Eudaimonia with Rhitu

In this episode of Eudaimonia with Rhitu, Simone Heng explores one of the biggest emotional realities of our time: why people feel increasingly disconnected despite constant digital connection.

The conversation explores loneliness, vulnerability, emotional safety, communication, belonging, relationships and the psychological impact of modern life.

Topics covered include:

• The loneliness epidemic
• Technology and emotional disconnection
• Hyper-independence and modern identity
• Vulnerability and emotional safety
• Why meaningful relationships are becoming harder
• Communication in the digital age
• Belonging, self-worth and rejection
• Building deeper human connection

A thoughtful conversation on what human beings truly need from one another.

What happens when you stop performing the version of yourself the world expects?

In this conversation, I sit down with Natasha Badhwar — writer, filmmaker, educator and one of the most thoughtful observers of modern life and human relationships.

This episode moved through themes that feel deeply personal and quietly universal:
the pressure to succeed, the narrowing of identity, parenting with vulnerability instead of control, emotional honesty, self-reflection, gentleness and the ways modern life disconnects us from ourselves and each other.

There’s a moment where Natasha says:
“We do not seem to give ourselves permission to fully be who we are.”

And in many ways, that became the emotional centre of the conversation.

We spoke about:
• Why modern systems reward performance over authenticity
• The emotional cost of becoming “one fixed version” of yourself
• Parenting through trust, vulnerability and emotional honesty
• Why children don’t need perfection — they need presence
• Conscious parenting and unschooling
• How social media and constant stimulation affect family life
• The quiet estrangement many people carry in relationships and within themselves
• The healing power of storytelling, memoir writing and community
• Why empathy is something we are born with, not something we should have to relearn

This isn’t a conversation built on advice. It’s a conversation built on reflection.

And perhaps that’s why it feels so human.

In this conversation, I sit down with Steve Gove — co-founder of the Prague Fringe Festival, strategist, curator, and someone who has spent much of his life building communities across cities, cultures and creative worlds.

What struck me most was how little of his life seems to have been built through certainty. And yet, somehow, that openness became the foundation for everything.

We spoke about moving countries without a fixed plan, creating spaces where strangers become collaborators, and how some of the most meaningful things in life begin before you fully know what you’re doing.

There’s a recurring idea throughout this conversation: That not knowing can sometimes be an advantage.

That naïveté, especially when you’re young, can allow you to attempt things more experienced people might dismiss as impossible.

We also explored work, joy, creativity, belonging and what it means to build something that outlasts you, not through scale or monument, but through human ripple effects.

In this episode:

• The courage of building without certainty
• Naïveté as an unexpected creative strength
• Why community became the real product behind Prague Fringe
• Asking for opportunities without fear
• Belonging across borders and cultures
• Building meaningful ripple effects through people
• Why joyful work changes how we live

This isn’t a conversation about productivity or success in the conventional sense.

It’s about participation. In life, in people, and in the communities we create around us.

If you do spend time with it, I’d love to know, what stayed with you?

What helps us live in alignment?

In this conversation, I sit down with R. S. Prasanna to explore storytelling not only as craft, but as a philosophy for living.

There’s a thread in this episode that stayed with me:

That the way we make films… build teams… choose work…and define success… all reveal what we value.

We spoke about underdog stories, the influence of his father, why he walked away from a massive film opportunity, and how he thinks about creativity, faith and decisions through what he calls a Personal Happiness Index.

There’s also a beautiful conversation here about Vasana - the restlessness that tells you what makes you come alive.

In this episode:

• The underdog as the most human story
• Values over money
• Creativity cannot be reduced to a checklist
• Building trust-led teams
• The Personal Happiness Index
• Spirituality as a practical tool
• What makes us come alive
• A film school dream for children

This isn’t only about filmmaking. It’s about how we build a life we can stand inside honestly.

If you spend time with it, I’d love to know what stayed with you.

Chapters:

00:00:00 Intro

00:00:47 Prasanna’s Influences growing up

00:04:27 Favourite Movies and Why

00:08:15 Prasanna’s Dad: His Hero

00:14:42 Eklavya and Prasanna’s Production House

00:17:49 Favourite Book Recommendations

00:20:22 Learnings from each blockbuster movie: Process over Product

00:27:09  Crewing up a stellar team

00:30:39 Picking 10 neurodivergent actors from 2500

00:43:23 What the World is missing out on today

00:52:54 Spirituality and Faith - A useful construct?

