Shows
Darshan's DiaryThey won't remember you if you fail - Ayushi Mona Singh (Product Marketing Consultatnt)In this episode, we’re joined by Ayushi Mona Singh, a marketing powerhouse with over a decade of experience across Fortune 500 companies, startups, D2C brands, and non-profits. A gold medalist from MICA and one of Business World’s 30 Under 30 intrapreneurs, Ayushi has honed her expertise in B2B and consumer marketing, branding, sales enablement, and corporate communications.Ayushi shares her insights on the unique role of product marketers, strategies for scaling startups, and how early-stage founders can approach product marketing. Packed with practical tips on branding, positioning, and measuring success, this episode is a must-listen for anyo...2025-02-2452 min
Darshan's DiaryThey won't remember you if you fail - Ayushi Mona Singh (Ex. Director of Brand @ Delhivery)In this episode, we’re joined by Ayushi Mona Singh, Director of Brand at Delhivery, a marketing powerhouse with over a decade of experience across Fortune 500 companies, startups, D2C brands, and non-profits. A gold medalist from MICA and one of Business World’s 30 Under 30 intrapreneurs, Ayushi has honed her expertise in B2B and consumer marketing, branding, sales enablement, and corporate communications.Ayushi shares her insights on the unique role of product marketers, strategies for scaling startups, and how early-stage founders can approach product marketing. Packed with practical tips on branding, positioning, and measuring success, this epis...2025-02-2452 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaThe Chowpatty Cooking Club | Lubaina Bandukwala | Songs of Freedom SeriesSet in Bombay during the Quit India movement, the book is about three children—Sakina, Zenobia and Mehul—who are eager to be a part of Indian freedom struggle. When Sakina realises that there’s an underground radio network and her Bela aunty is a part of it and that she might be ousted to the British Government, she and her friends help the Underground People’s Radio in their mission to evade the British police—while their mothers are just running a cooking club.
Read it for a glimpse of 1942 Bombay and the role the underground radio (and...2022-11-1332 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaThat Year at Manikoil by Aditi Krishnakumar | Songs of Freedom Series | India BookedBased on the repercussions of the Burma War between British India and the Japanese Army, the book centres around Raji and her sisters who are sent off to live in Manikoil, in their mother’s village in 1944. Away from the war but also terribly embroiled in it through her brother who decides to enlist in the British Indian Army, Raji feels the whiff of independence in the air. When Ilavarasi, her new friend, also lets on that she’s a refugee of the war, Raji is forced to come to terms with its devastation. Amidst all this, rumours swirl that...2022-11-1229 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIn the Shadows - Unknown Craftsmen of Bengal | Payal Mohanka | India BookedThrough six chapters dedicated to a mostly unknown village in Bengal and its craft, Payal Mohanka paints a picture of the rural crafting communities that produce rather unusual crafts objects like wigs, decorative lights, polo balls, boats, shuttlecocks and jeans.
As a journalist, when Payal was filing four-minute capsules on each of these activities for the India Business Report on BBC World Service television, she made a decision to capture these activities in more detail. After a decade Payal Mohanka returned to these six villages; Baniban Jagdishpur, Chandernagor, Deulpur, Balagarh, Jadurberia and Chatta Kalikapur and the result...2022-11-1129 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaThe Train to Tanjore | Devika Rangachari | Songs of Freedom SeriesTanjore, 1942
There are few excitements in Thambi's quiet life. There is the new hotel, disapproved of by elders, which lures him with the aroma of sambar with onions. There are visits to the library to read the newspaper, and once in a while, a new movie at the Rajaram Electric Theatre. More disagreeably, there are fortnightly visits from his uncle to lay down the law.
When Gandhiji announces the Quit India movement, Tanjore is torn apart by protests. The train station-the lifeline of the town-is vandalized. Mysterious leaflets are circulated, containing news that newspapers do...2022-10-0236 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaA Conspiracy in Calcutta | Lesley D. Biswas | Songs of Freedom SeriesCalcutta, 1928
As the student protests gather momentum all across Calcutta, and police atrocities grow, ten-year-old Bithi wants to join in the struggle for freedom.
But living in a society where her best friend is to be married and just the fact that she is going to school is regarded with disapproval, how can Bithi play a substantial part? How can she fight those who are dearest to her? Discouraged but not daunted, Bithi schemes and plots and lies and is drawn into unexpected danger-all for the sake of fighting injustice in all its forms.
2022-10-0225 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaMuthulakshmi Reddy: A Trailblazer in Surgery and Women's Rights | VR DevikaJoin author VR Devika and host Ayushi Mona as they describe the indomitable spirit of a woman who campaigned to get rid of the practice of wet nurses, fought for girls’ education and widow remarriage, equal property rights for women, education reform, and rural healthcare for women. She took up the case of getting the practice of dedicating young girls as Devadasis, abolished.
This monograph describes how Dr Reddy established Avvai Home for poor and destitute girls, from where thousands have graduated and found their feet. Thereafter, following a successful career as a specialist in gynaecology and ob...2022-08-2136 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIridescent Skin : A Multispecies Journey of White sharks and Caged Humans | Raj Sekhar Aich | Season 2 | India Booked PodcastIridescent Skin is the first of its kind multispecies ethnography on humans and white sharks, entangled through the practice of cage diving at the very end of New Zealand. It is based on an immersive field work of marine anthropologist Prof. Raj Sekhar Aich, and his friend, research assistant, and anthropologist—Soosan Lucas, as they go in search of the elusive and mystified Great White Sharks of Foveaux Strait.
