The Sandip Roy Show

Article 14 of the Indian Constitution states: “The State shall not deny to any person equality before the law or the equal protection of the laws within the territory of India." And who could argue with that?Yet, some of India’s most fraught political issues—reservations, the right to wear a hijab in college, or same-sex marriage—are situated at the heart of Article 14.

In this episode, host Sandip Roy speaks to Senior Supreme Court lawyer Saurabh Kirpal about his new book, Who is Equal, which unpacks the equality code of the Indian Constitution.

Produced by Shashank Bhargava
Edited and mixed by Suresh Pawar

Schools and colleges are increasingly concerned that the widespread use of AI tools like ChatGPT could weaken critical thinking and research skills among students. There's also growing unease about academic integrity, with fears that students may turn to AI for assignments or to bypass plagiarism checks. But even beyond education, AI has raised ethical concerns about job displacement, data privacy, and internal biases. 

In her new book, Code Dependent: Living in the Shadow of AI, Madhumita Murgia explores how AI impacts our security, health, and privacy—from the ads we see on Instagram to decisions about loans or even governments predicting dissent. In this episode, Sandip talks to Murgia about her book and the broader implications of living in a world increasingly shaped by AI.

Produced by Shashank Bhargava
Edited and mixed by Suresh Pawar

The RG case has once again drawn public attention, highlighting the need for thorough investigations and justice. This incident underscores ongoing concerns about women's safety and the urgent need for stronger protections. There have been renewed calls for the death penalty, though experts question its effectiveness and stress the need for legal reforms. In this episode, host Sandip Roy speaks to Jhuma Sen and Amrita Dasgupta to discuss the case's implications, the death penalty debate, and ways to improve women's safety.

Sen is an advocate at the Calcutta High Court and the Supreme Court and is adjunct faculty at the National University of Juridical Sciences in Kolkata. She has a focus on gender justice. Dasgupta is executive director of Swayam, a feminist organization working to end discrimination and violence against women and girls.

Produced by Shashank Bhargava
Edited and mixed by Suresh Pawar

With Indian Independence around the corner, host Sandip Roy speaks to Professor Aditya Mukherjee about the politicization of the freedom struggle and the attempts to rewrite by the current establishment.  

Mukherjee retired as Professor of Contemporary Indian History, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. He has authored books like India's Struggle for Independence, and India After Independence.

Produced by Shashank Bhargava
Edited and mixed by Suresh Pawar

Once known as the back office of the world, Bengaluru is now seen as India's startup capital and tech hub. However, the city’s rapid growth has brought significant challenges, with traffic congestion and water issues becoming as notorious as its startup culture.

In this episode, Malini Goyal, the author of Unboxing Bengaluru, joins Sandip to discuss how Bengaluru evolved into its current state and what sets it apart among Indian cities.

Produced by Shashank Bhargava
Edited and mixed by Suresh Pawar

When Narendra Modi first appeared on the national stage, his supporters touted the Gujarat model as crucial for national success, while opponents feared it might weaken India's foundational pillars. Now, after 20 years, how has the Gujarat model scaled up at the national level? In this episode, political scientist and historian Christophe Jaffrelot joins Sandip Roy to answer this question, and talk about his latest book — Gujarat Under Modi: The Blueprint for Today's India.

Jaffrelot is Research Director at CERI-Sciences Po/CNRS, Professor of Indian politics and sociology at King’s College (London), President of the French Political Science Association and Chair of the British Association for South Asian Studies.

Produced by Shashank Bhargava
Edited and mixed by Suresh Pawar

In 2014, the Supreme Court ruled on a writ filed by the National Legal Services Authority (NALSA), stating that the government, both at the state and Centre, must grant full legal recognition to transgender individuals.

That judgment, in many ways, helped pave the way for the landmark Section 377 verdict. But ten years on, how much of the promise of that verdict has been realized in practice for the transgender community? To answer this question, Sandip is joined by Dalit and transgender rights activist Grace Banu.

Grace is India's first transgender engineer and the founder of the Trans Rights Now Collective.

Produced by Shashank Bhargava
Edited and mixed by Suresh Pawat

Alpa Shah’s latest book, The Incarcerations, a finalist for the Orwell Prize for Political Writing, unravels and uncovers the chilling story of the Bhima Koregaon case and how sixteen human rights defenders—including academics, poets, trade unionists, and Dalit organizers—were labeled urban Naxalites, charged with inciting violence, and accused of waging a war against the Indian state. In this episode, Shah joins host Sandip Roy to unpack the case and discuss some of its most puzzling questions.

Alpa Shah is a professor of anthropology at the London School of Economics.

Produced by Shashank Bhargava
Edited and mixed by Suresh Pawar

The Aam Aadmi Party, led by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, is one of the most formidable political parties in the country and has often been described as a game-changer. But to what extent has that been the case? Has it truly transformed Indian politics, or has Indian politics, in turn, reshaped what the party once stood for?

In this episode, host Sandip Roy is joined by Ashutosh and Neelanjan Sircar to discuss the evolution of the party, its current standing, the threat it poses to the BJP, and the challenges that lie ahead.

Ashutosh is a former member of AAP, the co-founder and editor of SatyaHindi, and the author of Hindu Rashtra. Sircar is a senior fellow at the Centre for Policy Research (CPR). 

Produced by Shashank Bhargava
Edited and mixed by Suresh Pawar

This week on the show, Sandip Roy speaks with journalist Mitali Mukherjee, whose book "Crypto Crimes" gives us a window into the underbelly of the crypto world and its rapid expansion throughout India. Through personal anecdotes and firsthand narratives, the book delves into the depths of the dark web, exposing the reality behind the unregulated crypto bubble that is now witnessing all sorts of crimes.

Mukherjee is the director of the Journalist Programmes at the Reuters Institute at Oxford.

Produced by Shashank Bhargava
Edited and mixed by Suresh Pawar