“So many kids wanna be artists - they wanna make comics. How powerful is it for me to say that whatever you imagine and whatever you want to pursue, you can do that?”

Nidhi Chanani an Indian-American freelance illustrator, cartoonist and writer. Nidhi’s debut graphic novel Pashmina won ALL the awards, but her diverse body of work - from Jukebox, Binny’s Diwali, the Shark Princess series (a personal favorite of Raman’s daughter), and October’s forthcoming of Super Boba Café - will not just just blow you away, but also move you. Basically if you’ve got a kid or are a kid at heart, you should be reading Nidhi’s work. Nidhi’s story is almost as amazing as her take on work and life, we’ve become fans of not just her work - but her approach to community. She’s such a nerd about storytelling and art - and her place in it - and you’ll definitely get the vibe from this chat that you're hearing old friends talk for the first time. 

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“India is this place that's known, but distant to me. The Indians I knew were always my parents' generation, so I can only observe its youth culture through books like this.” 

Ever wondered what it's like to be a female South Asian advertising writer working on women's hair care products living in a big and bustling smog city, cramped into an apartment with several single women, while also Queer and saddled with a sense of regret and ennui? Well either way, you should read KARI, the 2008 debut graphic novel by Indian artist Amruta Patil, who's since gone on to become a leading voice in the Indians comic scene, illustrating a number of projects - including a reimagining of the Hindu epic the Mahabharata. In Kari, we meet the eponymous protagonist upon her surviving a heartbroken suicide attempt, and we follow her to at work and at and home in the hustle and bustle of smog city. A marketing and advertising exec who turns her creative eye on the world, she lives a semi-closeted Queer life, living with many single women, befriending or romantically rebounding with a business colleague with weeks left to live, and just surviving in a monsoon drenched city. In deeply drawn black and white chapters we journey through Kari's crowded loneliness, sleeper success, and death - all in the shadow of her departed partner. The book is a sensuous yet wry commentary on life and love and unlike anything we'd ever seen. This is a bonus episode from Raman’s OTHER podcast, Quarantined Comics, but this graphic novel is one that fits the Modern Minorities mission for all of our majority ears - and one of the rare episodes where Ryan and Raman agree on (almost) everything.

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“As an actor, as a martial artist, as a human being, all type of knowledge, ultimately means self-knowledge. Under the sky, under the heaven, there is but one family. It just so happened, that people are different.” 

Bruce Lee (李振藩) was among the first Chinese-Americans to truly bridge the gap between East and West. Born in San Francisco (1940), raised in Hong Kong, and known around the world, he’s considered the most influential martial artist of all time and a pop culture icon of the 20th century. He was the founder of Jeet Kune Do, a hybrid martial arts philosophy drawing from different disciplines. Bruce Lee changed the way Chinese people were presented in American film. He taught his philosophies to many of his era’s greatest actors, and his films influenced the way martial arts were seen around the world. Bruce Lee died on July 20, 1973, aged 32 - but he continues to capture the imagination of us all. 

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“When you really discover what it is to be Black — that’s that moment where it's like, ‘oh, this is what we're up against’ — but you gotta be proud of who you are.”

Justin Richmond is a podcast producer and co-host for more than a few Pushkin podcasts - including “Started from the Bottom” and “Broken Record” with writer Malcolm Gladwell and Def Jam co-founder Rick Rubin. Justin was a producer for NPR’s flagship program Morning Edition and its accompanying podcast, Up First, before becoming an arts reporter for NPR. He began his career as an intern for The Tavis Smiley Show and Smiley & West. Sharon and FrieMMd of the Pod (and occasional guest co-host Melissa Haughton had a candid chat with Justin about his unorthodox life story - raised by a single mother and never graduating from highschool - which led him to an amazing academic and professional journey. With his work, Justin provides a a platform and a voice for underrepresented voices - giving way gives way for the underdog story

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“There need to be silences - you need to give people room to run. Let people talk more. I already know what I know now. I wanna know what you know.”

Recently longtime FrieMMd of the Pod Rajiv Satyal sat down with Crossroads pastor and podcast host Bryan Tomes on his show “The Aggressive Life.” What started as an exploration of Rajiv’s comedy career and approach turned into an open and honest conversation among two very different perspectives on politics, faith, and culture. With the Fourth of July right around the corner for Americans, we celebrate our independence and freedom, but also take an honest reflection on who we are - and want to be - as a nation, and as a people. With today’s level of division and discord , the importance of talking - and listening to others who might not look and think like us. There is a better way from simply passively standing by and retreating to our echo chambers. It's about seeking to understand, having minority conversations for all of our majority ears. We hope you’ll enjoy this candid conversation about comedy - and curiosity. 

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“We are united as Black and Asian people to recognize the BS of people trying to leverage the successes from our communities as some way to cover up the real stuff — being locked out of certain things.”

Johnathan is a content creator, podcaster, activist, serial panelist, and bubble tea enthusiast. His activism began in 2008 with his “blasainFMA” YouTube channel - where he worked to bring awareness to multiracial issues surrounding the intersection of Black and Asian identity. Johnathan first podcast “Edugaytion” covered Queer Person of Color (QPOC) issues, and has recently launched “This QPOC Life” to be more inclusive to all marginalized communities. To close out Pride Month, we're featuring a conversation from our guest co-host + longtime FrieMMd of the Pod Steven Wakabayashi from the Yellow Glitter podcast - who covers mindfulness through the eyes and soul of Queer Asian perspectives.

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“Everyone has a chip on their shoulder and it's beautiful and it is specific to them. There was no one else that looked like me - and well, there should be - and so I'm gonna make it.”

Lilly Singh is arguably among the most accomplished comedians and online presences around. Lilly’s a Canadian YouTuber television host, comedian, writer, and actress - who also happens to be bisexual. Lilly began making her YouTube videos way back when in 2010, originally as IISuperwomanII, which was her YouTube username till 2019. Lilly's regarded as one of the 40 most powerful people in comedy and is one of the highest paid YouTubers, and she's received all of the awards. In 2016, Lily released her first film, a documentary chronicling her world tour, hilariously titled “A Trip to Unicorn Island.” In March, 2017, she released her first book, the NY Times Bestseller “How to Be A Boss, A Guide to Conquering Life.” And from 2019 to 2021, Lilly acted as executive producer and host of the NBC late night talk show “A Little Late with Lilly Singh” - becoming the first person of Indian descent to host an American major broadcast network late night talk show. So basically, Lilly Singh is a big deal, and she WASN’T on our show. Lilly joined longtime FrieMMd of the Pod Rajiv Satyal on HIS talk show “What Do You Bring To the Table” - where Rajiv brings top voices from the South Asian community to his LA home studio for a chat...and a game of ping pong. 

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“If we, as a part of a community, want to move forward — this requires a large conversation.”

As Sharon & Raman embark further into our sixth season, we continue exploring bringing more friends to the microphone as guest hosts. One of those partners on our shortlist has always been longtime FrieMMd of the Pod, podcaster and mindfulness advocate Steven Wakabayashi. Steven joins us for a candid conversation about doing the work - on and off the mic - and trying to stay in the moment without always commenting on the moment. In the weeks to come we’ll start featuring some of Steven’s conversation from his own podcast, Yellow Glitter, and from time to time Steven - among other FrieMMds - may join Sharon & Raman for conversations with many new friends. We know you’ll love hearing Steven’s voice added to the mix (tapestry? forged metal?) as much as we do.

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