Celebrate: The Podcast

Dr. Theyiesinuo Keditsu is a feminist poet, folklorist, writer, lyricist and educator. She is the co-founder of Centre for Indigenous Knowledge & Alternative Learning (CIKAL) and advocates the revival of Indigenous Naga textiles and women’s narratives through her popular Instagram account : @mekhalamama for which she has been featured in The Vogue magazine 

Her two published books of poetry are Sopfünuo and Wake and Her poem, “Whore” was translated into Gujarati by Sitanshu Yashaschandra. 

So delighted to welcome Theyei to the show and heartiest congratulations on the excellent performance of her writing & the storytelling journey of Mekhala Mama!

Episode Highlights

• How can multiple identities co-exist peacefully maintaining their uniqueness
• Voiceless-ness / lost voices due to cultural beliefs, colonization, convertion & globalization
• Is creativity trapped between cultural norms & corporate guidelines?
• Oral tradition vs the written
• Is feminism really about "let's smash patriarchy" ? Men bashing? A battle between the sexes?
• Keeping up appearances - body image issues & fashion trends

Connect With Theyie

Instagram

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Welcome to Episode 5!

I am your host ambalika and our guest for today is Chandrachur Ghosh.

Chandrachur ji is an author, independent researcher and commentator on history, economics and environment. He has co-authored Conundrum: Subhas Bose’s Life After Death, which features among the bestsellers in Amazon. He is also the author of the most authentic biography on Netaji- Bose: The Untold Story of an Inconvenient Nationalist is a national bestseller. His most recent book is India: Birth of a Republic 1947-57.

 He is one of the founders of the pressure group Mission Netaji that has been the moving force behind the declassification of over ten thousand secret document pages in 2010 related to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose.

Such an honour and privilege to welcome Chandrachur ji to the show!

Episode Highlights:

• the transformation of a young Botany graduate to being a biographer for India's last greatest freedom fighter: Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose
• is he an accidental author or an intellectual who is leading a revolution through writing? 
• the defining moment when the Environment Consultant transitioned to Founder, Mission Netaji
• From Yahoo Chat Rooms to Triple Agent Addas on YouTube: how technology has helped the cause
• Is nationalist consciousness getting diluted today?
• Secret behind his emotional resilience
• Synergy with Anuj Dhar in a world of paid and unequal partnerships/collaborations
• Yesterday's Freedom Fighters Vs Today's Freedom Activists: gloomy or glorious?

Support Mission Netaji through anyone of the following options

Paytm/GPay/PhonePe - 9818457947 || Bank transfer - Ac name - Chandrachur Ghose, Citibank, Ac No - 5027720228, IFSC - CITI0000002 || PayPal - chandrachurg

Consider signing this petition for publishing the complete works of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose and setting up of a dedicated, authentic Netaji Research Centre by clicking on this hyperlink

You can also read more on why this is urgently needed for our country's progress ahead on this link

Connect with Chandrachur here:

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YouTube

Instagram

LinkedIn

Facebook

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Prasun Roy writes in varied genres, including narrative non-fiction, biography, adventure, mystery, thrillers, translation and young adult fiction. He is also the Director of his family-owned business of pharmaceutical manufacturing and marketing and is trained in western classical piano and loves to travel! 

Prasun's latest book is The Devil's Teacup a translation collection of 13 horror stories by noted Bengali writer Bibhuti Bhushan Bandhopadhay and as we speak today, it has aced it's way up the best sellers's list on Amazon!

Episode highlights:

• Why makes Prasun choose different genres to write in?
• Is it advisable to write like this?
• Do writers also get stereotyped like actors?
• How writing across genres helped Prasun grow as a person?
• Forgotten classical authors across India who are better than Hogwarts, Game of Thrones and the ilk
• What makes The Devil's Tea Cup so exciting
• Why aren't more books getting translation to other Indian languages?
• What change does the Entrepreneur Prasun Roy see in India's publishing industry in the next 5 years
• OTT + Cafes Vs Books: We need a win-win!

Stay connected with Prasun :

LinkedIn

Instagram

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Facebook

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A bubbly little child who grew up writing for various newspapers and magazines since her childhood Mridu turned into a corporate professional winning hearts with her work for street dogs and trophies for her valor with badminton rackets and cricket bat. Mridu turned into a full fledged writer when the corona virus pandemic threw a curve ball at her life. 

Ever since, her writing and personal journey of self discovery and resilience has been inspiring adults and children alike. Her life is a wonderful testimony to the fact that it is indeed possible to win matches be it in the sports arena, boardroom or the playground of life. She is truly a beacon of resilience and joy!

Thank you so much Mridu for joining us and sharing your journey with us today. Our best wishes for your work ahead!

