The Seen and the Unseen - hosted by Amit Varma

Good data journalism can reveal otherwise unseen truths about our society. Pioneering journalist Rukmini S joins Amit Varma in episode 196 of The Seen and the Unseen to talk about the insights data brought to her journalism, and her groundbreaking podcast on Covid-19, The Moving Curve. Also check out: 1. The Moving Curve -- Rukmini S's podcast, also on all podcast apps. 2. Rukmini S at HuffPost, Hindu, Scroll, Mint,Times of India (1, 2) and India Spend. 3. Canary -- Amy Brittain's podcast. 4. How the Coronavirus Could Take Over Your Body (Before You Ever Feel It) -- Jeff Wise. (This is the piece mistakenly referred to in this episode as an Atlantic article.) 5. Muslim Population Growth Slows -- Rukmini S & Vijaita Singh (2015). 6. The Art of Narrative Nonfiction -- Episode 183 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Samanth Subramanian). 7. Raag Darbari (Hindi) (English) -- Shrilal Shukla 8. Memories and Things -- Episode 195 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Aanchal Malhotra). 9. India’s coronavirus lockdown takes toll on migrant workers -- Rukmini S. 10. The First 100 -- The ProPublica investigation in Chicago. 11. Ideology and Identity -- Pradeep K Chhibber and Rahul Verma. 12. Political Ideology in India -- Episode 131 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Rahul Verma). 13. Somesh Jha at Business Standard.14. Covid19india.org. 15. Taking Stock of Covid-19 -- Episode 169 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Shruti Rajagopalan). 16. The Nuances of Lockdown -- Episode 176 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Anup Malani). 17. India’s Economy in the Time of Covid-19 -- Episode 177 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Vivek Kaul). 18. Our Cities After Covid-19 -- Episode 191 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Vaidehi Tandel). 19. Data Journalism and Indian Politics -- Episode 136 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Roshan Kishore). 20. The State of the Media -- Episode 46 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Prem Panicker). 21. The State of the Media 2 -- Episode 89 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Sidharth Bhatia & Peter Griffin). 22. What Happened to Our Journalism? -- Episode 178 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Nidhi Razdan). And do check out Amit’s online course, The Art of Clear Writing.

Decades after the trauma of separation, Partition remains with us. Aanchal Malhotra joins Amit Varma in episode 195 of The Seen and the Unseen to talk about her work in excavating the memories of Partition survivors through the objects they carried with them -- and their resonance in these modern times.  Also check out: 1. Aanchal Malhotra's website. 2. Remnants of a Separation -- Aanchal Malhotra.   3. Museum of Material Memory. 4. Profile of Aanchal Malhotra by Mayank Austen Soofi, 2010. 5. Nanak Was Here -- Episode 166 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Amardeep Singh). 6. Imaginary Number -- Vijay Seshadri. 7. Punjabi Tappe on YouTube. 8. The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Trucker -- Episode 192 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Rajat Ubhaykar). And do check out Amit’s online course, The Art of Clear Writing.

The constitution of India, it has been said, is not a book but a periodical. Starting with Jawaharlal Nehru, every prime minister who wanted to do something unconstitutional simply amended the constitution. Tripurdaman Singh joins Amit Varma in episode 194 of The Seen and the Unseen to discuss India's First Amendment, which began a rot that never ended. Also check out: 1. Sixteen Stormy Days -- Tripurdaman Singh. 2. Imperial Sovereignty and Local Politics -- Tripurdaman Singh. 3. The books of CA Bayly. 4. Shruti Rajagopalan on our constitutional amendments. 5. The Right to Property -- Episode 26 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Shruti Rajagopalan). 6. 'Not murder but mimicry' -- Kapil Komireddi's tweet. 7. Modi's Lost Opportunity -- Episode 119 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Salman Soz). 8. India's Greatest Civil Servant -- Episode 167 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Narayani Basu). 9. India's Founding Moment -- Madhav Khosla. 10. The Ideas of Our Constitution -- Episode 164 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Madhav Khosla). 11. Who Broke Our Republic? -- Episode 163 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Kapil Komireddi). 12. The Emergency of 1975 -- Episode 103 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Gyan Prakash). 13. Where Have All the Leaders Gone? -- Amit Varma. 14. Dark Days Lie Ahead -- Pratap Bhanu Mehta. And do check out Amit’s online course, The Art of Clear Writing.

