Everything is Everything

By Amit Varma and Ajay ShahSociety & Culture

Everything is Everything episodes

June 07, 2024 Ep 8: Why Talent Comes in Clusters
To make the most of your talent, you often need to be in the right place with the right people.

Welcome to Episode 8 of Everything is Everything, a weekly podcast hosted by Amit Varma and Ajay Shah.

In this episode, Amit talks about what the Challenger explosion of 1986 teaches us about Bollywood and Silicon Valley. Ajay talks about how a government is exile cannot learn to act like a state by mere play-acting. And there is Orwell, Gandhi and why development economists get so much wrong.

This episode was first published on YouTube on August 18, 2023. For magnificent, detailed, juicy show notes, click here.
1 hr 14 min
June 07, 2024 Ep 7: Newton the Alchemist. Gandhi the Black Swan
Isaac Newton was not just a great scientist, but the last of the magicians. Mohandas Gandhi was a black swan event: a flawed, complex man who shaped history.
Welcome to Episode 7 of Everything is Everything, a weekly podcast hosted by Amit Varma and Ajay Shah.
In this episode, Ajay talks about Isaac Newton, and why he was a product of historical forces. Amit cites Mohandas Gandhi as an example of why historical currents aren't everything, and historical accidents can produce a man like Gandhi who changes everything. Ajay and Amit also recommend some of their favourite books -- and one outstanding bookshop.
This episode was first published on YouTube on August 11, 2023. For magnificent, detailed, juicy show notes, click here.
1 hr 9 min
June 07, 2024 Ep 6: The Incredible Insights of Bastiat and Hayek
Frédéric Bastiat taught us to seen the Unseen effects of our actions. Friedrich Hayek showed us how economies and societies really function.
Welcome to Episode 6 of Everything is Everything, a weekly podcast hosted by Amit Varma and Ajay Shah.
In this episode, Amit and Ajay discuss the powerul ideas of two great Freddies. We learn how our government, like most goverments, redistributes FROM THE POOR TO THE RICH. We understand how economies work -- not through central planning, but the decentralised coordination of the price system. Amit and Ajay also recommend their favourite books for understanding how markets work.
This episode was first published on YouTube on August 4, 2023. For magnificent, detailed, juicy show notes, click here.
1 hr 1 min
June 07, 2024 Ep 5: My Hero, OPPENHEIMER
J Robert Oppenheimer was an extraordinary man who dedicated himself to his field and his country -- and faced persecution from the mediocre and the venal.

Welcome to Episode 5 of Everything is Everything, a weekly podcast hosted by Amit Varma and Ajay Shah.

In this episode, Ajay tells us the moving story of his hero, Oppenheimer -- and why that resonates with him. Amit talks about building cities and how power can corrode character. Listen in!
This episode was first published on YouTube on July 28, 2023. For detailed show notes, click here.
54 min
June 07, 2024 Ep 4: The WRONG Way to Fight Extremists
Is OPEC an evil cartel? What mistakes has the Indian state made both in Kashmir and in our Naxal areas? What book should you read this week? What film should you see?
Welcome to Episode 4 of Everything is Everything, a weekly podcast hosted by Amit Varma and Ajay Shah.
In this episode, Ajay discusses why fears of OPEC manipulating oil prices as a cartel were always overblown. Amit speaks about how fighting guerrillas and militants is completely different from fighting a conventional war -- and how India keeps getting it wrong. Ajay then recommends a book that anyone interested in history or business or India should read -- and Amit raves about what he considers the pinnacle of cinematic storytelling.

For full show notes, please visit the YouTube page for this episode.
57 min
June 07, 2024 Ep 3: Are You Just One Version of Yourself?
We could all be many things, but we often allow ourselves to get boxed into one version of us. And we don't even realise this.
Welcome to Episode 3 of Everything is Everything, a weekly podcast hosted by Amit Varma and Ajay Shah.
In this episode, Amit and Ajay talk about the dangers of allowing yourself to be frozen into one version of you. They also discuss how the process of investigation & prosecution need to be fixed in India. If the incentives are right, it will not be easy for a party in power to harass its opponents using the law. Also, Amit recommends important primers on classical liberlism, and Ajay discusses why Hydroponics are problematic and should be cancelled.
For full show notes, please visit the YouTube page for this episode.
46 min
June 07, 2024 Ep 2: Is the Singularity Near?
In this episode, Amit Varma and Ajay Shah talk about artificial intelligence. How will it change the world? How excited should we be? How scared should we be? Also discussed: pioneering feminists, pioneering monsters and pioneering masala chai.
For full show notes, go to the YouTubePage for this episode.

1 hr
June 07, 2024 Ep 1: Halfway From Coal, Halfway to Diamond
Welcome to Episode 1 of Everything is Everything, a weekly podcast hosted by Amit Varma and Ajay Shah. This is a video show on YouTube, and you will find full show notes for this episode here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GG9jDXRaXOo
55 min