340. A New Global Disorder?
BIC TALKS
As conflict erupts in West Asia, the consequences are rippling across the globe, threatening to reshape the international order in ways not seen in decades. This session will bring together experts to explore the geopolitical, economic, and security implications of this crisis for the world and, for India. With deep insights from Ranjan Mathai, former Foreign Secretary and Ambassador to Israel, and Latha Reddy, former Deputy NSA, the discussion will be moderated by Stanly Johny of The Hindu. A Q&A with the audience will follow. In this episode of BIC Talks, Ranjan Mathai and Latha Reddy...
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341. Seeds of Insight
BIC TALKS
By the canons of orthodox social science, countries like India are not supposed to have an environmental consciousness. They are, as it were, “too poor to be green.” In his new book, Speaking with Nature, Ramachandra Guha challenges this narrative by revealing a virtually unknown prehistory of the global movement set far outside Europe or America. Long before the publication of Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring and well before climate change, ten remarkable individuals wrote with deep insight about the dangers of environmental abuse from...
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339. An Unequal Citizen?
BIC TALKS
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338. Unpacking Economic Freedom in the Constitution
BIC TALKS
This discussion will explore how the Constitution of India frames the concept of economic freedom. We often think of the constitutional guarantee of freedom in terms of the freedom of speech and expression. This discussion moves beyond this framing to examine the oft-ignored aspect of economic freedom for individuals and organisations. The panellists will discuss the balance between state intervention and individual economic rights, exploring issues like onerous licensing and compliance requirements for businesses, property rights and the right to trade occupation, profession and...
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337. Urban Legends
BIC TALKS
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336. We Are Like This Only
BIC TALKS
In this session, Kunal Shah, Founder of CRED, and Archana Rai, Senior Editor at The Economic Times, will explore the exciting journey of India’s startup ecosystem. They will discuss how consumer practices in India have evolved, from e-commerce to the rapid growth of quick commerce, and how startups are adapting to meet these changing demands. The conversation will also highlight the importance of digital public infrastructure and its role in empowering entrepreneurs and businesses to innovate and scale. Kunal will share his personal journey of building CRED, offering insights into the...
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335. Road Not Taken
BIC TALKS
A discussion based on the book Poles Apart: The Military and Democracy in India and Pakistan. This session delves into the starkly different roles played by the military in the political landscapes of India and Pakistan, and how these choices have shaped the democratic trajectories of both nations. While Pakistan’s history is marked by frequent military interventions that have hindered its democratic development, India’s military has remained notably apolitical, even in moments of crisis such as the 1962 Sino-Indian War, the Emergency, and Operation Blue Star. Explore the critical moments...
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334. Story of an Unknown Indian
BIC TALKS
What does the life of an ordinary working-class Indian look and feel like? Join us for a panel discussion discussing this and more with the author of The Many Lives of Syeda X Neha Dixit and commentator and editor Priya Ramani. In her book The Many Lives of Syeda X journalist Neha Dixit traces the story of one such faceless Indian woman, Syeda X, from the early 1990s to the present day. What emerges is a picture of a life lived under constant corrosive tension. Researched for close to a decade, in this book, we meet an unforgettable cast of characters for...
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333. Demystifying Climate Change
BIC TALKS
Every day we hear something unusual. A fire here, a flood there, a storm surge, a cloudburst. These events affect all of us, our well-being, our health, our family, our work. Their frequency and intensity are increasing. Fortunately, however, we no longer lack explanations for these events. We know fossil fuels and the destruction of Nature by us humans are the primary reasons for the alarming acceleration in global warming. Awareness is the first step towards change, and Rajan Mehta’s Backstage Climate is an attempt to make you aware of global warming and climate change in a...
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332. Not Just a Laughing Matter!
BIC TALKS
Abu Abraham’s career as a cartoonist, columnist and artist spanned over 50 years, from the late 1940s to the early 2000s, during which his work appeared in a range of newspapers and magazines in India and the UK. Throughout this period of significant political change and upheaval, he critically responded to the political landscape, producing a rich and complex oeuvre that reflects these shifts. The centenary exhibition, “,” brought together, for the first time, the breadth of Abu Abraham’s work as a cartoonist and journalist across six decades. Through Abu’s political cartoons,...
info_outlineWild Women: Seekers, Protagonists and Goddesses in Sacred Indian Poetry [Penguin India, 2024], edited by poet and seeker Arundhathi Subramaniam, is a new anthology of compelling women mystics in Indian literature.
These poems are the cries of women who refused, quietly, and sometimes not so quietly, to be bullied into submission. Women who surrendered not to the authority of the world, but to the authority of the spirit. Women whose voices have far too often been sanitized by the grand narratives of religion and sidelined by rationalist versions of history.
The names of Mirabai, Akka Mahadevi, and Andal, are known to many. But there are innumerable others. And little is known of the urgency of their words, of their feral sensuality, of their relentless questioning of the custodians of gender and faith. It is time to re-fang them, to tune into their brazenness and heartbreaking longing. Not just for their sake, but for ours.
In this episode of BIC Talks, Author Arundhathi Subramaniam is in conversation with Poet & Translator, Mani Rao, with readings of translations by Mani Rao, Vanamala Viswanatha and Ahalya Ballal. This is an excerpt from a conversation that took place in the BIC premises in June 2024.
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