This is not a ‘shark book’, although it revolves around sharks in the classical sense of the manner. It is also not merely an academic book, although it is bas...2022-06-1831 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaPrimer on Money and Investing with M. T. Raghunath | India Booked Podcast | Season 2Are you someone who asks a lot of questions that contains, but why?. Why did humans invent money? Why do we need to pay interest when we borrow money? Why are so many people trying to sell me insurance-linked investments? Why do experts suggest investing in stocks when the prices swing all over the place? Why do some swear by index funds, while some suggest real estate? Why do they present historic data to support their products while also saying past performance is no guarantee of future returns? Why are so many people investing in cryptocurrency?
Join i...2022-06-1146 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked Podcast | Biman Nath on Homi BhabhaHomi Jehangir Bhabha was a nuclear physicist who pioneered the Indian nuclear research programme. Often hailed as the father of India’s nuclear power project, his ambition, far sightedness and enterprise shaped the development of modern science in India. Understanding the need for achieving self-reliance, he laid the framework for nuclear research in India by founding theTata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR) and the Atomic Energy Establishment, Trombay (AEET), later renamed Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) in his honour. Bhabha achieved international prominence for his trailblazing studies in the field of Atomic Energy, while his role of scientist-diplomat, handled with aplomb, g...2022-05-2831 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked | The Worlds Within You | Shreya RamachandranThe Worlds Within You tells the story of Ami Shekar, who has decided to take a break from her first year of university in the UK and return to her home in Chennai. Ami is stuck, and finds herself fretting, overthinking and retreating into her own head. But she knows that whatever it is that makes her feel 'weird' all the time must have a name to it. And so, Ami is back home, to come to terms with many things: her mental health, her own identity, memories of her grandfather and, finally, herself.
Set over the c...2022-05-0739 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked Podcast | Everyday Superfoods | Dr Nandita IyerIn Everyday Superfoods, bestselling author and nutritionist Dr Nandita Iyer brings to you everything you need to know about easily available local superfoods and ways to incorporate them into your diet. Through 60 simple recipes using an arsenal of 39 superfoods easily found in Indian kitchens, this book will not just help you understand your relationship with food but also show you how to improve your eating habits and enrich your daily meals with the goodness of superfoods.
This book includes:
-Details on specific superfoods for boosting immunity, treating diabetes and for better skin and hair;
-Daily me...2022-04-3054 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked Podcast | Billions Under Lockdown | Abantika GhoshWhen WHO first declared COVID-19 a global pandemic in March 2020, there was a great deal of apprehension about how India - the country with the highest TB cases and diabetes, inadequate health infrastructure and a population of 1.3 billion - would fare.
Between the Janata Curfew and the first vaccinations, a piece of massive machinery has been working as seamlessly as possible to make sure that, despite some missteps and missed infections, India conquers what has been the greatest challenge the world has encountered in decades.
Covering the pandemic from the start, first for The Indian Ex...2022-04-2449 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaAll You Need Is Josh by Supriya Paul | India Booked | Season 2 Episode 1All You Need is Josh: Inspiring Stories of Courage and Conviction in 21st Century India is a book of hope in a world of cynicism.
The book is a stories of individuals across India – of the aspiring astrophysicist who wanted to walk on the moon; the first person with a disability to top the civil services examinations; the domestic help who is now a published author; the army officer who amputated his own leg; the transgender woman who was expelled from her house; the Dalit child bride who now runs a business worth Rs 1,000 crore, and many mor...2021-08-2141 min
India BookedIndia Booked | The Story of India's Most Popular PrayerAn appeal to the Lord to arise and save the world, the Venkatesa Suprabhatam is the first of four recitations that are sung together every morning in the Lord Venkateswara temple in Tirumala, where it was originally sung.Prativadi Bhayankaram Anna, who composed this prayer in the fifteenth century, was a saint, a poet and an ardent devotee of Lord Vishnu. The poet’s devotion shines through, most unforgettably in M.S. Subbulakshmi's rendition, which rings through many south Indian homes in the mornings.Venkatesa Suprabhatam: The Story of India’s Most Popular Prayer is a tr...2021-01-2831 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked | The Story of India's Most Popular PrayerAn appeal to the Lord to arise and save the world, the Venkatesa Suprabhatam is the first of four recitations that are sung together every morning in the Lord Venkateswara temple in Tirumala, where it was originally sung.
Prativadi Bhayankaram Anna, who composed this prayer in the fifteenth century, was a saint, a poet and an ardent devotee of Lord Vishnu. The poet’s devotion shines through, most unforgettably in M.S. Subbulakshmi's rendition, which rings through many south Indian homes in the mornings.
Venkatesa Suprabhatam: The Story of India’s Most Popular Prayer is a translation of the prayer, a jo...2021-01-2831 minIndia BookedIndia Booked | Farm Income: Myths and RealitiesThe Green Revolution resulted in spectacular advancements in Indian agriculture. Having achieved food security for its citizens, the country has now become a net exporter of different agricultural commodities. But sadly, this does not reflect the real state of the Indian agricultural sector. In truth, our farmers are plagued by crop failures, poor income, and indebtedness. Such is their misery that they are of late driven to commit suicide. Join the author Prof. Narayanamoorthy in conversation with host Ayushi Mona where we dive into temporal and spatial data to figure what's right and what's gone terribly, terribly w...2021-01-2330 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked | Farm Income: Myths and RealitiesThe Green Revolution resulted in spectacular advancements in Indian agriculture. Having achieved food security for its citizens, the country has now become a net exporter of different agricultural commodities. But sadly, this does not reflect the real state of the Indian agricultural sector. In truth, our farmers are plagued by crop failures, poor income, and indebtedness. Such is their misery that they are of late driven to commit suicide.