The conflict between the government and the central bank seems like an arcane one that only wonks care about -- but it affects the lives of all of us. Viral Acharya joins Amit Varma in episode 193 of The Seen and the Unseen to explain why we should all join him in the battle against Fiscal Dominance.  Also check out: 1. Quest for Restoring Financial Stability in India -- Viral Acharya. 2. Viral Acharya at NYU Stern. 2. Guaranteed to Fail -- Viral Acharya et al. 3. Indian Banks: A Time to Reform? -- Viral Acharya and Raghuram Rajan. 4. On the Importance of Independent Regulatory Institutions –The Case of the Central Bank -- Viral Acharya's AD Shroff Memorial lecture 2018. 5. Yaadon Ke Silsile -- Viral Acharya. 6. Viral Acharya interviewed by Ira Dugal, Mitali Mukherjee, Vivek Kaul and Anantha Narayan. 7. Lakshya Ko har Haal Mein Paana Hai. 8. Rahul Dravid at Headingley, Adelaide and Rawalpindi. 9. What Really Happened? -- Lawrence H White on the 2008 Financial Crisis. 10. Zombie Firms and Creative Destruction -- Episode 118 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Ajay Shah). And do check out Amit's online course, The Art of Clear Writing.

There is much romance in being on the open road, always on the move. But not for the long-distance trucker, trapped in a moving cocoon, always travelling but getting nowhere slowly. Rajat Ubhaykar joins Amit Varma in episode 192 of The Seen and the Unseen to describe his insights from hitchhiking around India on trucks. Also check out: 1. Truck de India!: A Hitchhiker's guide to Hindustan -- Rajat Ubhaykar. 2. A Free Man -- Aman Sethi. 3. English, August -- Upamanyu Chatterjee. 4. Bird on the Wire -- Leonard Cohen. 5. Why Children Labour -- Amit Varma. 6. Young India -- Episode 83 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Snigdha Poonam). 7. Dreamers -- Snigdha Poonam. 8. Aloo Posto recipes: 1, 2, 3, 4. 9. Amit Varma's India Uncut posts from Peshawar (2006): 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. 10. A Tale Of Two Bandits: Naxals And The Indian State -- Amit Varma. 11. Power and Prosperity -- Mancur Olson. 12. The Roving Bandits of Uttar Pradesh -- Episode 4 of Econ Central. 13. Jeevan Ke Safar Mein Rahi. Also check out Amit Varma's online course, The Art of Clear Writing.

