Shows
Masala History by SivaThe Korean Connection (The Tamil Princess who ruled Korea)In Bollywood movies, it is not uncommon where a long lost family reunites with a 'family' song. Or that someone finds a brother (whom he has never seen from childhood) by identifying that they have same mannerisms. Even a case where someone remembers something random so vividly only to be explained that it is from his former birth. In short, these are some interesting connections.
In today's Masala History by Siva, I will try to explain to you some interesting connections between 2 far away countries/communities of India (Tamilnadu) and Korea - and trace back...
2021-04-0910 min
Masala History by SivaFirst Woman Monarch in IndiaPop quiz.
Who is the first woman monarch in India?
If you said Jhansi Rani Lakshmi Bai, try again. Although, a solid percentage of randomly polled people said that. If you said Rani Mangammal or Rani Velu Naachiyaar, it still isn't the right answer - but you certainly deserve an applause for knowing these terrific queens. If you said Razia Sultana, I would disagree - although the topmost search results in Google for the above question points to her. If you said Rani Rudramma Devi, I am impressed of your knowledge of the Kakatiyas...
2021-03-0508 min
Masala History by SivaThe resident of Baker Street"I am in Baker Street, London - been here for 180+ years. Anyone who has visited London has possibly visited my place. And even those who haven't visited England have most likely heard of me. In today's edition of Masala History by Siva, I chose to tell my strange story. So travel with me 250 years back as I narrate what I have seen, done and continue to do today."
Come and listen to the creepy story of the resident of Baker Street here or in a platform of your choice from www.masalahistorybysiva.in .
2021-02-1207 min
Masala History by SivaThe Head without a Crown and the bodyThe United Kingdom is one of the oldest constitutional monarchies in the world. Starting with Magna Carta in 1215 CE, England went slowly but surely in the direction of having an overseeing community and then a constitution that kept the power of crown under check. And with that in place, they also were the first power perhaps to try their own King, a sovereign, in a court of law and sentence him to death. When King Charles I was executed as Citizen Charles Stuart by his own people, it was unprecedented.
In today's episode we are going to...
2021-01-2909 min
Masala History by SivaA masala history of time - Happy new year? 2021? everyone?Happy new year 2021 everyone.
Wait!! Is that wish right? In this complex and diverse world, does a statement like the above generically apply? Let's validate every word up there.
"Happy" is a state of mind, so let's keep it aside for a history blog and hope that is true for everyone.
"New year" - Does the year get new on January 1? Why? Since when? And for whom?
2021 - is this the current year? How and why? For whom?
everyone - Does the wish apply to everyone? Who does everyone refer...
2021-01-0808 min
Masala History by SivaThe Mystery Man of BrihadeeswaraWelcome to Masala History by Siva. Travel with me to the modern day Tamilnadu state of India, as we discuss some interesting secrets of a UNESCO World Heritage site. As promised in one of my earlier podcasts on Rajendra Chola, this edition is based on the magnum opus of the Chola reign - the grand Brihadeeswara temple in Thanjavur. Just like the first podcast where we discussed a foreign statue in the Srirangam temple, in today's show we will be talking about another foreigner image in the Brihadeeswara Temple.
Rajaraja Chola was one of the...
2020-12-2511 min
Masala History by SivaThe Zimmermann Telegram - that brought America to World War IToday, Telegram stands for the app/product that is trying to compete with WhatsApp or Messenger. For those of you who can remember, telegram was one of the earliest instant communicator - it stood for the telegraphed messages that passed from one user to another via telegraphic offices globally.
Today we will be seeing significant big world event caused by a telegram. This telegram was sent from Germany, intended to a recipient in Mexico in the middle of the Great War.
Germany decided that the best way to keep America from dedicating men and arms...
2020-12-1110 min
Masala History by SivaLord Masala Mountbatten - the untold storiesWith the first episode of The Crown - Season 4 starting with events of 1979, I found myself remembering the histories of this flamboyant fellow Gemini, who was a part of several remarkable events of 20th century. The spicy histories of this person practically started when he was born and followed him until his death. He had controversies for breakfast and gossips for dinner with no shortage of any drama in between. It is inconceivable that he could have had it any other way and is perhaps more eligible to have the title of 'Masala' before his name than...
