Despite increasing visibility, there remains a profound lack of understanding about the transgender experience in our society. Too often, trans individuals face discrimination, violence, and appalling prejudices rooted in ignorance about what it means to be transgender. In this episode, Celia Sandhya Daniels courageously takes us through her journe…

We’re thrilled to host interculturalist Pratha Shetty, who guides us through the fascinating world of cross-cultural understanding. We learn about Pratha’s early fascination with why people from diverse cultures think and act differently. This curiosity sparked a career unveiling complex cultural concepts through educational tools, speaking, and wr…

In this episode, Shilpa offers wisdom on nurturing your passions with patience, making time for what inspires you, looking beyond labels to live authentically, and uplifting others along the way. With humor and compassion, Shilpa opens up about her multifaceted life, from balancing family and work to staying motivated through struggles. Learn Shilp…

On our show today is the multi-talented Aarti! With degrees in two seemingly contrasting fields – psychology and computer engineering – Aarti has cultivated a distinctive perspective that fuses logic and artistic creativity. Aarti talks about her interests, from nurturing her flair for writing and painting, to channeling her energy into Bollywood d…

Anu Sehgal is a spirited cultural educator whose adventure spans over 25 years from India to the US. Hers is a heartwarming story of craving authentic Indian experiences and how that desire transformed her into an advocate for cultivating cultural awareness, heritage, and language in children. “The Culture Tree,” Anu’s brainchild initially focused …

Meet Anuradha Gupta, a passionate angel investor and the creative mind behind Vows for Eternity, a globally renowned matchmaking firm. Anuradha’s journey is all about following her heart, understanding people, and taking a unique path in the business world. Growing up in India and later living most of her life abroad, Anuradha sensed a missing piec…

Meet Sharan, the creative soul with Becker Muscular Dystrophy, who, despite the challenges, remains a creator, an inspiration, and a unique voice in the big conversation about life. This conversation isn’t about putting a spotlight on someone because they are differently-abled; it’s an open invitation for all of us to think about how we see and con…

Roshni isn’t just making waves in the fast-paced world of PR marketing – she’s leaving an unforgettable impression on high-profile South Asian celebrities, not just in North America but globally. Beyond being the co-founder of the wildly popular Urban Asian news platform, her story goes way beyond the usual tale of success, reaching past the shiny …

In this episode, we explore the fascinating journey of manifestation through quantum jumping through Bianca’s lens. Discover how she taps into intuition and spiritual insight to navigate the complexities of life, offering a refreshing perspective on creating your reality, even in the face of uncertainty. Bianca shares her personal stories and insig…

We couldn’t have picked a more informative episode to end our season with. Sanya Sharma is a 19-year-old law student based in the UK and the founder of the global organization Scarlet Udaan. The aim of the organization is to raise awareness of Female Genital Mutilation. The team has members from different parts of the world including India, UK, Ind…

Pooja Tripathi is a first-generation Indian American actor, filmmaker and violinist based in New York City. She grew up in Pittsburgh & NYC, and studied at Carnegie Mellon University. Pooja is the co-creator of new Dutch American dramedy series Amsterdam Ave. which was created by a 90% female crew and takes place in The Netherlands and NYC. Having …

Yashi, as she’s popularly known, is a Connecticut based homeopath with nearly three decades of experience in the medical field. Yashi’s way of practising homeopathy is a bit different from the traditional way. She strives to empower and educate families that are looking for a safer, alternative way to good health. She does this by teaching them the…

Karthika Gupta’s career has been a wonderful mix of corporate, technology and creativity. Currently based in Chicago, but having lived and worked in many parts of the world, she was always surrounded by so many amazing people who brought a rich cultural diversity into her life. And these interactions led her to want to know more about not just her …

Anahata Meher is a Shamanic practitioner based in Goa. Before finding Shamanism, she was a city brat living a comfortable life with no worries or ambition. Despite having all the comforts, Anahata found that she was angry all the time, to the extent that her husband suggested she seek help to manage the anger. She sought help from a hypnotherapist,…

Water is the most important natural resource in the world; without it, life cannot exist. 2.1 billion people across the world lack access to clean drinking water. Marita Peters, the Executive Director of Surge UAE chapter, is determined to change that. Marita’s childhood friend, Shilpa Alva, is the founder of Surge. Growing up together, they had a …

Dipti Mehta is a scientist, entrepreneur, writer and an award-winning artist based in New York. She grew up in a conservative, patriarchal family in India. But she was not one to keep quiet; she questioned everything, especially why she was treated differently from her brothers. At twelve, an All India Radio executive discovered Dipti at an elocuti…

“Don’t you have long sleeves you can wear while you’re outside?”, “I brought a new brightening face scrub for you to try.”, “Try not to stay in the sun too long, you’ll get dark.” South Asian kids listen to these kinds of comments all the time. And not from outsiders but people close to our hearts. This was also the case for Anu Kumar. Born in New …