Join the author Prof. Narayanamoorthy in conversation with host Ayushi Mona where we dive into temporal and spatial data to figure what's right and what's gone terribly, terribly wrong!2021-01-2330 minIndia BookedIndia Booked | Colaba: The Diamond at the Tip of MumbaiColaba, the southernmost tip of Mumbai, is Mumbai's most iconic neighbourhood. This bustling locality—with the Gateway of India, the world-famous Taj Mahal Hotel, and the Colaba Causeway, a shopper’s paradise—is an unparalleled tourist attraction. But barely 200 years ago, it was a rocky, jackal-infested island, separated from the rest of Bombay by a temperamental creek. In this episode, host Ayushi Mona discusses the compelling biography of the neighbourhood with author Shabnam Minwalla. The podcast much like the book unravels accounts of colonial rivalries and dowry negotiations; and of shrewd industrialists who transformed this doomed island into the centre...2021-01-1656 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked | Colaba: The Diamond at the Tip of MumbaiColaba, the southernmost tip of Mumbai, is Mumbai's most iconic neighbourhood. This bustling locality—with the Gateway of India, the world-famous Taj Mahal Hotel, and the Colaba Causeway, a shopper’s paradise—is an unparalleled tourist attraction. But barely 200 years ago, it was a rocky, jackal-infested island, separated from the rest of Bombay by a temperamental creek. In this episode, host Ayushi Mona discusses the compelling biography of the neighbourhood with author Shabnam Minwalla. The podcast much like the book unravels accounts of colonial rivalries and dowry negotiations; and of shrewd industrialists who transformed this doomed island into the centre of tra...2021-01-1656 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked | The Indian Banking Story with Madan SabnavisDo you often wonder— ‘Is my money safe in banks?’ India is grappling with its worst banking crisis ever, and we are still trying to figure out what landed us here. This podcast episode with economist Madan Sabnavis analyses the role of the government and RBI in allowing the problem to reach the dimension it has assumed today.
When will the never-ending NPA issue be resolved? Does it make sense to merge two PSBs when the culture and governance structures are alike? Should the RBI reserves be used in times of crisis? Should the tenure of a CEO be long or sho...2021-01-0941 minIndia BookedIndia Booked | The Climate StoryIn this episode of India Booked, host Ayushi Mona talks to Rajat Chaudhuri about 'The Butterfly Effect', on how his work as a climate activist is reflected in his fiction, the necessity of "enveloping scientific ideas in a story" to make it more accessible, the interconnected roles of technology, politics, public health and the environment, especially in India, and more. Listen in for a scathing yet succint breakdown of how consumption and corporate lobbies work, and the role activism can play in correcting injustice. The Butterfly Effect reveals a grim picture of humanity, it brings to life an eco-dystopian...2021-01-0245 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked | The Climate StoryIn this episode of India Booked, host Ayushi Mona talks to Rajat Chaudhuri about 'The Butterfly Effect', on how his work as a climate activist is reflected in his fiction, the necessity of "enveloping scientific ideas in a story" to make it more accessible, the interconnected roles of technology, politics, public health and the environment, especially in India, and more. Listen in for a scathing yet succint breakdown of how consumption and corporate lobbies work, and the role activism can play in correcting injustice. The Butterfly Effect reveals a grim picture of humanity, it brings to life an eco-dystopian story...2021-01-0245 minIndia BookedIndia Booked | Waiting for the Dust to SettleIn this episode of India Booked, host Ayushi Mona talks to Veio Pou, about his brilliant new debut novel, Waiting for the Dust to Settle, published by Speaking Tiger Books. Set in Manipur, the book is a moving novel about the human cost of the violence that the Naga. The podcast discussed what people have endured since the 1980s telling the story of Operation Bluebird—one of the darkest yet little discussed moments in the history of the Indian Army in the northeast. Above everything else, this is a deeply human portrait of an entire people the novel talks ab...2020-12-2644 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked | Waiting for the Dust to SettleIn this episode of India Booked, host Ayushi Mona talks to Veio Pou, about his brilliant new debut novel, Waiting for the Dust to Settle, published by Speaking Tiger Books. Set in Manipur, the book is a moving novel about the human cost of the violence that the Naga. The podcast discussed what people have endured since the 1980s telling the story of Operation Bluebird—one of the darkest yet little discussed moments in the history of the Indian Army in the northeast. Above everything else, this is a deeply human portrait of an entire people the novel talks about th...2020-12-2644 minIndia BookedIndia Booked | Chronicling LivesIn this episode of India Booked, host Ayushi Mona talks to Vikram Sampath, the best selling author of four acclaimed biographies, ‘Splendours of Royal Mysore: the Untold Story of the Wodeyars’ on the Mysore royal family; ‘My Name is Gauhar Jaan: The Life and Times of a Musician’- the biography of India's first recording superstar Gauhar Jaan of Calcutta; ‘Voice of the Veena: S Balachander - A Biography’, the story of eminent veena maestro late Dr. S Balachander and ‘Savarkar: Echoes from a Forgotten Past, 1883–1924’ which is the first volume of a two-part biography about the legendary Indian revolutionary lead...2020-12-1954 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked | Chronicling LivesIn this episode of India Booked, host Ayushi Mona talks to Vikram Sampath, the best selling author of four acclaimed biographies, ‘Splendours of Royal Mysore: the Untold Story of the Wodeyars’ on the Mysore royal family; ‘My Name is Gauhar Jaan: The Life and Times of a Musician’- the biography of India's first recording superstar Gauhar Jaan of Calcutta; ‘Voice of the Veena: S Balachander - A Biography’, the story of eminent veena maestro late Dr. S Balachander and ‘Savarkar: Echoes from a Forgotten Past, 1883–1924’ which is the first volume of a two-part biography about the legendary Indian revolutionary leader– Vinayak Da...2020-12-1954 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked | Krishnadevaraya of VijayanagaraRAYA: Krishnadevaraya of Vijayanagara, written by author Srinivas Reddy, is the definitive biography of India’s first truly global leader and one of the greatest kings who changed the course of Indian history. In this episode of India Booked, host Ayushi Mona and author Srinivas Reddy engage in an ardent conversation about Deccan history, the life of Krishnadevaraya and the town of Hampi.
