BIC TALKS

Vachana Sahitya is a form of literature unique to the Sharanas of the 11th to 13th Century CE in Karnataka. Vachana means speech. The Sharanas chose to use everyday language of the time over the prevailing poetic structure and language to make it accessible to people of the streets as well as the learned connoisseurs. This sets it apart from the classical Sanskrit tradition of poetry. The Vachanas represent the deep philosophical journey the Vacharakaara or Sharana takes towards self awareness and divinity. A Sharana could be from any walk of life - a farmer, a sex worker, a cobbler, a cleaner- anyone who believed that one’s work and one's own conscience is the divine.  This movement rejected caste, class and gender bias and upheld the tradition of intellectual awareness. Recent studies reveal the expanse of Vachana Sahitya could be far more widespread than it was believed before, going beyond Kannada and Karnataka. In this episode of BIC Talks Musician Sumitra Nitin, accompanied by Abhiram Nitin, takes us on an introductory journey of a selection of Vachanas and the essence each of them carry.

History is famously unkind and there are few who witness a changing world and can set the record straight. In this no-holds-barred conversation with lawyer Rahul Matthan, about his book, A Rude Life journalist Vir Sanghvi treats us to anecdotes, personalities and era altering events in his inimitable equanimous style. The conversation sprinkled with fascinating tidbits and a generous amount of chuckles features Vir’s personal impressions of and interactions with prime ministers, presidents, kingmakers, mafiosos among other characters and presents them in a most human and accessible light. This conversation is an extract from a BIC Venue in-person event. 

When musicians of two proudly distinct though overlapping traditions encounter each other as two contemplative artists and thinking people of music, the conversation is no less than a refreshing jugalbandi of the highest order. In this episode of BIC Talks, Ustad Zakir Hussain and TM Krishna meet and converse for the first time. In a freewheeling tête-à-tête leaving their performative selves aside and talk about their respective experiences that have shaped them as artists, their craft, artistry, the importance of listening and engagement with the world around them. This conversation is adapted from a BIC Streams session presented by JSW, in collaboration with Literature Live.

In this episode of BIC Talks, historian of science Jahnavi Phalkey speaks with eminent scientist  Raghunath Mashelkar about his journey in scientific-industrial research, his leadership style, the status of scientific-industrial research in India@75, and how might India think about bringing home a Nobel Prize in science after having waited for nearly a century! This episode is adapted from a BIC Streams session presented by JSW as part of the Anil Dharker Literature Live! Independence Lecture.

The Brahmaputra born as Yarlung Tsangpo in Tibet transforms into the Dihang River in Arunachal Pradesh, and later morphs into Luit, Dilao in Assam, is a trans-boundary river flowing through Tibet, India, and Bangladesh - which contributes to the complexity of history, politics and lives in the region.  In this episode of BIC Talks, journalist Tora Agarwala is in conversation with author of  the Braided River, Samrat Choudhury where they talk about the environmental, military and political issues the region faces through Samrat’s book which blends travel, memoir and history with the present.

“The diffusion of constitutional morality, not merely among the majority of any community but throughout the whole, is the indispensable condition of a government”. The importance of constitutional morality for the effective functioning of Indian democracy was highlighted by Dr BR Ambedkar in the Constituent Assembly Debates (Vol. 7, 4th November 1948). But what does constitutional morality mean? Who are its arbiters? And does constitutional morality exist in India today? In this podcast, host Shruti Vishwanathan of the Equals Project talks to advocates and scholars Disha Wadekar, Anurag Bhaskar & Malavika Prasad as they discuss the elements of constitutional morality in India, and its importance for Indian society. Visit the BIC website for show notes and links related to this podcast. 

Rabindranth Tagore’s profound meditations on life, nature, grace and brokenness in the Gitanjali won him the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1913. Alternately a poet and a philosopher, his words remain a part of our intellectual and artistic landscape long after his death 80 years ago. This episode of BIC Talks features a conversation located in Priya Sarukkai Chabria’s contemplative and courageous collection, Sing of Life - Revisioning Tagore’s Gitanjali which chisels his prose poems into intense new poems. In the midst of a pandemic we are invited, through this book, to re-engage with Tagore’s prescient ideas on translation and his views on nature, death and suffering. The author, along with translator and writer Arshia Sattar, explore the ways in which this work of Tagore remains relevant to the 21st century even as he points backwards to the long and diverse tradition of spiritual poetry in the South Asian subcontinent.

Ever wondered why there so few scientific discoveries, breakthroughs and inventions are attributed to women? A historically occurring problem of erasure and prevention of female presence in major areas of discourse is ever present. It is no different when it comes to the history of medicine. In this episode of BIC Talks Srikrishna Ramamoorthy speaks with author and journalist Kavitha Rao about her book, Lady Doctors - The Untold Stories of India's First Women in Medicine. It is a compelling yet poignant read that profiles six Indian women who defied odds and prevailing social norms of the late 19th and early 20th century to study medicine. As Kavitha Rao puts it, they were all fighters and had plenty to fight. These inspiring women have mostly been forgotten today and Kavitha Rao’s book is a step towards changing that and re-establishing this female presence in our public discourse.

A celebrated politician, scholar and diplomat in his lifetime, V.S. Srinivasa Sastri (1869-1946) is now a largely forgotten figure. Hailed as the ‘very voice of international conscience’, Sastri advocated for racial equality and securing the rights of Indians both at home and abroad. The book also illuminates the contradictions of being a ‘native diplomat’, of being treated as an equal on the world stage while lacking equality at home. In this episode of BIC Talks, Vineet Thakur Assistant Professor, History & International Relations, Leiden University and author of India’s First Diplomat speaks to Ian Sanjay Patel, Fellow, Dept of Sociology, London School of Economic about India’s roving ambassador in the 1920s. Vineet speaks of Sastri’s most distinctive contribution to India that came through his diplomatic work. But going further, he argues that Sastri is also a key protagonist who shaped the contours of the ‘liberal’ international order. 

Known as the Father of India's Space Programme, Vikram Sarabhai's interests included space and nuclear energy, architecture, industry and business, institution building, management development, art, music, and theatre. He was a scientist and entrepreneur, an educator, and a businessman. When he passed away unexpectedly at the young age of 52, he left behind a legacy few can match, having set up internationally reputed institutions and organisations that have made India proud and put us on the world map. In this episode of  BIC Talks, Dr. Padmanabh K Joshi, who heads the Vikram Sarabhai Archives at the Nehru Foundation for Development, Ahmedabad and author & publisher Divya Arora, discuss the towering personality of Dr.Sarabhai and share various anecdotes, from Dr.Joshi’s personal interaction with him as a young man and bits of information to piece together a wholly fuller image of the person. They have jointly authored the book, Vikram Sarabhai India's Space Pioneer- an illustrated biography for Dr. Sarabhai’s birth centenary in 2019, which is testament to their mutual admiration and love for Dr. Sarabhai and his work.