Listening Chronicles #9
Listening Chronicles #9
Listening Chronicles is a series where I document the podcasts I'm listening to and those I would recommend
Welcome to the 9th edition of these chronicles! This is a place where I try to document and recommend some of the podcasts I've been listening to.
In some news, I've released the latest episode of Time Capsule ! It's a conversation with Tejas Rao, and we talk about teaching constitutional values and how one can live a good life through the constitution.
Last week, I heard some familiar podcasts. I didn't try listening to anything new.
Let's get started.
Podcasts This Week
The Seen and The Unseen | Fixing India's Education System
What a masterclass of an episode this was. Karthik Muralidharan is an economist, and someone who's spent decades of research into our Indian Education system and policy. In this episode, Amit Varma talks to him for over 3 hours (yes, that's right), about all the problems ailing our education system.
A lot has been covered in this episode - from some of the historical mistakes made in our education policy, to how even now, we're still not focused on human development and seem to rely on sorting out the young students based on their abilities rather than actually spending time developing them. They also discuss the RTE Act, the research into the effectiveness of private schools and other ways our system is leaving many students behind. Karthik doesn't just point out the flaws and problems though, he also provides actionable solutions to our education policy. Policies that can be implemented on the ground.
I know I'll be revisiting this episode multiple times. It's a pool of knowledge, and anyone who's interested in how education works in our country needs to listen to this. Worth every minute.
City of Women | Dicks
So, the 2nd episode of this new series was out last week. I'll be honest, the title itself kind of caught me off guard. There's a trigger warning at the beginning of the episode, and it makes sense. This episode is a fascinating exploration of one of the other issues women in our country face - men flashing their penises like they own every area. Within 20 minutes, this episode packs a range of emotions. There's this odd humour in the way flashing is being described, there's a sombre tone of sadness and there are parts of anger and fascination too. Like I said, a lot of emotions in one episode. I mean, there's a mini song that the editors have put into this episode, and it's actually catchy.
I think it's worth a listen. If anything, it has made rethink, again, just how incredibly lucky and privileged I am that I don't face these situations.
Heavy Weight | Buzz
This is a podcast by Jonathan Goldstein and the premise is super interesting. If next week, you find only suggestions from this podcast, it's probably because of the concept of the show. Each episode Jonathan decides to go back in time, to think about some of the moments that might've passed, the mistakes that people might have made or conversations that one might've avoided.
I know, it sounds weird. Like, how does that even work?
The way the description puts it is "Join Jonathan Goldstein for road trips, thorny reunions, and difficult conversations as he back-pedal his way into the past like a therapist with a time machine"
Well, the first episode explained what the tone of the episodes could be like (I am halfway through the second). Buzz is Jonathan's father, and the episode is about how his father and his uncle have never spoken to each other for decades. They're in the 80s now, and yet, they don't even wish each other Happy Birthday. The episode then involves Jonathan mediating and scheduling a meeting between the two brothers, and well, you get to hear what happened.
It's brilliant. I can assure you, this episode is definitely going to make you feel empathetic to 2 voices and people you hadn't even heard about before in your life. I loved the concept, and I'll definitely write more as when I hear the remaining episodes.
An Oral History of Office | Episodes 9, 10, 11 & 12
This is the third time I am writing about this series in these chronicles. I've finally finished the entire series. I am going to repeat myself - go listen to this.
These days, I have been unable to decide on what to watch. So, I end up replaying Office. Episodes, scenes and sometimes whole seasons. The fact that I do this is something I've been amazed by. What's so special about the show? What was it like for people who were actually making it? Did they know it would be such a cultural phenomenon, or that it would touch so many lives? All of these questions, and more are answered in this series.
These last 4 episodes also delve into some of the other missed out aspects as well. Why did Steve Carell leave? What made Season 8 so bad, and how did they decide to finally end the series? There are some great stories in this, and unique insights on how they planned and made all of these decisions.
Even if you don't want to listen to the entire series, I think it's worth considering listening to these.
That's it for this edition. I would like to remind you to share this with people who find joy in listening to podcasts. Once again, let me know what you've been listening to, and which podcasts would you recommend?
I am off to watching some more Office, have fun listening !