In normal times, cities are an engine of prosperity. In these strange times, they are also an engine of pandemic. Vaidehi Tandel joins Amit Varma in episode 191 of The Seen and the Unseen to discuss how important cities are to civilisation, and how Covid-19 will affect the way we live. Also check out: 1. COVID-19 a Grim Reminder for Govts -- Vaidehi Tandel. 2. Don’t Blame Dense Cities. They Have Been Resilient -- Reuben Abraham and Vaidehi Tandel. 3. Why India Has the Fastest-Growing Cities -- Kadambari Shah, Vaidehi Tandel and Harshita Agarwal. 4. Cities and Pandemics Have a Long History -- Edward L Glaeser 5. A World of Cities: The Causes and Consequences of Urbanisation in Poorer Countries -- Edward L Glaeser. 6.  Cities After Coronavirus: How Covid-19 Could Radically Alter Urban Life -- Jack Shenker.   7.  Spatial Economics: The Declining Cost of Distance -- Karen Harris, Andrew Schwedel and Austin Kimson.   8. Triumph of the City -- Edward L Glaeser. 9. Order Without Design – How Markets Shape Cities -- Alain Bertaud. 10. The Importance of Cities -- Episode 108 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Reuben Abraham & Pritika Hingorani.) 11. The Seen and the Unseen episodes with Alex Tabarrok on FSI and Rent Control. 12. Urban Governance in India -- Episode 31 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Shruti Rajagopalan). 13. Taking Stock of Covid-19 -- Episode 169 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Shruti Rajagopalan). 14. The Nuances of Lockdown -- Episode 176 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Anup Malani). 15. India’s Economy in the Time of Covid-19 -- Episode 177 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Vivek Kaul). 16. Fixing Indian Education -- Episode 185 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Karthik Muralidharan). 17. What a Long Strange Trip It’s Been -- Episode 188 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Arvind Subramanian). 18. Rajesh Jain and Dhan Vapasi -- Episode 94 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Rajesh Jain). 19. Publish and Perish -- Agnes Callard. 20. Young Rural Women in India Chase Big-City Dreams -- Ellen Barry. 21. We Are Fighting Two Disasters: Covid-19 and the Indian State -- Amit Varma.

Whatever you say of India, an old cliche goes, the opposite is also true. India has always been homophobic -- but it also contains Queeristan. Parmesh Shahani joins Amit Varma in episode 190 of The Seen and the Unseen to talk about his long ongoing battle for LGBTQ inclusion in corporate India -- and much beyond. Also check out:  1. Queeristan -- Parmesh Shahani. 2. Gay Bombay -- Parmesh Shahani. 3. Godrej India Culture Lab. 4. Being Gay, Loving Books -- Episode 141 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Vivek Tejuja). 5. Being Gay in India -- Episode 84 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Navin Noronha). 6. Habiba -- Bappi Lahiri. 7. Blank Noise. 8. India’s Problem is Poverty, Not Inequality -- Amit Varma. 9. On Inequality -- Harry Frankfurt. 10. On Bullshit -- Harry Frankfurt. 11. An Empty Shell of a Gangster Film -- Amit Varma's review of Raees.12. Films, Feminism, Paromita -- Episode 155 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Paromita Vohra). 13. Women at Work -- Episode 132 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Namita Bhandare). 14. A Life in Indian Politics -- Episode 149 of The Seen and the Unseen (w JP Narayan). 15. Project Bolo with Parmesh Shahani.

These are exciting times for Indian cinema, as multiple worlds and sensibilities collide in the streets and studios of Mumbai. Actors Rasika Dugal and Mukul Chadda join Amit Varma in episode 189 of The Seen and the Unseen to describe their journeys in this brave new world. Rasika's films: 1. Kshay (Amazon Prime). 2. Qissa (Mubi). 3. Manto (Netflix). 4. Hamid (Netflix). 5. Lootcase (Hotstar). 6. Tu Hai Mera Sunday (Netflix).   Rasika's shows:1. Delhi Crime (Netflix). 2. Mirzapur (Amazon Prime). 3. Made in Heaven (Amazon Prime). 4. Out of Love (Hotstar). 5. Humorously Yours (TVF). 6. A Suitable Boy (BBC). Rasika's short films: 1. Banana Bread (with Mukul, on YouTube). 2. Chutney (YouTube). 3. The School Bag (YouTube). Selected work by Mukul: 1. The Office (Hotstar). 2.  Banana Bread (with Rasika, on YouTube).   3. Ek Bahut Choti Si Love Story (YouTube). 4. Pressure Cooker (YouTube). 5. Butnama (YouTube). Also check out: 1. The Art of Translation -- Episode 168 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Arunava Sinha). 2. A Meditation on Form -- Amit Varma. 3. Range Rover -- The archives of Amit Varma's poker column for the Economic Times.