Avani Modi Sarkar is the co-founder of Modi Toys a family-owned small business, that honours her Indian roots. They’re the first-ever makers of the original and mantra-singing Baby Ganesh, Baby Hanuman and Baby Krishna plush toys, which are both fun and cultural. Avani shares her story about building a generational brand that she hopes will help ma…

Today, Vandana Shah is amongst the top divorce lawyers in India. The story of how she got there is unique. Vandana was in an abusive marriage and only got out of it because her in-laws pushed her out of the house one night. With only 10 dollars in her account, Vandana rebuilt her life taking every opportunity that came her way. When she found that …

Bhavna has a career in IT, but her passion lies in connecting people through food. She’s the author of the blog, Just a Girl from Aamchi Mumbai which featured in the top twenty blogs in Perth. Her most recent venture, The Modern Desi, a culinary experience represents both, the girl holding on to her culture and roots in India and the newer her as s…

Suzanna grew up surrounded by nature and by all things natural in Munnar, India. When she moved to the city, she quickly adapted to the city life of access and “use and throw” mentality. All that changed when Suzanna’s daughter was born. She wants her daughter to grow in a world that is not being crushed under the burden of consumption. And so, Suz…

Priti Raman Vishwakarma’s love for travel began after her first solo trip to Himachal Pradesh in India. Despite her initial apprehensions, she found the courage to travel alone, and her life was forever changed. She hopes that by sharing her experience, others are encouraged to travel more. That’s how Womaniya on road trips, a travel company for wo…

Reshma is an artist-activist advocating and supporting several issues from mental health and sexuality to human rights. Val Resh as she’s popularly known was diagnosed with schizophrenia at twenty-two. Since then she’s had many diagnoses. She does not let these labels define her and calls herself the schizophrenist, combining the words schizophreni…

Sonam Shekhawat is the first Indian to win an Emmy Award for writing. She shares her story of growing up in Jaipur, India, watching cartoons all day to becoming one of the most coveted animation series writers. Sonam had offers to pursue a degree in medicine or engineering from some of the most prestigious colleges in India, and she chose to pursue…

Isha Soni has moved between twelve apartments, four cities and two countries over the past three years and is currently settled in Canada. She shares her story of growing up in India and then moving to the west and finding herself in an environment that felt completely alien, causing a kind of cultural chaos she hadn’t expected. She chats about her…

Snehaa Sundaram, our guest today works with Wildlife Trust Of India, helping address wildlife emergencies across the country. Before this, she worked in the forests of Kanha National Park (Madhya Pradesh), Sanjay-Dubri National Park & Great Nicobar Island. She followed her passion for a career, and it led her to find love with Yaju, a naturalist, i…

If the word diet immediately makes you think of a stringent weight-loss plan, you are not alone. Humans have been obsessing about their weight for over two thousand years. We chat with Uma Narula about the importance of nutrition and why we must focus on nourishing ourselves instead of obsessing about following diet fads. She shares her opinion on …

Suman Manning is an events organiser, entrepreneur, manages the community Twinplus Arabia which supports parents of multiples and is mum to triplets Zara, Zoe and Zander. She shares her story of finding love with Shane, fertility struggles, having triplets and now raising them in a culture that is different from both hers and her husbands. She hope…

Parshati Patel is an astrophysicist, planetary scientist, science communicator and educator. As a young girl, she discovered astronomy on a trip to the planetarium on holiday with the family and has not looked back. She struggled to convince her traditional Gujarati family about her career choice and found a unique way to win them over. With her fa…

Addiction is a progressive mental illness. Mehek Gidwani shares her story of addiction, recovery and now living a sober life. She was born and raised in Hong Kong and had her first interaction with alcohol and drugs at the tender age of thirteen. The drug didn’t seem like a drug. It was a natural thing found around the house. What started as a fun,…

Janani Viswanathan from Sunnyvale, California was on a break from work a couple of years ago, and that lead to her becoming the co-creator of Project NoMoreNirbhaya in Chennai, India. This initiative aims to create safer public spaces for women. Their team teaches free self-defence sessions for school and college girls. They’ve also conducted gende…

Gulshan Kavarana is the founding member of SFS – Special Families Support group – a support group for families with children with special needs and an art mentor at Mawaheb, an art studio for adults with special needs. Zara, her younger daughter, was diagnosed with Dravet’s syndrome before the age of one. At the time Gulshan desperately tried to se…

Have you ever wondered what Hypnotherapy is all about? No, it’s not a swinging watch over your head or people clucking like chickens. Explaining the difference between Hypnotherapy and Hypnosis is Arti Tuteja, a world-renowned hypnotherapist, and founder of Potential Unlimited, a company focused on helping people improve their Emotional Intelligenc…