Srinivas Reddy is a scholar, translator and musician, and his previous books include translations of Krishnadevaraya’s Amuktamalyada and Kalidasa’s Meghadutam and Malavikagnimitram.
The podcast delves into a discussion about caste, tolerance and the sensitivities around it, th...2020-12-1250 minIndia BookedIndia Booked | Krishnadevaraya of VijayanagaraRAYA: Krishnadevaraya of Vijayanagara, written by author Srinivas Reddy, is the definitive biography of India’s first truly global leader and one of the greatest kings who changed the course of Indian history. In this episode of India Booked, host Ayushi Mona and author Srinivas Reddy engage in an ardent conversation about Deccan history, the life of Krishnadevaraya and the town of Hampi.Srinivas Reddy is a scholar, translator and musician, and his previous books include translations of Krishnadevaraya’s Amuktamalyada and Kalidasa’s Meghadutam and Malavikagnimitram.The podcast delves into a discussion about caste, tolera...2020-12-1250 min
Tell Me About It24: Who, Me? Personal Branding 101 | Part-2Hear our what LinkedIn and Instagram influencers have to say on building a personal brand.Ayushi MonaQuora and Linkedin influencer. Currently, working in Novartis as Digital ManagerAarushiAn Instagram influencer worked with 40+ brands, Mica alumni & an Entrepreneur. Joining ITC Ltd. soon as sales and marketing trainee. She loves to travel and explore.2020-12-0930 minTell Me About It23: Who, Me? Personal Branding 101 | Part-1Hear our what LinkedIn and Instagram influencers have to say on building a personal brand.Ayushi MonaQuora and Linkedin influencer. Currently, working in Novartis as Digital ManagerAarushiAn Instagram influencer worked with 40+ brands, Mica alumni & an Entrepreneur. Joining ITC Ltd. soon as sales and marketing trainee. She loves to travel and explore.2020-12-0734 minIndia BookedIndia Booked | Tales from the HimalayasIn this episode of India Booked, journalist and children’s book writer Priyanka Pradhan takes us on a journey through the Himalayas by discussing stories from her book ‘Tales from the Himalayas’ which features snow leopards to bagpiping girls to the real life stories of heroes from the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand, Gaura Devi and Nain Singh Rawat. This book is for “all the children, including the children in us” as she says, for the stories in it, from the heart of the mountains, though fascinating and fun, are diverse and impactful at the same time. This pod...2020-12-0525 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked | Tales from the HimalayasIn this episode of India Booked, journalist and children’s book writer Priyanka Pradhan takes us on a journey through the Himalayas by discussing stories from her book ‘Tales from the Himalayas’ which features snow leopards to bagpiping girls to the real life stories of heroes from the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand, Gaura Devi and Nain Singh Rawat.
This book is for “all the children, including the children in us” as she says, for the stories in it, from the heart of the mountains, though fascinating and fun, are diverse and impactful at the same time.
This podcast is light hearted as...2020-12-0525 minIndia BookedIndia Booked | Isolation in the aftermath of COVID-19In this episode of India Booked, Ayushi Mona discusses with social activist, writer and editor Ishmeet Nagpal, an array of essential topics ranging from the upsurge in domestic violence during the lockdown to the plight of migrant workers stranded far away from their homes, the unfair burden of expectations on women during the quarantine and the uncertainty of living in cities. The podcast explores ‘Isolocation Poems’, which is an anthology of shortlisted poems coedited by Ishmeet that reflects the shared reality of people coping with the shifted reality of life due to the Covid-19 Pandemic. List...2020-12-0434 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked | Isolation in the aftermath of COVID-19In this episode of India Booked, Ayushi Mona discusses with social activist, writer and editor Ishmeet Nagpal, an array of essential topics ranging from the upsurge in domestic violence during the lockdown to the plight of migrant workers stranded far away from their homes, the unfair burden of expectations on women during the quarantine and the uncertainty of living in cities.
The podcast explores ‘Isolocation Poems’, which is an anthology of shortlisted poems coedited by Ishmeet that reflects the shared reality of people coping with the shifted reality of life due to the Covid-19 Pandemic.