Episode highlights:

• The motivation behind the title of her first book
• How she wrote down her vulnerabilities as she relived the happy past
• What she learnt about humanness or the lack of it when coping with grief
• Writing for children: her books

Connect with Mridusmita

LinkedIn

Instagram

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Neelam Saxena Chandra is a bilingual novelist and poet with close to 80 published titles, the most recent being 'Beneath the dead skin', a book of poems that came out in October 2023, at the time of recording. She also has 3 records to her credit in the Limca Book- for.maximum number of titles published in a year, the second one for jointly writing a poetry book with her daughter making them the 1st mother daughter duo to do that and the third one, with her sister, for being the first sister duo to write a book of poems . 

For her writing, she has been decorated with numerous awards, the most recent being the Ruel International Lifetime Achievement Award.

In this episode I have a free wheeling chat with Neelam ji on:

• what really got her started with creative writing and then get hooked!
• are Indian adults letting down our children when it comes to children's literature?
• her secret to creative ideation!
• her tryst with folk music and dance : a trip down the memory lane
• her secret to turning out a back to back writing- some great tips for aspiring writers!
• why she is unimpressed and unhappy with ChatGP's creative ability & how she deals with its intrusion
• ..... and so much more!

Connect with Neelam ji here:

Facebook

Instagram

Twitter

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Sandeep is both an author and an entrepreneur, having founded RudhAbha, and NGO that supports artists across Punjab. He is also the founder of Para Wanderers , a travel company that offers unique artistic travel experiences.

But of course, he is here because of his path breaking book: The Speaking Window: Tales From a Bloodied Timeline. 

In April 2017, two students and a teacher started to reach out survivors of the partition of 1947 to document their recollections through a Facebook page: Bolti Khidki. When the project ended in July 2023, the trio had interviewed over 100 of the survivors and in October of that year, 47 of these stories made it to a book by the same name. 

Ever since it's Publication, the book has been winning hearts and rave reviews around the globe.

In this episode, we discuss about :

• What inspired Sandeep to go in search of the survivors of India's partition in 1947
• Two important truths of India during partition that he discovered from them- This will leave you baffled!
• How technology enabled a seamless collaboration in connecting with survivors around the world
• His personal story of transformation as he travelled around India meeting them
• Why the stories of these survivors are important and relevant even today
• Their one and only wish today
• What can we do now

Connect with Sandeep and learn more about this project - book here:

LinkedIn

Bolti Khidki

Instagram

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This podcast show is a tribute to those writers and storytellers who have chosen their causes and calling, battled the odds and so remain a strong voice of inspiration for generations to come through the power of their talent and personality.

I have chosen 10 writers and storytellers simply because I have completed 10 years as an author. 

My own journey as an author has not been a spectacular one in terms of royalty, fan following and popularity. 

However, what I have been able to achieve simply because I write and the fact that it has also been one way of receiving my spiritual baptism, has convinced me that I, as an author, matter too.I have been able to accept this, finally, now, in my 11th year as an author. And I have chosen to celebrate it. That is why the podcast is titled ' Celebrate: The Podcast '. 

It's a podcast party , 10 weeks long & you are invited!

You will be in the presence of esteemed guests with whom you can have a range of conversations: from the partition of India to the patriotism of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose; from exploring forgotten Indian classics to the arrival of tech driven creativity; from nurturing your cultural identity to your personal brand at workplace; you get to seek inspiration from our scriptures, personal journeys to the incorrupt creative, curious world of a child.

The Guest List

Sandeep Dutt : Curative power of writing in broken nations

Neelam Saxena Chandra: Every Right Way To Write 

Mridusmita Das: Writing to keeping wedding vows beyond breath 

Prasun Roy: Diverse writing in Multi lingual India 

Chandrachur Ghosh : Writing as a tool to raise national consciousness 

Sandeep Kochhar & Rishabh Iyer Kochhar : They Just write/ right that! 

Dr Theyiesinuo Keditsu: Writing to Resurrect identities 

Ruby Ahluwalia: Writing a life Beyond Adversity 

Ashutosh Garg: Inspiration from Indian Scriptures & Mythology 

Rajiv Gupta : Writing to Brighten up the off- beat path

In each episode, you will not just get to experience why they do what they do but also how they do it- and this is not just about their capacity to use language. It's about perspectives, asking questions, taking a stand and above all a willingness to live through the entire gamut of human emotions thereby being comfortable with the discomforting.

Every episode will not just let you dive into their personal World but also give you great insights on the art , science and business of writing, ultimately leaving you transformed. 

Now, you don't want to miss this one, do you?

So then, go ahead and subscribe to the podcast!

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