2020-11-2700 min
Masala History by SivaThe Emperor and the RaiderWelcome to Masala History by Siva. Travel with me a 1000 years back as we explore the real life Bahubali - Rajendra Chola, the son who eclipsed his illustrious father, the great Arunmozhi Varman or more commonly known as Rajaraja Chola.
Rajaraja Chola is considered the greatest Chola King. He expanded his empire substantially in the south, organized a naval force and stormed northern Ceylon. Rajaraja also built the then tallest structure of Asia - the Brahadeesvara temple, an engineering marvel and still stands proud today.
But arguably, the greatest Chola was his son Rajendra, the...
2020-11-1300 min
Masala History by SivaCulture Shock - the modern European lands in IndiaAs I was reading through the story of Estado da India or Portugese India, I came across very interesting material around how the modern Europeans, who arrived in the Indian Malabar coast via the Oceanic routes, found themselves totally unaware of the Indian culture and customs. I found it fascinating and thought I will share it with all of you.
In today's edition of Masala History by Siva, we will travel back in time to when Vasco da Gama landed his fleet for the first time at Southwest India. Travel with me here on in a platform...
2020-10-3000 min
Masala History by SivaThe Goan integrationAs a school kid , I have always wondered, why are Daman & Diu grouped together as a single Union Territory inspite of being so far from each other, especially when Daman & and other Union Territory of Dadra & Nagra Haveli were just 20 kilometres apart. And Dadra & Nagar Haveli had its own one day Prime Minister in 1961.
The invention of the Caravel shipping boat, proved to be an inflection point in seafaring in Europe. Vasco da Gama, the Portugese explorer successfully set sail to East Indies and landed in modern day Kozhikode on 20th May 1498, about 30...
2020-10-1600 min
Masala History by SivaThe Indian dai fuThis month, a bronze statue is being unveiled in a medical school campus in Northern China. This statue is that of Dr. Ke Dihua, a heroic medical practitioner who died in 1942. Multiple Chinese top leaders - Zhou Enlai, Li Peng, Hu Jinato, Le Keqiang & Xi Jingping have met and honoured the living family members of Dr. Ke Dihua - even 75 years after his death. Now, why is this significant? Isn't it common for heroes to be remembered with statues and their memories honoured? This is significant because Ke Dihua wasn't Chinese. Ke Dihua is the Chinese name of...
2020-10-0200 min
Masala History by SivaAn Open Secret TreasureIn this episode of Masala History by Siva, join me in a treasure hunt that promises at least $22 billion, and some more.
The Padamanabha temple in modern day Trivandrum is one of the oldest Hindu temples and has been referred in ancient texts and several times in the Sangam literature in the 5th century BCE. It was referred as 'Golden temple' and has perpetually been known for its richness and "walls of gold".
The Padmanabha temple was supported quite well by pretty much all South Indian Hindu kings, regardless of the fact that they...
2020-09-1811 min
Masala History by SivaWhen a pirate almost caused East India Company to be booted out of IndiaI am not a fan of alternative history, or what-if history - imagining scenarios of what could have happened. But there are some watershed moments, that will pause you to think - If only this had happened; or not!.... and today we are going to see one such moment, one that would leave you thinking if this could have altered the course of history of India.
In this episode of Masala History, we are going to look at a sensational history of how Aurangazeb almost threw British out of India and made them launch the world's first...
2020-09-1112 min
Masala History by SivaBose and the Third ReichWe are back to talking about the Springing Tiger.
There are millions of Indians who strongly believe even today that Netaji wasn't killed in the 1945 Taiwan fatal air crash. And there are multiple theories going around what happened to him - lived as a Sadhu in India to slaved in a labor camp in Russia. There is a reason why there is so much speculation and disbelief around Netaji's death. Because when he lived, he had lived always on the edge; daring, adventurous and kept everyone guessing his next move. In today's podcast we are talking about...