Listen now to discover how the...2020-12-0434 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked | Panjab: Journeys Through Fault Lines‘Panjab: Journeys Through Fault Lines’ is a rigorous investigation and a personalized narrative by Amandeep Sandhu about the matters of Panjab, an account on the recovery from its past and the discovery of its present.
This episode of India Booked is illuminating and comprehensive, much like the book itself, which brings an alternative outlook to the pre-existing perspectives on Panjab by discussing the impacts of militancy, separation, farm bills and egalitarianism, underlining the contrasts of a Panjab that was and a Panjab that exists now.
This conversation between Ayushi and Amandeep spans across the representation of Panjab in political and ente...2020-11-2853 minIndia BookedIndia Booked | Gujarat, Dhumketu, and TranslationsWriter, literary translator, book critic and a literary podcast (Desi Books) host herself, Jenny Bhatt speaks to Ayushi Mona how the themes of Dhumketu’s books resonated with the short stories of her own, prompting her to bring out her debut literary translation, ‘Ratno Dholi: The Best Stories of Dhumketu’. In this hour-long episode on short stories and translations, Jenny describes, through brilliant metaphors, how a short story differs from a novel and why it is unfair to expect authors with different skillsets to master both, and about the commercial pressures on writers in the publishing industry. R...2020-11-2150 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked | Gujarat, Dhumketu, and TranslationsWriter, literary translator, book critic and a literary podcast (Desi Books) host herself, Jenny Bhatt speaks to Ayushi Mona how the themes of Dhumketu’s books resonated with the short stories of her own, prompting her to bring out her debut literary translation, ‘Ratno Dholi: The Best Stories of Dhumketu’.
In this hour-long episode on short stories and translations, Jenny describes, through brilliant metaphors, how a short story differs from a novel and why it is unfair to expect authors with different skillsets to master both, and about the commercial pressures on writers in the publishing industry.
Recommending works by other...2020-11-2150 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked | A Colonial Whodunnit‘Twilight in a Knotted World’ is the third novel by journalist and historian Siddhartha Sarma that uncovers the many layers of the Phansigar problem and a hierarchy of stranglers through the investigations of Captain William Henry Sleeman, unearthing mysteries and bleak, uncomfortable truths about India.
In the 18th episode of India Booked, discussing the period of colonial India, host Ayushi Mona and Author Siddhartha Sarma unravel the aspects of history and the gaps that are filled by fictionalizing it.
The podcast delves into the reasons for bringing out the book and the solid portrayal of major female characters in it, the...2020-11-1437 minIndia BookedIndia Booked | A Colonial Whodunnit‘Twilight in a Knotted World’ is the third novel by journalist and historian Siddhartha Sarma that uncovers the many layers of the Phansigar problem and a hierarchy of stranglers through the investigations of Captain William Henry Sleeman, unearthing mysteries and bleak, uncomfortable truths about India. In the 18th episode of India Booked, discussing the period of colonial India, host Ayushi Mona and Author Siddhartha Sarma unravel the aspects of history and the gaps that are filled by fictionalizing it. The podcast delves into the reasons for bringing out the book and the solid portrayal of majo...2020-11-1437 minIndia BookedIndia Booked | Women, Morality and Moral Strength‘Bhairavi- The Runaway’, written by Shivani aka Gaura Pant, a pioneer of women’s fiction in India, is the story of a woman's life, her resilience, her moral and mental strength, and about the restraints and choices women have in the society. In this episode of India Booked, the translator of ‘Bhairavi’ and Chitra Mudgal’s ‘Giligadu’, Priyanka Sarkar talks to Ayushi Mona about her experience translating the books, the scope and depth of women’s literature, about bringing alive a concept to an unaware audience and as she says, ‘translating the untranslatable’. The discussion in this episode spans...2020-11-0742 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked | Women, Morality and Moral Strength‘Bhairavi- The Runaway’, written by Shivani aka Gaura Pant, a pioneer of women’s fiction in India, is the story of a woman's life, her resilience, her moral and mental strength, and about the restraints and choices women have in the society.
In this episode of India Booked, the translator of ‘Bhairavi’ and Chitra Mudgal’s ‘Giligadu’, Priyanka Sarkar talks to Ayushi Mona about her experience translating the books, the scope and depth of women’s literature, about bringing alive a concept to an unaware audience and as she says, ‘translating the untranslatable’.
The discussion in this episode spans from the reactions women re...2020-11-0742 minIndia BookedIndia Booked | The Shocking Lives of India's TeenagersStoned, Shamed, Depressed’ is an alarming reality check of the struggles faced by the teens of India, dealing with the evident but deliberately denied issues of substance abuse, social media and gaming, bullying, body shaming and the frailty of mental health. Renowned journalist and author Jyotsna Mohan Bhargava traces the difficult journey from teenage to adulthood, where children easily give into temptations without realizing the repercussions and dangers of the virtual world and bad habits. In this episode of India Booked, Jyotsna talks to host Ayushi Mona about the eye opening accounts that materialized the book and the in...2020-10-3137 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked | The Shocking Lives of India’s TeenagersStoned, Shamed, Depressed’ is an alarming reality check of the struggles faced by the teens of India, dealing with the evident but deliberately denied issues of substance abuse, social media and gaming, bullying, body shaming and the frailty of mental health. Renowned journalist and author Jyotsna Mohan Bhargava traces the difficult journey from teenage to adulthood, where children easily give into temptations without realizing the repercussions and dangers of the virtual world and bad habits.
