Indicast - All Podcasts

John Oliver once quipped that cryptocurrency is everything that you do not understand about money combined with everything you do not understand about computers. 70 million Indians do not seem to agree. They have bet on Bitcoins and their modern clones through a variety of exchanges in the country. In this podcast, we talk about the enigmatic new asset class and what do we understand about their, well, cryptic nature. And in other significant news, many congratulations to India for their exploits at the Tokyo Olympics.

Once in four years, athletes from around the world compete for the highest honour. Men and women train in all sorts of conditions in their homeland for a crack at the elusive medal. In this podcast we talk about the young and the old, how India is doing so far, how a Math Phd won a cycling race beating the best, how Simon Biles and Naomi Osaka have put mental health at front and center offering inspiration to all. We pay tribute to Mirabai Chanu who won Silver in weightlifting and root for Lovlina Borgohain who is going for gold in boxing.

It is raining Unicorns in India. In just this week, Zomato went public, Paytm sought a nod from its shareholders to list on the stock exchange and MobiKwik, yet another fintech startup, filed for an IPO. While talking about how such companies do things differently, we segued into how some of us handle stress at the workplace and how some professions are incomparable in that regard. Take Danish Siddiqui, a young photojournalist who worked for Reuters. He was killed in an ambush while covering a clash between Afghan forces and the Taliban. In this episode, we attempt to pay a small tribute to folks who work in such occupations.

In this episode we pay tribute to Doordarshan while talking about the incomparable Dilip Kumar, cabinet reshuffle by Narendra Modi in wake of rising criticism for his handling of the pandemic, the craze surrounding Euro 2020, the soon to be hosted spectatorless Olympics in Japan, the race for the 20th Grand Slam title for Djokovic at Wimbledon and the England cricket team fielding a B team after many players from the main squad were diagnosed with the virus.

Kannada went viral a few days ago when Google thought it to be the ugliest language in India. We saw this as an excuse to talk about quirky languages, including one in Kongthong, near Shillong, where villagers communicate by whistling. In other news, Twitter is under fire for not complying with the new IT laws. In sports, the legendary Mikkha Singh passed away. We also have a little question for you in this episode. Listen to know more.

In which we talk about the second wave of covid-19 in India, heroes who saved lives, Lagaan's 20th anniversary, Kerela's one bottle one person alcohol rule, the new world Test championship in cricket and education in India.

Few countries can match India on scale and complexity of a nationwide rollout of any item under the sun. Be it the general elections or the covid-19 inoculation plan of over 300m citizens by the end of the summer. India faces a daunting task but appears to be up for it. Covaxin, the home-grown vaccine has kicked up some controversy.

A depleted Indian team beat a full-strength Australian line up in what will rank as among the best Test Series of all time. For those who grew up in the 1990s watching India struggle against the Aussies, this was a moment to cherish. A second-rung team of folks as old as 21 years old put their hand up and performed. This podcast is a tribute to those the young lads with humble backgrounds, making it big on the biggest stage there is.

Burger King's stock climbed by over 265 per cent soon after its IPO. Breakdance will feature as a sport at the Olympics in Paris 2024. Gitanjali Rao won the first Time Kid of the Year. And finally, do you dare to eat Fugu?

The Pfizer BioNtech vaccine was authorised in the UK and the US. The worlds most exceptional teacher was awarded to Ranjitsinh Disale, a 32 year old teacher from Solapur. Dharampal Gulati, owner of the iconic MDH masala died this month. Bob Dylan sold his catalogue of nearly 600 songs to Universal Music. A firm in Japan now sells bullying insurance to cover legal and medical costs.

Indicast #221: RIP Diego Maradona

Indicast #220: Get married. Get paid

Indicast #219: Whose Basmati is it anyway?

Indicast #218: A Tribute to SP Balasubramaniam

Indicast #217: Salute, Shinzo Abe and RIP Pranab Mukherjee