2020-08-2815 min
Masala History by SivaFirst Prime Minister of IndiaOn August 15, 1947 India made its tryst with destiny. Jawaharlal Nehru was sworn in as the first Minister of Free India in Red Fort by Lord Mountbatten. What is the significance of the word 'Free' here. Were their other PMs (or Heads of Government of India) before?
The natural answer to the question is Yes! After all you are at Masala History, not a history textbook influenced by politics. So, who were the Prime Ministers before Aug 15 1947? And were they legitimately recognised? Who was the first?
Was it Jawaharlal Nehru himself?
Or was it...
2020-08-1412 min
Masala History by SivaThe end of RasputinFirst let me take time to thank everyone who has been supportive since our launch, am happy to state that we have hit more than a 1000 regular readers + listeners across multiple channels. I want to take this opportunity to thank all the folks who keep encouraging me by sending articles & books, feedback, topics to explore. I also want to thank Anu, Arshdeep and the Kwazi team that have breathed life into my hobby with their design and consulting on channel and content type strategies.
The Romanovs were an all powerful autocratic dynasty that had ruled Russia...
2020-08-0710 min
Masala History by SivaThe 30 year World War IIA few days back one of my friends asked to me to tell her a history that is unbelievable & outrageous.. and in this edition am narrating that story for everyone's benefit.
Come join me in listening to today's Masala History, or rather a Garam Masala History episode to know the story of Lt. Hiroo Onoda, a Japanese soldier trained to survive and wage guerrilla warfare, who kept the World War II going on for almost 29 years after the official end of the war. A real story that is nothing short of a Hollywood Matt...
2020-07-3108 min
Masala History by SivaThe Journey to Red October - Lenin on the trainHistory is always filled with remarkable journeys that changed the course of the world. Be it the Hijra of Mohammed from Mecca to Medina or Netaji Subash Bose's escape from Calcutta to Berlin or Mao Zedong's long march across China - they have all been very critical and timely. And in 1917, there was one such very significant homecoming trip. This is the train journey of Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov or better known as Lenin and 30 of his followers from Zurich to Petrograd, the capital of Russian empire then.
Lenin was living in exile in Zurich when the last...
2020-07-2410 min
Masala History by SivaA real MaharajaThe COVID 19 pandemic has throws lives of many people into disarray across the world. And sadly, in India, migrant worker communities have become like refugees in their own country. As we continue to grapple with the situation and come to terms with how to help rebuild the lives of those affected by this calamity, it will be timely to see how, several decades back, this country and one of its Kings welcomed with open arms refugees from a different nation, created a home for them (and not a camp), while they were themselves dealing with drought and famine.
2020-07-1711 min
Masala History by SivaMuslim princess at a Hindu templeA Hindu God worshipped in a Muslim attire? A Muslim princess having a shrine at a Hindu temple?
Whenever faiths have been at conflict and politics in crossroads, mixing a portion of legend to existing facts has always helped bring communities together. Continuing with the theme of history spiced up with myths, unverified facts and conscious rewrites, in today's episode of Masala History, we are going to look at how an historic incident, coupled with a little of legend, gives us a beautiful example on harmony and inclusiveness. - something perhaps we could do more...
2020-07-1014 min
Masala History by SivaMasala History - The original father of photoshoppingA huge thanks for listening to my podcast and all the feedback. I feel very humbled and encouraged by the support and enthusiasm!
A picture is worth a thousand words is old adage. In modern world, scores of photo editing tools and pictures exist on even smartphones and one has the power to alter the picture of reality in minutes, making the same picture say several sets of thousand words.
In today's video podcast, you will see a powerful dictator (ab)using the power of photo editing for rewriting history, propoganda and image...
2020-07-0313 min
Masala History by SivaMasala History - History behind a fake-news postMasala history by Siva is available at Facebook and Instagram.
1 tbsp of History + 1 tbsp of fiction + 1 tbsp of patriotic sentiment + 1 tbsp of mythology = a dangerous mixture that will spread faster than any virus, when rolled out in social media, esp WhatsApp.
In today's episode of Masala History, I attempt to break down such a 'fake news' post and try to show the underlying historical fact. Also for first time, I am trying out a podcast approach.
This is a 10 minute podcast. Listen with headphones if possible. I hope you stay...
2020-06-2811 min