In this episode of India Booked, Jyotsna talks to host Ayushi Mona about the eye opening accounts that materialized the book and the incidents that co...2020-10-3137 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked | Travelling Tales of Tibet‘The ‘Other’ Shangri-La: Journeys through the Sino-Tibetan frontier in Sichuan’ is a narrative travelogue based on author Shivaji Das and his wife’s journey which explores the region’s history and the lives and cultures of the people inhabiting these remote lands in detail.
In this episode of India Booked, Shivaji Das and Yolanda Yu recount their journey to Tibet as writers and more significantly as travellers, embellishing it with quirky incidents and fascinating anecdotes.
The travel enthusiasts and companions share with Ayushi Mona the highlight of their trip with surprisingly different approaches, one recounting how they got entangled in the unfoldin...2020-10-2434 minIndia BookedIndia Booked | Travelling Tales of Tibet ‘The ‘Other’ Shangri-La: Journeys through the Sino-Tibetan frontier in Sichuan’ is a narrative travelogue based on author Shivaji Das and his wife’s journey which explores the region’s history and the lives and cultures of the people inhabiting these remote lands in detail. In this episode of India Booked, Shivaji Das and Yolanda Yu recount their journey to Tibet as writers and more significantly as travellers, embellishing it with quirky incidents and fascinating anecdotes. The travel enthusiasts and companions share with Ayushi Mona the highlight of their trip with surprisingly different approaches, one recounting how they got entang...2020-10-2434 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked | Jaipur and Japan: A Kindred ContrastIn the 14th episode of India Booked, author Anukrti Upadhyay takes us through the deserts of Rajasthan and the hot springs of Japan through her novel Kintsugi. In the same conversation, she connects contrasts betweenthe cultures of Jaipur and Japan and creates a delightful echo, all of her own.
Anukrti Upadhyay is also the author of the twin novellas Daura and Bhaunri, which have been commended for its independent characters and fresh narrative, and a short story collection in Hindi called Japani Sarai, making her one of the few bilingual writers in India.
Tune into this episode to hear her...2020-10-1736 minIndia BookedIndia Booked | Jaipur and Japan: A Kindred ContrastIn the 14th episode of India Booked, author Anukrti Upadhyay takes us through the deserts of Rajasthan and the hot springs of Japan through her novel Kintsugi. In the same conversation, she connects contrasts betweenthe cultures of Jaipur and Japan and creates a delightful echo, all of her own. Anukrti Upadhyay is also the author of the twin novellas Daura and Bhaunri, which have been commended for its independent characters and fresh narrative, and a short story collection in Hindi called Japani Sarai, making her one of the few bilingual writers in India. Tune into this...2020-10-1736 minIndia BookedIndia Booked | Timeless Tales from MarwarFor centuries, Rajasthan has been a gold mine of oral traditions and histories, with Padma Shri Vijaydan Detha being one of the foremost storytellers of all time. His stories, collected from the common folk of Rajasthan, mark an important intervention in 20th century Rajasthani literature. Giving a new lease of life to his writings, Timeless Tales from Marwar is a handpicked collection of folk tales from the everlasting works of Detha’s celebrated Batan ri Phulwari meaning ‘Garden of Tales’. Collected and written over the span of nearly fifty years, this fourteen-volume assortment of Rajasthani folk stories earned...2020-10-1043 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked | Timeless Tales from MarwarFor centuries, Rajasthan has been a gold mine of oral traditions and histories, with Padma Shri Vijaydan Detha being one of the foremost storytellers of all time. His stories, collected from the common folk of Rajasthan, mark an important intervention in 20th century Rajasthani literature.
Giving a new lease of life to his writings, Timeless Tales from Marwar is a handpicked collection of folk tales from the everlasting works of Detha’s celebrated Batan ri Phulwari meaning ‘Garden of Tales’. Collected and written over the span of nearly fifty years, this fourteen-volume assortment of Rajasthani folk stories earned him the monike...2020-10-1043 minIndia BookedIndia Booked | Serenading SoundBringing in the 12th episode of India Booked on a high note! Shantanu Datta, in his 30-year-long journalism career, has interviewed such global icons as Roger Waters (Pink Floyd), Ian Anderson and Martin Barre (Jethro Tull), Mark Knopfler (Dire Straits), Usha Uthap, Dilip Balakrishnan, and several, several more. He has written about it in the Speaking Tiger-published, Calling Elvis.Host Ayushi Mona has an hour-long chat with Datta about this journey of seeing the consumption of western music change in India, his own relationship with music and musicians ("When I spoke to them, the names on vinyl...2020-10-0358 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked | Serenading SoundBringing in the 12th episode of India Booked on a high note! Shantanu Datta, in his 30-year-long journalism career, has interviewed such global icons as Roger Waters (Pink Floyd), Ian Anderson and Martin Barre (Jethro Tull), Mark Knopfler (Dire Straits), Usha Uthap, Dilip Balakrishnan, and several, several more. He has written about it in the Speaking Tiger-published, Calling Elvis.