00:56:47 Personal Happiness Index

01:00:06 Ram Sampath and filling up voids

01:03:33 Forging meaning in Pain

01:11:15 Happy places and dreams about the future

Some of the ideas discussed in this episode were inspired by or connected to these conversations and thinkers:

• Diary of a CEO with Gelong Thubten
https://youtu.be/RiM5a-vaNkg?si=sn8amLU5oyY2sAYB

• Andrew Solomon (writer & thinker on identity, meaning and human experience)

• Full episode with R.S. Prasanna
https://youtu.be/vIbLQQ1i56Y?si=4oD0IFLrgdlxnzZs

What does it actually take to make a relationship work?

In this conversation, I sit down with Yashodara Lal - author, columnist, and someone who brings a rare mix of honesty, humour, and lived experience to conversations around relationships and modern life.

There’s a thread through this episode that stayed with me.

The idea that we’re often trying to “get it right” choosing the right partner, saying the right things, finding the right balance.

And yet, so much of what makes relationships difficult isn’t about getting it wrong. It’s about not fully understanding what we’re carrying into them.

We spoke about things that don’t always get said out loud - how the early stages of love are often built on illusion, why conflict feels so personal and how patterns we don’t even realise we have… quietly shape the way we show up.

There’s also something grounding in the way this conversation unfolds.

No quick fixes. No oversimplified advice.

Just an honest look at how relationships evolve and how much of that evolution begins with self-awareness.

In this episode:
• Why we often end up marrying the “wrong” person
• The different stages of a relationship — and why the honeymoon phase fades
• How childhood patterns influence adult relationships
• Why there’s no real “objective truth” in a conflict
• The pressure of balance in marriage, parenting, and identity
• Desire, resentment, and the conversations we avoid
• Why understanding yourself might matter more than fixing the relationship

This isn’t just a conversation about relationships.

It’s about how we understand ourselves within them.

If you do spend time with it, I’d love to know, what stayed with you?

If this conversation sparked something for you and you’d like to explore relationships more deeply, here are a few thoughtful resources for the layperson:

Relationship Resources
• The Couples Institute Blog: https://www.couplesinstitute.com/couples-blog/
• The Gottman Institute Blog: https://www.gottman.com/blog/
• The Secure Relationship: https://www.thesecurerelationship.com/
• Esther Perel Podcast: https://www.estherperel.com/podcast

Connect with Yashodara Lal

• Instagram: Instagram.com/yashodharalal
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@YashodharaLalCouplesCoach
• Personal Website: yashodharalal.com
• Practice Website: allsomeness.in

Order the Book

📘 What They Don’t Tell You About Marriage… and What You Need to Know About Yours
Order here: bit.ly/WhatTheyDontTellYou 

What does it really mean to live well?

In this conversation, I sit down with Suvir Saran — Michelin-recognized chef, author, and someone whose life has moved through success, loss, identity, and reinvention in ways that feel deeply human.

There’s a moment in this episode where he speaks about losing everything, financially, professionally and yet saying, very simply, that he feels “richer.”

Not in a dramatic or inspirational way. Just… with clarity.

That stayed with me.

We spoke about things that don’t always make it into public narratives — what failure actually feels like when it’s happening, how identity can be expansive rather than divisive, and the quiet choices that shape who we become over time.

There’s also something very grounding about the way he sees the world.

Whether it’s religion, relationships, or success, nothing feels performative. Just thought through, lived, and understood.

In this episode:

• What losing everything taught him about perspective
• How Family and Friends shape you, ground you and hold you every time you fall
• Why religion matters, but shouldn’t divide
• Choosing people over profit
• Identity, craft, and conscious living
• What it really means to feel “rich”

This isn’t just a conversation about success. It’s about how we live through what doesn’t work out.

If you do spend time with it, I’d love to know - what stayed with you?

Production: Shreemayee Das 

DOP: Vivian Castelino 

Camera Operator: Ujjwal 

Equipment: Video Plus 

Venue: Jashn Studios 

Edited By: Kartik Katkar, Malay Jain, Portal Stamp Studios

What does it take to stay at the top of your craft for 53 years—without burning out, losing joy, or compromising who you are?

