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In Episode 23 of South Central, hosts Dhanya Rajendran and Pooja Prasanna discuss Union Minister Piyush Goyal’s dig at Indian startups and the Supreme Court verdict on Tamil Nadu Governor that revived the debate on federalism. Joining them are chairman of Aarin Capital Mohandas Pai, political and policy consultant Tara Krishnaswamy, and TNM’s senior news editor Shabbir Ahmed. On the startup debate, Pai says, “Delivery-based startups should not be demeaned, they are also a part of the innovation cycle. India has spent just USD 160 billion on startups since 2014. Compare that to China’s USD 845 billion. The problem isn’t delivery apps, it’s the lack of domestic capital and investment in research and development.”Tara adds, “Amazon started as a delivery platform. To build a deep-tech ecosystem, we need to invest in education, research, and infrastructure. India doesn't lack talent, it lacks systems that support it.”Pooja points out how only 8% of Indian startups make it beyond 10 years. “We

In Episode 22 of South Central, hosts Dhanya Rajendran, Pooja Prasanna, and Leena Reghunath discuss the US crackdown on Indian students through self-deportation notices and detentions and the implications of the Waqf Amendment Act 2025 with Suhasini Haidar, Diplomatic Affairs Editor at The Hindu, and Senior Counsel Zafarullah Khan.On the scale of the US crackdown, Suhasini says, “What we have seen in the last two months is... governments making it very clear they don't care if due process is followed or not. The idea that the US government now is essentially saying we don't care what's right and wrong… that's never happened before.”Dhanya says, “There definitely is panic amongst the student community… especially that anything they post on social media, anything they do on their campuses, can come back to bite them.”On the Indian government’s muted response, Pooja says, “Isn’t there such a mismatch between what we see — the kind of personality we see of Mr Modi in speeches in Parliament, th

In Episode 21 of South Central, hosts Pooja Prasanna and Leena Reghunath discuss the Empuraan controversy and the Telangana government’s use of bulldozers and police force to clear ecologically rich land near Hyderabad Central University, alongside TNM’s Nandini Chandrashekar, lawyer Nikhil Narendran, and environmental journalist Bahar Dutt.On the outrage over Empuraan, Nikhil says, “What is the problem? If you make a movie using the name of a known convict – Babu Bajrangi – why should the Hindu sentiment be hurt?”On Mohanlal expressing regret over the film’s contents , Pooja remarks, “If anybody could withstand pressure, it's a star like Mohanlal. There was no call for ban, not even from the BJP. So what was the need to buckle?”Leena adds, “People like that – soft Hindutva insiders – you don’t need to threaten them with violence. Even a letter saying his honorary position as Lt Colonel will be removed is enough to shake them.”As the conversation moves to the Hyderabad University l

In Episode 20 of South Central, hosts Dhanya Rajendran, Pooja Prasanna, and Leena Reghunath discuss the absurdity of targeting Kunal Kamra, why the contempt of court law needs to go, and what the Kiran Bedi tapes reveal, alongside Alok Prasanna Kumar, Co-Founder and Lead, Vidhi Karnataka, and independent journalist Nikita Saxena.All this and more—tune in!Write to us on what you would like to speak about to [email protected] us what you think about our podcast and give us your feedback by filling this form.Audio Timecodes 00:00:00 - Intro00:39:00 - Kiran Bedi Tapes 00:02:11 - Headlines 00:13:05 - Kunal Kamra Row 00:33:38 - Judicial Accountability 00:54:25 - Kiran Bedi Tapes01:12:57 - Recommendations Check out the recommendations and references from this episode.Become a subscriber- Click here.Contribute to our reporting fund. Click here. To not miss any updates, join TNM's WhatsApp Channel! Click hereProduced by Bhuvan Malik, edited by Jaseem Ali Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy

Are the arrests of journalists in Telangana a sign that the Revanth Reddy government is misusing power? Dhanya Rajendran, Pooja Prasanna, Leena Reghunath, and Sudipto Mondal speak with Amar Devulapalli, Editor of Mana Telangana, about what these arrests signal for press freedom in the state.They also speak with independent public health researcher Malu Mohan about why ASHA workers—hailed as heroes during the pandemic—are still denied basic labour rights. From lack of pay to being treated as volunteers despite full-time work, the discussion exposes the deep structural neglect of women in India's public health system.All this and more—tune in!Write to us on what you would like to speak about to [email protected] Timecodes00:00:00 - Intro00:34:00 - Support TNM 00:02:34 - Headlines 00:06:28 - Telangana Arrests Journalists 00:37:08 - Plight of ASHA workers 01:07:15 - Letters 01:12:57 - Recommendations Check out the recommendations and references from this episode.Become a subscriber-