Host Ayushi Mona has an hour-long chat with Datta about this journey of seeing the consumption of western music change in India, his own relationship with music and musicians ("When I spoke to them, the names on vinyl records came alive,"...2020-10-0358 minIndia BookedIndia Booked | Kolkata: A Literary LensA prolific translator, the Books Editor at Scroll.in, and professor of creative writing and literary journalism; Arunava Sinha is one of India’s most important literary figures.In this episode of India Booked, Ayushi Mona and Sinha discuss Bengali literature and how he came to translation (part awareness, part accident, part design), the city of Calcutta (“The theatre of the vast drama of human life” as Sinha puts it) in the literary imagination of readers and writers both in Bengali and English, how the city’s literary, political, and sporting culture has directly or indirectly influenced so many...2020-09-2635 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked | Kolkata: A Literary LensA prolific translator, the Books Editor at Scroll.in, and professor of creative writing and literary journalism; Arunava Sinha is one of India’s most important literary figures.
In this episode of India Booked, Ayushi Mona and Sinha discuss Bengali literature and how he came to translation (part awareness, part accident, part design), the city of Calcutta (“The theatre of the vast drama of human life” as Sinha puts it) in the literary imagination of readers and writers both in Bengali and English, how the city’s literary, political, and sporting culture has directly or indirectly influenced so many of our writ...2020-09-2635 minIndia BookedIndia Booked | The Baolis of IndiaIn this episode of India Booked, host Ayushi Mona speaks to Vikramjit Singh Rooprai, an educator, heritage activist and author. They discuss all thing Indian heritage, especially 'Baolis', or stepwells, of and around Delhi. Vikramjit shares the brilliance behind physics and other natural factors involved in creation of a Baoli, and what really pushed him to write 'Delhi Heritage: Top 10 Baolis' (published by Niyogi Books), the research involved, his passion for Indian heritage sites, and much more. Tune in now!2020-09-1933 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked | The Baolis of IndiaIn this episode of India Booked, host Ayushi Mona speaks to Vikramjit Singh Rooprai, an educator, heritage activist and author. They discuss all thing Indian heritage, especially 'Baolis', or stepwells, of and around Delhi.
Vikramjit shares the brilliance behind physics and other natural factors involved in creation of a Baoli, and what really pushed him to write 'Delhi Heritage: Top 10 Baolis' (published by Niyogi Books), the research involved, his passion for Indian heritage sites, and much more. Tune in now!2020-09-1933 minIndia BookedIndia Booked | Art, Programming and Sanskrit PoetryIn episode 9 of India Booked, Ayushi Mona and bestselling author Vikram Chandra discuss his non fiction debut, Mirrored Mind: My Life in Letters and Code.The podcast expounds on the connections between the worlds of art and technology. Is elegance the domain only of writers and artists? What about Coders also obsessed with the same but how can we ascribe beauty to the craft of writing code?Listen to this podcast to explore varied topics discussed in the book such as logic gates and literary modernism, the machismo of tech geeks, the omnipresence of a...2020-09-1245 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked | Art, Programming and Sanskrit PoetryIn episode 9 of India Booked, Ayushi Mona and bestselling author Vikram Chandra discuss his non fiction debut, Mirrored Mind: My Life in Letters and Code.
The podcast expounds on the connections between the worlds of art and technology. Is elegance the domain only of writers and artists? What about Coders also obsessed with the same but how can we ascribe beauty to the craft of writing code?
Listen to this podcast to explore varied topics discussed in the book such as logic gates and literary modernism, the machismo of tech geeks, the omnipresence of an “Indian Mafia” in Silicon Valley, and...2020-09-1245 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked | Courtesans in the Indian ImaginationIn this eighth episode of India Booked, Ayushi Mona speaks to the stalwart academic and writer Ruth Vanita.
They chat about her journey writing about the courtesans of India (in Dancing with the Nation: Courtesans in Bombay Cinema and Memory of Light), what inspired her to write about the courtesan culture, how Victorian morality changed the ideas of pleasure in Indian society and made the "dominant attitude" as anti-pleasure, her favourite cinematic depiction of courtesans, and much much more.
Tune in now on the channel of your choice or the link in our bio.
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Ruth Vanita is an Indian academic...2020-09-0525 minIndia BookedIndia Booked | Courtesans in the Indian ImaginationIn this eighth episode of India Booked, Ayushi Mona speaks to the stalwart academic and writer Ruth Vanita. They chat about her journey writing about the courtesans of India (in Dancing with the Nation: Courtesans in Bombay Cinema and Memory of Light), what inspired her to write about the courtesan culture, how Victorian morality changed the ideas of pleasure in Indian society and made the "dominant attitude" as anti-pleasure, her favourite cinematic depiction of courtesans, and much much more. Tune in now on the channel of your choice or the link in our bio. 2020-09-0525 minIndia BookedIndia Booked | Delhi Childhood: Memory and WritingEssayist, short-story writer, and author of 'House of Nails', and 'Fire Girl', Sayantani Dasgupta speaks to Ayushi Mona about her childhood experiences – from being an avid-reader to enjoying the dynamics of Delhi, from getting emotional to evolving as a person who places everything in contexts, from what moved her about Delhi to books that you should read, and more. Tune in now. "Fire Girl," is her debut collection of essays, where she examines her personal story against the history, religion, popular culture and mythology of South Asia and her current home in the American West.2020-08-2940 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked | Delhi Childhood: Memory and WritingEssayist, short-story writer, and author of 'House of Nails', and 'Fire Girl', Sayantani Dasgupta speaks to Ayushi Mona about her childhood experiences – from being an avid-reader to enjoying the dynamics of Delhi, from getting emotional to evolving as a person who places everything in contexts, from what moved her about Delhi to books that you should read, and more. Tune in now.
