Year Of Your Life by Ali Abdaal - https://youtu.be/c_DOG_mXz5w?si...

We recap our funniest moments from the first 39 episodes in this year-end special! From Shankar sharing hilarious stories with his daughter to Nikil playing a South Asian-inspired version of "Would You Rather?" with Mukhunth, this year had several moments that made us laugh. Thank you all for watching or listening to our show in 2023!  If you want to see more, check out the full episodes...

We recap the four biggest lessons we learned in 2023 from our conversations on the podcast. From mental health to communicating with other generations and raising multicultural kids, this year has taught us a lot that continues to be relevant in our lives. Thank you all for watching or listening to our show in 2023!  🍿 WHERE TO WATCH THIS EPISODE: https://youtu.be/MFl4NKnmCyE 🍿 LINKS TO EPISODES...

We’re back! We share some life updates that have kept us from the podcast in recent weeks. With the holidays right around the corner, we also talk about the top 3 things we love and hate about the holidays including music, expectations, and the act of giving.   🍿 WHERE TO WATCH THIS EPISODE: https://youtu.be/evQ5XnrpI10 🔗 NONPROFITS MENTIONED BY PREVIOUS GUESTS 👩🏽‍💻 MannMukti - https://www.ma...

Raising kids in a foreign land can be challenging, especially around times of celebration back home. On today's episode, we talk to Ajanta Chakraborty and Vivek Kumar about tips for raising multicultural children, the power of stories, and the upcoming festival of Diwali. Ajanta and Vivek are a married couple and co-authors of Maya & Neel's India Adventure Series, a series of 15 chil...

Many young South Asians leave their home countries to pursue their dreams in other countries like America. As they build their lives, they face an interesting question about whether to stay or to return to their home countries to be closer to family. We chat with Mukhunth Raghavan, a PhD student at the University of South Florida, about his journey as a young professional working abroad. We also p...

We all have things that affects our mental health, and it can feel very vulnerable to share them with others. In this episode, Abhjith Ravinutala joins the show for an inspiring, vulnerable, and courageous conversation about mental health. He shares his personal experiences with mental health, how the loss of a loved one led him to create MannMukti, and how the perception of mental health has chan...

Healing from grief after losing a loved one can be incredibly challenging. How do we move forward, and how do we make peace with their absence? How do we heal when our communities aren't as supportive or understanding about grief as we would like them to be? We explore these questions and much more in this heartfelt episode during Pitru Paksha, a time of reflection in the Hindu calendar to ho...

The ICC 2023 Cricket World Cup starts later this week, the biggest event in the cricketing calendar. India is hosting the tournament and hopes to win its third World Cup title. We bring on special guest Balaji Narasimhan to chat about the history and memorable moments of Indian cricket, what it means to be an Indian cricket fan, and preview the upcoming World Cup. We also share an overview of the...

If you've ever been to a South Asian dinner party, you've probably gotten these questions from all of the aunties and uncles: "What are you studying? What are you doing?" Education and and career are highly valued in the South Asian community. On this episode, we explore a range of topics including our own educational journeys and how our community can alleviate the high academ...