The 18th episode of South Central, a weekly podcast hosted by TNM’s editor-in-chief Dhanya Rajendran and editorial head for reporting Pooja Prasanna, discussed concerns of  electoral roll manipulation and Bengaluru’s governance challenges. Joining them were senior editor Nandini Chandrashekar, Nitin Sethi, the founding editor of Reporters' Collective, and activist Tara Krishnaswamy.Nitin Sethi highlighted serious concerns regarding electoral rolls. He said, "Voter list manipulation has been part of the game for a fairly long while. If you look at election records, you’ll ghost voters up to two, three lakhs in a population of twenty lakhs. Now, technology allows rigorous manipulation at a greater scale. If any party, with a considerably large number of workers try to do this, they can affect it at scale. At this moment, we do not have adequate safeguards to ensure the credibility of the electoral process."Nandini Chandrashekar raised concerns about voter disenfranchisement, pointing out systemic issues

This week’s episode of South Central, hosted by journalist Dhanya Rajendran and co-hosted by Pooja Prasanna and Leena Reghunath, explored two pressing topics—youth violence in Kerala and the growing influence of hyper-nationalism in Indian cricket. The episode featured filmmaker Don Palathara, senior sports journalist Sharda Ugra, and social media influencer Aysha Mahmood.With Kerala witnessing violent crimes, the state is debating whether movies, drugs, or the internet were fueling these incidents. Don Palathara argued against blaming any single medium, including cinema. He emphasized that cinema does not dictate behavior but is a reflection of the larger society.Aysha Mahmood, however, highlighted the impact of technology on behavior, particularly among children. “Our brain has been rewired to have instant justice, instant dopamine hits, instant gratification,” she said.The conversation then shifted to Indian cricket, examining the power of the BCCI and the rising wave of hyper-nationalism. Sharda U

In this episode of South Central, hosts Dhanya Rajendran, Pooja Prasanna, and Leena Reghunath are joined by activist and journalist Shivasundar and retired IAS officer PV Ramesh to discuss the looming delimitation and Karnataka’s Naxal journey.With delimitation set for 2026, will south India’s political representation shrink if more seats go to northern states? What does this mean for governance, federalism, and the country’s power balance?On delimitation, PV Ramesh says, “It does not really matter how many citizens one MP represents—certainly, the lesser, the better—but any revision must be pro-rata across the country. If seats must increase, it should be across the board by 10–20% without reference to population, ensuring fair representation for union territories and smaller states. In a country as diverse as India, a one-size-fits-all rule simply won’t work.”Shivasundar argues, “There should be a numerical increase, but it should come with devolution of power. Why should the Lok Sabha h

The Union government is withholding education funds from Tamil Nadu over its refusal to implement the three-language policy. Is this really about language, or is it about control over states? Vikatan’s website was abruptly blocked days after BJP leaders attacked its cartoon on Modi. With independent media under pressure, is digital censorship the next frontier?Hosts Dhanya Rajendran, Pooja Prasanna, and Leena Reghunath are joined by TNM’s executive editor Sudipto Mondal and senior journalist K Venkataramanan to break it all down.All this and more—tune in!Once a month, we will invite one TNM subscriber to the show. Write to us on what you would like to speak about to [email protected] your thoughts, suggestions and criticism as well.Audio Timecodes 00:00:00 – Introduction00:01:27 – TNM’s 11th Birthday00:04:34 – Headlines00:09:07 – Union Govt vs TN00:38:23 - Rohith Act 00:44:21 - Vikatan, BeerBiceps & Digital Censorship01:04:30 – RecommendationsCheck out the recommendations

