BIC TALKS

Author & Founder of Ahimsa Conversations Rajni Bakshi engages Author, Poet & Entrepreneur Jaithirth Rao in a conversation based on his book Economist Gandhi – the first book on Gandhi to claim that he was not against business and capitalists; providing insights into a hidden facet of Gandhi's personality—his thoughts on economics and capitalism while throwing light on some of Gandhi's views on religion, ethics, human nature, education and society, unveiling a Gandhi distinctive from all our previous readings of him.

This episode is adapted from a BIC Streams session from 15 October 2021.

What is data? And why is it important that citizen have a right to privacy over their data?

As it turns out, We are data.

Digital rights activist, journalist and founder of Medianama, Nikhil Pahwa in this conversation with financial journalist Mitali Mukherjee gives us a 101 on the concept of Data Privacy. Can one look at data from the perspective of it being a right and how is it connected to the freedom of expression.

While understanding how and how much data can possibly be collected about one person is in itself mind boggling, this episode gives us an insight into the three important aspects of data within the indian context - Privacy, Security and Governance.

With economic growth taking a central role and data being compared to oil as a national asset, Data protection rights and privacy is seen as an obstruction - therefore leaving us with the question - is privacy a fundamental right?

South Africa has imposed transformation targets (quotas) in sports for over a decade. These aim to correct the under-representation of people of colour due to historical discriminatory segregation during the apartheid era.

In light of the Black Lives Matter movemnet, several South African cricketers came forward with their stories of having suffered due to the institutionally racist nature of the game in South Africa. In July 2021, Cricket South Africa (CSA) appointed the Social Justice and Nation Building (SJN) Ombudsman to contribute to truth, healing, and reconciliation in the game of cricket.

The Ombudsman heard the affected cricketers and officials. It presented its Report in December 2021, concluding that CSA unfairly discriminated against players on the basis of race and recommended that a permanent ombudsman be appointed and funded to consider race and gender-based complaints and the question of reparations.

This discussion with cricket writer Firdose Moonda and Professor of Sociology, University of Johannesburg, Prof. Ashwin Desai, moderated by Chandan Gowda will throw light on the findings in the Report, the issues emerging from it, and the lessons for the cricketing world, the global sports community, and society at large.

This episode is an extract from a virtual BIC Streams session that took place on the 18th of February, 2022 in collaboration with the Sports Law & Policy Centre.

At Tokyo 2020, the Indian women's hockey team made history by reaching their maiden Olympic semifinals. There was heart break in the semi finals. However, irrespective of the result, these players had won the hearts of millions of followers in the country. The back stories of these gritty women make for compelling theatre – who they are, where they come from, how hockey has changed them – and, perhaps more importantly, how their success has changed the lives and the mindset of others back home. An expert panel of sports writers - Sharda Ugra, Manuja Veerappa and Nandini Kumar give us a peek into the journeys of the women who make up the Indian Hockey team.

This episode is an extract from a virtual panel discussion which took place on January 30, 2022.

Examining the challenges posed by the present-day global order—-including political instability, the rise of authoritarianism, the epidemic of fake news and subversion of democracy through the weaponization of social media, the backlash against the rights of caste, ethnic, or racial minorities, and climate change—the dialogue in this episode between Author & Associate Professor of Communication, Santa Clara University Rohit Chopra and Writer & Journalist Salil Tripathi will address what the Gita may offer in helping us respond to such demands and where it may fall silent. How, for instance, might we reconcile the endorsement of patriarchy and a hierarchical caste order in the Gita with modern day notions of rights, justice, and dignity? The discussion also speaks to the urgent need for evaluating the Gita on the basis of a framework of public reason rather than of religious authority.

This episode is adapted from a BIC Streams session originally broadcast on 1st October, 2021

How do you see India?

Fuelled by a surge of migration to cities, the country's growth appears to be defined by urbanisation and by its growing, prosperous middle class. It is also defined by progressive and liberal young Indians, who vote beyond the constraints of identity, and paradoxically, by an unchecked population explosion and rising crimes against women. Is it, though?

In this conversation with Journalists Samar Halarnkar and Sudipto Mondal, about her book, Whole Numbers and Half Truths, data-journalism pioneer Rukmini S. draws on nearly two decades of on-ground reporting experience to piece together a picture that looks nothing like the one you might expect. As she interrogates how data works, and how the push and pull of social and political forces affect it, Rukmini creates a blueprint to understand the changes of the last few years and the ones to come—a toolkit for India.

This is a timely and wholly original intervention in the conversation on data, and with it, India. This conversation was part of the Bangalore Literature Festival, 2021 which took place in the Bangalore International Centre premises in December 2021.

For more than a decade, from the villages of Uttar Pradesh to the night clubs of Delhi, Shrayana Bhattacharya followed the economic and personal lives of a diverse group of Indian women. Divided by class and community, these women are united in their quest for economic independence, love, fun and actor Shah Rukh Khan. The result is the dazzling book of non-fiction—Desperately Seeking Shah Rukh: India's Lonely Young Women and the Search for Intimacy and Independence which tells an intimate history of how women, across classes, have experienced post liberalisation India through the lens of finance and fandom.

Historian Manu S Pillai and economist Janhavi Nilekani engage Shrayana in a conversation on key themes of her book: How far have Indian women travelled? How has liberalisation treated women in the economy and society? How are professional and love lives of women intertwined? And what's Shah Rukh Khan got to do with it?

This episode is an extract from a live in-person event which took place at BIC on 12 November 2021

In his book Leadership Shastra, Pradeep Chakravarthy asks the question - What if history could be made to work for us in very real ways? And he answers it in a substantial research backed manner. He studies the lives of well-known historical figures like Shivaji, Babur, Ahilyabai Holkar, Sankaradeva and many others with a view to understanding their motivations, actions and legacies. The book examines how developing a comprehension of our past could be the key to understanding our own selves, our actions, motivations and of those around us.

In this episode of BIC Talks, in conversation with Srikrishna Ramamoorthy, Pradeep discusses the view of history as both useful and inspirational is unconventional: it is revealed here as a discipline that can be used for self-assessment and self-motivation.

Former Doubles No.1, Sania Mirza became an instant sensation when she won the Wimbledon Championships girls' doubles title at the age of sixteen. From 2003 until her retirement from the singles circuit in 2012, she was ranked by the Women's Tennis Association as India's top player, both in singles and doubles. A six-time Grand Slam champion, she notched up an incredible forty-one consecutive wins with her doubles partner, Martina Hingis, between August 2015 and February 2016.

In this candid conversation with the Tennis Editor of Times of India, Prajwal Hedge, Sania speaks of the making of career, her support system and what keeps her at the top of her game.

The Scrolls & Leaves podcast is a labour of love for Mary Rose and Gayathri as they meander through little known tales from history, science and cultures and look for alternative ways of knowing and contextualising our present.

Season 1 of Scrolls & Leaves titled Trade Winds came out in October 2021. It's set in the Indian Ocean world and the narrative over seven episodes weave interviews with historians and extensive archival research. It tells of epic histories from the developing world, through the eyes of the marginalised, ambitious Emperors, cunning corporations that colonised half the world, the treasure ship of an infamous sci-fi writer, and other tales.

The stand out element of this podcast is that is it binaural - you are treated to an immersive 3 dimensional listening experience which takes you to those far off shores in time. In this episode of BIC Talks, Srikrishna Ramamoorthy chats with Mary-Rose and Gayathri about their journey of creating this unique podcast.