"Fire Girl," is her debut collection of essays, where she examines her personal story against the history, religion, popular culture and mythology of South Asia and her current home in the American West.2020-08-2940 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked | Bulletproof Stories of the NortheastIn Bulletproof, journalist and author Teresa Rehman goes beyond statistics and looks at documentary evidences, and shows us how conflict impacts women, children, health etc. A first-of-its-kind account, Bulletproof is the story of a female combat journalist and her encounters with insurgency from north-east India.
In this episode of India Booked, Rehman speaks to Ayushi Mona about her experiences of being a journalist and author, and also shares the story behind the title of the book, how challenging and eventually traumatic it is to report in some of the most under-reported regions without any support system, why it's important to...2020-08-2236 minIndia BookedIndia Booked | Bulletproof Stories of the NortheastIn Bulletproof, journalist and author Teresa Rehman goes beyond statistics and looks at documentary evidences, and shows us how conflict impacts women, children, health etc. A first-of-its-kind account, Bulletproof is the story of a female combat journalist and her encounters with insurgency from north-east India.In this episode of India Booked, Rehman speaks to Ayushi Mona about her experiences of being a journalist and author, and also shares the story behind the title of the book, how challenging and eventually traumatic it is to report in some of the most under-reported regions without any support system, why...2020-08-2236 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked | India's Highway EconomyIn Truck De India!, journalist Rajat Ubhaykar embarks on a 10,000 km-long, 100% unplanned trip, hitchhiking with truckers all across India. On the way, he makes unexpected friendships; listens to highway ghost stories; discovers the near-fatal consequences of overloading trucks; documents the fascinating tradition of truck art in Punjab; travels alongside nomadic shepherds in Kashmir; encounters endemic corruption repeatedly; survives NH39, the insurgent-ridden highway through Nagaland and Manipur; and is unfailingly greeted by the unconditional kindness of perfect strangers.
Imbued with humour, empathy, and a keen sense of history, Truck De India! is a travelogue like no other you've read. It is...2020-08-0933 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked | Bad Money in the Indian EconomyBad Money, the latest book of Vivek Kaul is an important title for the way its author discloses the history of the Indian Economy and Banking system we never knew about, and discusses why it is important to be aware of where your money goes.
In this episode of India Booked, Ayushi Mona discusses with him what constitutes bad money, what the transition has been like from the banking systems in the past to the current ones, and how important is it to know where your money is safe and unsafe. In this episode, he also unfolds how bad money...2020-08-0834 minIndia BookedIndia Booked | Bad Money in the Indian EconomyBad Money, the latest book of Vivek Kaul is an important title for the way its author discloses the history of the Indian Economy and Banking system we never knew about, and discusses why it is important to be aware of where your money goes. In this episode of India Booked, Ayushi Mona discusses with him what constitutes bad money, what the transition has been like from the banking systems in the past to the current ones, and how important is it to know where your money is safe and unsafe. In this episode, he also unfolds h...2020-08-0834 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked | Invisible ManInvisible Man, the seminal work (controversies and shortcomings included) talking about the Indian transmasculine network, is an important work for bringing the community's voice to the fore. In this episode of India Booked, Ayushi speaks to author Nandini Krishnan on how the book came to be, what the interview process looked like, how India's socio-religio-political realities play out within the network, the friction that the book caused after being released, and much, much more. Tune in now!2020-08-0146 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked | Food and FaithIn the second episode, travel through a Christian village in Meghalaya, meet the Kolkata-based Jewish community and feast on the 56-course feast at Jagannath as India Booked talks to Varud Gupta, author of the cookbook-cum-travelouge Bhagwaan Ke Pakwaan. Listen to discover what he has to share on the connections between faith and food in the communities of India and how they are trying to preserve their culinary cultures.
Varud Gupta is an NYU graduate in Finance. He has also penned Chhotu, a coming-of-age graphic novel set against the Partition. Bhagwaan ke Pakwaan, which loosely translates to Food of the Gods...2020-07-2536 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked | Understanding AkbarIn the first episode, India Booked talks to Manimugdha Sharma, News Editor and author of Allahu Akbar: Understanding the Great Mughal in Today's India. Listen to discover about mughals, akbars, nationalism and how bollywood gets Akbar wrong.
Manimugdha Sharma is a quizzer, a journalist, and holds an interest and education in history. In Allahu Akbar, he combines his love and knowledge of the past, to give us an interesting oral account of what Akbar represents in today's times. We discuss Akbar's ruthless achievements in warfare, his political savviness and how media agenda setting and the (mis)representation of matters has...2020-07-1841 min
India Booked with Ayushi MonaIndia Booked TrailerIndia Booked Trailer2020-07-1600 min
Lit NamaChapter. 15: A fine balance ft. Ayushi and RewaIn this episode featuring Ayushi Mona and Rewa Tamboli from the Broke Bibliophiles Bombay community, Laxmi takes a dive into the story of a Four-year old book club in the city, the ideas and influences of literary communities, and how they become an integral part of a literary ecosystem. While illustrating how virtual and physical book clubs function, they talk about evolving norms, practices as well as how they are functioning through the current Lockdown.You can follow Laxmi Krishnan on her Instagram handle: @literarychills(https://www.instagram.com/literarychills/?igshid=14c6tsq7jyhjb)...2020-04-2149 min