In 1929, a man from a small town near Lucknow started cooking biryani in North Calcutta with no restaurant, no advertising, and one recipe. Nearly a hundred years later, Aminia is serving 8,000 plates of biryani a day across 13 outlets, from Kolkata to Guwahati to Dubai. And that original recipe has not changed by a single ingredient.

In this episode, Meghdut sits down with Mohammad Azhar and his son Kabir Azhar for Make Calcutta Relevant Again's first ever father-son podcast. They talk about what it means to inherit a legacy this large, the newspaper ad from 1947 that announced the New Market outlet on the morning of Indian Independence, and how P.K. Banerjee and Chuni Goswami used to come to Aminia straight from the Maidan after a match. And they talk about a Kolkata where a Muslim family runs the caretaking of a Jewish synagogue, where Eid and Durga Puja both belong to everybody, and where a plate of biryani has always been the most democratic thing in the city.

When Meghdut Roychowdhury returned from abroad in 2017, he had seen what a real innovation ecosystem looks like at Stanford, at Station F in Paris, and across Silicon Valley. When he landed back in Kolkata, he realised Bengal had none of it. That gap became an obsession.

Four years later, that obsession has a name. AIC Techno Innovation and Incubation Council is West Bengal's first government-recognized Atal Incubation Centre, backed by NITI Aayog with up to 10 crore rupees in grant support, housed at Offbeat CCU on the EM Bypass, and built with one goal: to turn Bengal's best young minds from job seekers into nation builders.

In this episode, Meghdut sits down with Dr. Biplab Pal, IIT Kharagpur trained with 25 US patents to his name, to talk about what it actually takes to build a startup ecosystem from scratch in a city where business has always carried a stigma. They talk about the 500 startups they plan to support in five years, the NRI diaspora program that lets Bengalis in Bangalore and Pune adopt a startup from their home district, and why Bengal's first unicorn might not be an AI company at all but a mishti brand or a jewellery business that finally learns to scale.

What happens when two women walk into a slum in Topsia at 50 and refuse to walk out? Ektara happened. Started in 2011 with 20 women and no strategy, Ektara today runs one of the most extraordinary schools in this city. In this episode, Vinita tells the story of how it all started, and how she and co-founder Namrata convinced the founders of Tomorrowland to partner with them in three days. She talks about what COVID took from the community and what it gave back.

She talks about the father who fought against educating his daughter and is now Ektara's loudest advocate. And she talks about what it means to build something this large from the ground up in a city that is always told it cannot. We close this episode with a pledge. Make Calcutta Relevant Again and Ektara are building a fellowship of 10 young city ambassadors through all of 2026. If you have the time, the privilege, and the love for this city, this is your invitation.

What happens when two musicians choose a city over the world - and the city chooses them back? In this episode of Make Calcutta Relevant Again, Meghdut Roy Chowdhury sits down with the legendary musician duo Sourendro-Soumyojit - the architects of Kolkata's most celebrated music event, the brains behind collaborations with Anoushka Shankar, Norah Jones, and Shankar Mahadevan, and the men who believe that no algorithm can ever replace taste. From a college stage to 10,000 people at Science City - this is the story of how World Music Day became Kolkata's most anticipated cultural moment. And how two musicians turned their obsession into an institution. If you've ever wondered what it takes to build something real in this city - something that outlasts trends, survives algorithms, and fills auditoriums - this conversation is your answer.

In this episode of MCRA Podcast, host Meghdut Roychowdhury engages in a deeply enriching conversation with filmmaker and activist Indrani Pal Chaudhury. Together, they explore the intersections of identity, culture, philosophy, creativity, and social transformation through the lens of Indrani's remarkable life journey.

From her childhood memories of Mother Teresa and growing up in Kolkata to collaborating with global icons like Beyoncé and David Bowie, Indrani shares extraordinary stories that have shaped her worldview. Together, Meghdut and Indrani explore identity, cultural roots, spirituality, creativity, social systems, environmental responsibility, and the importance of remaining authentic in a world that constantly pushes people to conform.

Watch this conversation to know more about her journey, stories and life.

Calcutta’s Durga Puja won the UNESCO cultural heritage tag and made history. But here is the secret truth, UNESCO actually said "No" to Durga Puja at first. Calcutta was about to lose its biggest global dream until one man stepped into save our pride.

In this episode of Make Calcutta Relevant Again, host Meghdut Roychowdhury talks about the hidden fight that saved our city’s favorite festival. Our guest is Atri Bhattacharya, the Former Additional Chief Secretary, Govt. of West Bengal who went behind the scenes and changed UNESCO's mind when everyone else thought it was over. We also look back at who Atri was before he became a top officer. You will hear about his early life, his childhood stories and how he developed the sharp mind needed to win such a big battle for Bengal.

This conversation is a beautiful tribute to the spirit of Bengal. It shows how passion, intelligence and deep love for our roots can protect the traditions we hold closest to our hearts. If you want to know what it truly takes to fight for Bengal's legacy on the world stage, this conversation is an absolute must watch.

How do swimmers eat while swimming? What happens when a jellyfish attacks? And what does it take to cross an ocean?
From crossing iconic channels to taking on some of the world's toughest waters, Sayani Das joins Meghdut Roychowdhury to share the experiences, challenges and lessons behind her extraordinary journey. Through stories of channel crossings, endurance swims and life in the open ocean, Sayani reveals the mindset and determination required to thrive in one of the world's toughest sports. 
She opens up about the physical and mental preparation behind endurance swimming, the role of nutrition, how swimmers refuel during long-distance swims and the unpredictable realities of the open sea from jellyfish stings to encounters with marine life.
The conversation also explores the realities of swimming in India, dealing with trolling and body shaming, navigating social media recognition, her relationship with her parents and the biggest challenges she has faced throughout her journey. More than a story about sport, this is a conversation about perseverance, self-discovery, and Sayani's profound connection with the ocean.

India is a treasure chest of culture, but it only stays relevant if we fight to keep it alive. In this episode of Make Calcutta Relevant Again, host Sneha Chakraborty welcomes Sonali Chakraborty and Gopal Poddar for a candid look at the state of our rural arts. We explore how their initiative has moved beyond simple craft, evolving into a total village development model that has touched the lives of 1,500 women across 75 villages.
We talk about the "silent rebellion" of art using creativity to fight for economic independence and ecological balance. From the struggle of preserving fading traditions to the vital importance of giving back to the nature that provides our resources, this conversation covers what it truly means to be a custodian of our culture. Watch until the end to see how grassroots creativity is proving that we have the power to define our own future.

How do you pull a legendary brand back from a ₹100 crore grave? Meghdut Roychowdhury dives deep with Om Prakash Saxena, the man who looked at a "sick" company and saw a fighter’s chance.
This isn't just corporate strategy; it’s the story of standing before angry workers in a locked factory and promising a comeback. Discover how Duckback transformed from a debt-ridden relic into a ₹100 crore success story, fueled by a stubborn refusal to let Kolkata’s heritage vanish. It’s a raw lesson in leadership, humanity, and the grit required to resurrect an icon.

Before the ICC trophies and the global superstardom, there was a long-haired kid from Ranchi that nobody in the big leagues was looking at. Malavika Banerjee saw him first.
Meghdut Roychowdhury sits down with Malavika Banerjee to talk about a time when Indian cricket was changing, and she was the only woman in the room making it happen. From being one of the only women in the Eden Gardens press box in the late '90s to managing the backend for Shah Rukh Khan’s KKR, Malavika shares the unfiltered, "back-office" stories of sports that the cameras never caught.