In this deeply inspiring episode of Eudaimonia, I sit down with legendary Carnatic violin virtuosos Ganesh & Kumaresh Rajagopal, brothers who began playing at ages 2 and 3 and have performed for over five decades with unmatched mastery, simplicity, and grace.

This conversation is not just about music—

It’s about sadhana, discipline, humility, parenting, values, and the mindset required to build a lifelong career.

Whether you’re an artist, parent, teacher, leader, or someone building a meaningful life, this episode is filled with timeless wisdom.

🎻 WHAT YOU’LL LEARN:

• The secret to 53 years of mastery:

Why true greatness comes from deep practice (sadhana), not just talent.

• Being siblings AND gurus:

How one brother became the other’s teacher—and how humility makes learning possible.

• The simplicity behind virtuosity:

Why the greatest masters stay grounded, grateful, and childlike.

• Growth mindset through music:

How music teaches discipline, focus, resilience, and lifelong curiosity.

• Parenting for life skills:

Why their father believed in “earn it yourself,” and how that shaped their values.

• Discipline = freedom:

Why discipline is your best friend, not your enemy—and how it leads to true creative freedom.

• Childhood stories that shaped them:

Including earning ₹1000 at age 10 from temple donations to buy their own TV.

• Humility & the Guru-Shishya Parampara:

How surrendering to the guru opens the mind, softens the ego, and strengthens mastery.

• Handling distractions & modern life:

Why today’s generation struggles with focus—and how to rebuild it.

• Why lifelong learning is non-negotiable:

What keeps them excited after 50+ years on stage.

ABOUT THE GUESTS:

http://ganeshkumaresh.org/

https://www.facebook.com/GaneshKumaresh

http://www.youtube.com/user/GKfiddlingmonks

https://twitter.com/GaneshKumaresh

What happens when you take your career out of your identity?

In this episode of Eudaimonia with Rhitu, Shubha Pai, Head of YouTubeSales and Solutions, and one of India’s most grounded corporate leaders reflects on self-awareness, ambition, motherhood, and finding meaning beyond our job titles.

From learning to embrace imperfection to understanding the price of every “yes,” Shubha shares stories that blend honesty, humor, and hard-earned wisdom.

✨ In this episode:

• How self-awareness and feedback shape growth
• The “prices we pay” for ambition and why that’s okay
• Building resilience and emotional regulation at work
• Coaching, journaling & mentorship as tools for clarity
• Women in leadership, navigating transitions, motherhood & support systems
• Why family, purpose, and patience matter as much as performance

A heartfelt conversation about work, worth, and the human behind the professional.

🎧 Listen now because flourishing at work begins with understanding yourself.

What drives someone to climb five 8,000-meter peaks including Mount Everest and still come back saying “IF the mountain allows you”?

In this inspiring episode of Eudaimonia with Rhitu, Priyanka Mohite, one of India’s most celebrated mountaineers and recipient of the Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award, opens up about the courage, clarity, and quiet discipline behind her extraordinary journey.

From turning back just 400 meters from the Everest summit to learning what true willpower means, Priyanka’s story is not just about mountaineering, it’s about life itself.

🌄 In this episode:

• How she found purpose through the mountains that nearly broke her
• The decision that taught her why saving a life matters more than reaching the top
• Balancing science, research, and mountaineering with grit and grace
• The power of discipline over motivation
• Facing fear, loss, and physical pain with faith, love and focus
• What mountains teach us about patience, surrender, and resilience

Her story is a reminder that the summit is never the goal, it’s the person you become on your way up.

🎧 Tune in to this extraordinary conversation about passion, perseverance, and the purpose found in stillness.

"I'm not striking a deal with my friends, but I think I am," Ruchita Raicha admits with a laugh. And she means it—literally. From drawing up contracts with her sister about who opens the door for the household help, to seeing her parents as "Alka and Harish in their 50s living their lives," Ruchita has rebuilt every major relationship in her life with radical honesty and intentionality.

In this conversation, we explore what happens when you move from a conventional 80-person joint family to choosing your own family. Ruchita shares her journey from childhood people-pleasing to adult boundary-setting, the moment she started showing anger to her mother (and why it changed everything), and why she's "incapable of small talk".

This is a conversation about the safety of true friendship, the courage it takes to see your parents as flawed humans, and why sometimes protecting someone means refusing to protect them. Raw, funny, and deeply moving.