The Brown Box

In this episode, we discuss travel. The pandemic has made us realize not only how much we love travelling, but that travel is so much more than the external experience, it’s also about how those experience change us, how they allow us to grow. Travel is a journey - outwards for sure, but inwards as well.

Today we are talking about gender equality, which put really simply means equal access and opportunities for all genders.
In the Global Gender Gap Report 2021, by World Economic Forum, India has slipped 28 places to rank 140 among 156 countries. And for women in India, we don’t need statistics for us to realise that gender equality doesn’t exist, this is something we know and feel every day.

In this episode I chats with two authors and book lovers about the books that shaped them and moulded them into the women they are today. They reminisce about a time when as an Indian girl, growing up without the distraction of multi-channel cable TV and also without the freedom to roam the streets that the boys had, books were companions, allies and friends. They discuss the power of stories to open up our worlds and also how decisions about who tells stories and whose stories are told, can control and limit these worlds.

A deep and delicious conversation about Indian food. We wander down memory lane, discussing the food we grew up with but what is soon revealed is the toil that lies behind the rich, complex dishes we love.

Do we have scams in our DNA, are we inherently dishonest? In today's episode we discuss the honest truth about honesty in India.

Let’s talk about our mothers. Mother's occupy a sacred place in most Indian households - rightly so. But their daily lives which often revolve around chores, kitchens and hard work are far removed from the pedestals we place them on.

Indian spirituality is a brand we have sold well. But as foreigners flock to sit at the feet of gurus and yoga teachers, we ask - are we really a spiritual nation?

They seem to be a relic of a by gone era, yet they still exist and shockingly, they seem to work. In this episode I chat with my friends about arranged marriages and discover why even the most modern among us are still open to them.

At some point in life all Indian women encounter the idea of “The Good Indian Girl”. Today I chat with my friends about the image of "The Good Indian Girl" that was presented to each of us growing up. We reminisce about the ways that we rebelled and acknowledge the ways that we have conformed.

Dark, wheatish, fair. Indians have many words for the color 'brown'. Today I chat with my friends about skin color as we unpack the topic of colorism in India.