The Indian economy has been on a wild ride, traumatic in parts, for the last 73 years. And Arvind Subramanian was on a wild ride of his own as Chief Economic Advisor in the Indian government between 2014 and 2018. Arvind joins Amit Varma in episode 188 of The Seen and the Unseen to discuss both these journeys. Also check out: 1. Of Counsel: The Challenges of the Modi-Jaitley Economy -- Arvind Subramanian. 2. India's Turn: Understanding the Economic Transformation -- Arvind Subramanian. 3. Eclipse: Living in the Shadow of China's Economic Dominance -- Arvind Subramanian. 4. Remembering Arun Jaitley -- Arvind Subramanian. 5. From "Hindu Growth" to Productivity Surge: The Mystery of the Indian Growth Transition -- Arvind Subramanian & Dani Rodrik (2004). 6. India's Great Slowdown: What's Happened? What's the Way Out? -- Arvind Subramanian and Josh Felman (Dec 2019). 7. Arvind Subramanian interviewed by Karthik Muralidharan -- I4I Conversations (2015). 8. 'Not Just Any Ordinary Slowdown': Arvind Subramanian interviewed by Prannoy Roy (2019). 9. Walk the Talk -- Arvind Subramanian interviewed by Shekhar Gupta (2016). 10. We Wish to Inform You That Tomorrow We Will Be Killed With Our Families -- Philip Gourevitch. 11. Fixing Indian Education -- Episode 185 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Karthik Muralidharan). 12. What Have We Done With Our Independence? -- Episode 186 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Pratap Bhanu Mehta). 13. In Service of the Republic -- Vijay Kelkar and Ajay Shah. 14. The Art and Science of Economic Policy -- Episode 154 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Vijay Kelkar & Ajay Shah). 15. The Lost Decade -- Puja Mehra. 16. India's Lost Decade -- Episode 116 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Puja Mehra). 17. Episode of The Seen and the Unseen on GST with Devangshu Datta, Vivek Kaul and Shruti Rajagopalan. 18. DeMon, Morality and the Predatory Indian State -- Episode 85 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Shruti Rajagopalan). 19. ‘Narendra Modi Takes a Great Leap Backwards’ -- Amit Varma. 20. Most of Amit Varma’s writing on DeMon, collected in one Twitter thread. 21. Restart: The Last Chance for the Indian Economy -- Mihir Sharma. 22. We Are Fighting Two Disasters: Covid-19 and the Indian State -- Amit Varma. 23. The State of Our Farmers -- Episode 86 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Gunvant Patil).  24. India's Agriculture Crisis -- Episode 140 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Barun Mitra and Kumar Anand). 25. We Must Save Our Farmers — Amit Varma. 26. The Indian State is the Greatest Enemy of the Indian Farmer — Amit Varma. 27. Demystifying GDP -- Episode 130 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Rajeswari Sengupta). And do check out Amit's online writing course, The Art of Clear Writing. Registration for the September batches is now open.

Dadabhai Naoroji and the Fight for India Description: In the 19th century, when the Idea of India was so nebulous, what did it mean to be a freedom fighter? Dinyar Patel joins Amit Varma in episode 187 of The Seen and the Unseen to describe Dadabhai Naoroji's battle to transform India from within the British empire. Also check out: 1. Naoroji: Pioneer of Indian Nationalism -- Dinyar Patel. 2. Dadabhai Naoroji's books on Amazon. 3. Dadabhai Naoroji -- RP Masani. 4. Three Statesmen: Gokhale, Gandhi and Nehru -- BR Nanda. 5. Understanding Gandhi. Part 1: Mohandas -- Episode 104 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Ramachandra Guha). 6. Understanding Gandhi. Part 2: Mahatma -- Episode 105 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Ramachandra Guha). 7. The Art of Narrative Nonfiction (+ JBS Haldane) -- Episode 183 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Samanth Subramanian). And do check out Amit's writing course, The Art of Clear Writing.