Andrea Bailey is a world traveller and explorer. Mum to three young daughters, she has made travelling with her children her focus to create a lifetime of memories. She’s here to share her experience as a world traveller while raising her three wonderful daughters, on how one can have a career in travel whilst being a mum and her current passion, s…

Pashmina was born in Thailand and brought up in a traditional Indian family in Hong Kong. At sixteen she met and fell in love with her soulmate Willian. They dated in secret for ten years – why secret, because he came from a very different culture and community – literally, one that is at the other end of the world. He’s black Brazilian and their f…

Triveni Acharya is a strong, fearless, brave journalist and multiple award-winning activist. She is the president of the NGO, Rescue Foundation. The organization is devoted to the rescue, rehabilitation and repatriation of victims for human trafficking from different parts of India, and it’s neighbouring countries. She chats with us about her day t…

No one plans to be messy, but over time with increased access to stuff, clutter creeps into almost everyone’s life. Shelina talks to us about how the concept of professional organizing is only just catching on, what one can do to declutter things that have sentimental attachments, especially after a bereavement and how her method is different from …

Shobhika Kalra is a campaigner for wheelchair accessibility. She was thirteen when she was diagnosed with Friedreich’s Ataxia, a degenerative disease affecting the nervous system and movement. By the age of eighteen, she was bound to a wheelchair. She says, “Disability is not something that can stop people”. She has facilitated building over 1100 r…

Aanchal Wadhwani is a Hong Kong based fashion photographer, entrepreneur and actress best known for her role in DBS Bank’s mini-series ‘Sparks’. She’s learnt that there are still certain industries where women are afraid to touch. For example, photography. She believes there is a lack of female photographers because of societies ideals and the conc…

Feng Shui master consultant Samita Khanna is back on the show to share tips on how one can make the most of the year of the boar in 2019. According to her, this is the year of golden opportunities, abundance and windfalls. Everyone can benefit from the year if they grab the opportunities that come their way. She also shares specific tips depending …

Shabnam Samuel from Frederick, Maryland is a woman of many talents with a number of accomplishments under her belt. She is a writer, author, business coach, social media trainer and a mum. She talks candidly about her life to us, After being abandoned by her parents, Shabnam was taken care of by her maternal grandparents but knew nothing else outsi…

Ruchi Gulati is a blogger, the founder of the first Thyroid support group in Singapore and creator of a clothing line for plus sized women, Curvy Craze. She shares her story of embracing her curves with confidence and conquering the world with love, fun and kindness. Ruchi has been curvy for as long as she can remember. She’s also always been confi…

Malini Ohri our guest today is a certified beauty and health consultant and aromatherapist. She has a career in the health and wellness industry spanning over 40 years and as an aromatherapist for over 30 years. She has a passion for using and making things all natural. She chats with us about aromatherapy, its benefits, how to introduce aromathera…

Maithili Appalwar is a 22-year-old senior at Georgia Tech. She and her team won the People’s Choice Award at the Ideas to Serve Competition hosted by Georgia Tech’s Institute for Leadership and Entrepreneurship and they used the money as their pilot fund for Thrive. Maithili is passionate about improving mental health in low-resource communities wh…

Unexplained Infertility. two words that provide hope and cause frustration in equal measure. Our guest today Supna Shah dealt with this for ten years before getting pregnant through IVF. While dealing with the infertility was distressing, the process of IUI and IVF was emotional, physically and financially exhausting. Supna chats with us about her …

Karina Calver is a survivor of incest. She shares her story of enduring rape and how she has turned her life around to become the woman she is today. The silence that surrounds incest survivors can make them feel isolated, and Karina hopes by sharing her story others will know they are not alone. Survivors are all around us, among our friends, at s…

Prasha S Dutra is a is a mechanical engineer currently working as a Quality Manager in a manufacturing facility in Rhode Island. She grew up in a small neighbourhood of Delhi in India and was always interested in the science of things. Prasha credits this curiosity to her upbringing. Growing up her father encouraged her to watch How it’s made on th…

This week we chat with Purnima Jagtiani and our first couple on the show Meena and Gopa. They share their stories of detection, treatment and recovery from breast cancer. Purnima has been in remission for a year and Meena for ten years. Neither expected it to happen to them. Yet when it did they had to find a way to move forward without losing hope…

Sandi Saxsena, our guest today played the role of a supporting spouse in all aspects of her family except financial planning. She was focused on the children as they grew up and her husband met all the wants and needs of the family. That is, until one day, they hit financial challenges. Sandi had to step out into the working world for the first tim…

Our guest today Sheetal Mulani shares her story of rebuilding her life after her son Mohit passed away at the age of 21. The loss of a child regardless of age is one of the most devastating experiences a parent can face. One is never going to stop feeling the loss, and that gap is never going to be replaced. Sheetal and her family have had to find …