As we close out SAAM (Sexual Assault Awareness Month), we sat down with Smrithi Ram (she/they). Smrithi is a queer Tamil woman, violence intervention specialist, and educator. This episode traces Smirthi’s personal journey as a survivor of childhood sexual abuse. We delve into the variety of roles Smrithi has held to support survivors and the birth of her newest offering — Dayaa Healing. https://www.dayaahealing.com/⁠

She specializes in providing trauma-informed training to therapists, advocates, and allies who support survivors of sexual assault and intimate partner violence. Smrithi has also served as a sexual assault crisis counselor, advocating for survivors during their forensic medical exam and forensic interview. As a survivor of child sexual abuse, they are extremely passionate about creating safer spaces free of violence while empowering others to do the same.

This episode features writer, perfumer and all around effervescent Venusian sensation @studiotanais. Tanaïs is a queer, femme, Bangladeshi artist and creative based in NYC whose work has touched countless South Asian imaginations and hearts of our generation. We touched on their last book ‘In Sensorium’, and spoke to their upcoming novel and their process in creating truthful, primordial art that upends the patramyth (myths of patriarchy, a word coined by them). You can support them by finding their work and procuring their scents at studiotanais.com.

Our first episode of 2024 features Farmer Zee Lilani of @Kula.Nursery! Zee runs a grassroots nursery offering South Asian heritage seeds and starts to folks in the greater Bay Area (Ohlone Land). Here, we speak to the significance of accessing ancestral foods for those in the diaspora and the complexity of growing these plants on native land/Turtle Island, the history of certain cultivars, and the necessity to protect heirloom and unmodified varieties from large scale agriculture. 

Last August in 2022 we had the pleasure of interviewing our dear friend Sarah Alikhan, founder of Biri Bibi - the most scrumptious Hyderabadi/Angeleno inspired pop up to hit the streets of LA, conceived in Berlin. Biri Bibi is a regular at Brain Dead Studios, where their dishes sell out every time. We’re super excited to share this episode as it’s been a long time coming 💫♥️ Tune in as we discuss with them navigating the food industry as a queer South Asian femme, retracing their roots to family and ancestral lands via cooking & what striving for “authenticity” means from a first generation experience/lens.

Interviewing the prophetic and dreamy Kari (_whoiskaaari on IG)

Praising the genius and creative brilliance of Michaela Coel and discussing I May Destroy You. Brinda and Sukhpreet detail poignant moments of the show, how that opened up room to move through their own healing process and what the layers of accountability look like in abuse.⠀original artwork of Michaela Coel by the vibrant Kennady (@kennatree on IG)

(cw: sexual assault, trauma, rape and show spoilers)

This episode is a bridge into the exploration of our ancestry, experiences of caste and inquiries into what it means to remedy and recreate the ways we show up in community as South Asian folks. ⁣We approach this from a deeply personal lens of Sukhpreet’s Punjabi-Sikh-Jatt lineage and Brinda’s mixed caste Tamizh-Bahujan-Maratha lineage. This dialogue is just a step and we hope to continue unlearning, supporting the voices of those most caste-impacted, shifting the violence + harm of caste and the ways it insidiously cloaks itself into the diaspora. ⁣⁣✿ ❀ ✿

Heartfelt music with roots in their native Venezuela and flamenco from Andalusia⚱️Accompanied in some songs by Nacho Kaën from the Argentine Andes for y’all with all their love.