Did Infosys rig performance tests to push employees out? As mass layoffs spark outrage, why do IT workers resist unionizing, and what deeper issues plague corporate India? India’s film industry is censoring itself—before the government even steps in. From CBFC delays to streaming platforms playing it safe, who really controls what we watch? Hosts Dhanya Rajendran, Leena Reghunath, and Sudipto Mondal are joined by political and public policy consultant Tara Krishnaswamy and journalist and author Anna MM Vetticad to break it all down.TNM’s 11th b’day- Gift a subscription: https://rzp.io/rzp/tnm-11thOnce a month, we will invite one TNM subscriber to the show. Write to us on what you would like to speak about to [email protected] your thoughts, suggestions and criticism as well.Audio Timecodes 00:00:00 – Introduction00:01:24– TNM’s 11th Birthday 00:04:34 – Headlines00:09:38: Summons to BeerBiceps00:15:57 – Infosys Layoffs & IT Unions00:35:20 – Film Censorship01:04:59– Reco

In this episode of South Central, hosts Dhanya Rajendran, Pooja Prasanna, and Leena Reghunath are joined by NewsLaundry’s Manisha Pande, along with TNM’s Sudipto Mondal and Jahnavi. On the Kumbh Mela Stampede, Manisha Pande discusses NewsLaundry’s ground report, highlighting how the official death toll is significantly lower than the actual numbers. “We accessed hospital records that show at least 79 bodies were brought in from the Kumbh stampede, while the government’s count remains much lower,” Manisha says.Dhanya questions the lack of mainstream media coverage: “But why have more people not demanded these numbers? That is what really puzzles me.Pooja adds, “Governments want to set world records for attendance at these events, but basic crowd control measures are missing.”The conversation moves to the alarming case of the Chennai Police summoning journalists and seizing their phones over their coverage of the Anna University sexual assault case. “Downloading an FIR in itself is not a cr

In this episode, hosts Dhanya Rajendran and Leena Reghunath are joined by Newslaundry’s Abhinandan Sekhri and independent journalist Sowmiya Ashok. On the AI copyright battle between Indian news organizations and OpenAI, Dhanya points, “This is not the first time. We are seeing a lot of litigation like this across the world. The New York Times and others have gone to court over this. Leena adds, “New York Times and its newsroom have diligently and painstakingly put content together with significant monetary investment. But AI is saying that this is all fair use.” Abhinandan highlights the OpenAI and large learning models crawl the web for content. “The catch-22 situation is when American AI companies accuse the Chinese, saying that your model has copied our model. Then the question is, how did you become what you became?”As the conversation shifts to Tamil Nadu’s latest archaeological discovery that challenges the world’s Iron Age timeline, Sowmiya says, “This iron was found in the Harapp

In episode 11 of South Central, hosts Dhanya Rajendran and Leena Reghunath are joined by TNM’s senior journalist Nandini Chandrashekar, investigative journalist  Poonam Agarwal and lawyer Anup Surendranath.  The first topic they discuss is the differing judgments in two legal cases, one from West Bengal and one from Kerala. Why did a judge give Sanjay Roy life imprisonment in the RG Kar case and why did another judge give Greeshma the death penalty in the Sharon Raj murder?   Anup argues that the RG Kar judgment is a better interpretation of the law. He says that the judge in this case is aware of what the Supreme Court has said about when to choose life imprisonment and when to choose the death penalty. Anup says that this was not done in the Greeshma case.  He believes that the judge had a "shocking ignorance" of what the Supreme Court requires, and that the judge "cherry picked" the judgments that he liked. Leena says that the public are trigger happy and many times judgements are a reflection of

In episode ten of South Central, hosts Dhanya Rajendran, Pooja Prasanna, and Leena Reghunath are joined by public policy professionals Tara Krishnaswamy and Tushar  Chakrabarthy, along with advocate Sandhya Raju who practises in the Kerala High Court.In this episode, first we discuss whether the union government is messing the finances of comparatively richer southern states? Or are states responsible for their fiscal woes? The discussion later is on the sexual assault of a Dalit teen in Kerala that has shook the country. The teen has accused 58 men of raping her.Tune in for an in-depth discussion. Once a month, we will invite one TNM subscriber to the show. Write to us on what you would like to speak about to [email protected] your thoughts, suggestions and criticism as well.Audio Timecodes  00:00:00:00 - Introductions 00:00:48:00 - Announcements00:02:24:00 - Headlines00:06:39:00 - States vs Union00:41:07:00 - Pattanamthitta crime01:11:03:00 - RecommendationsCheck out the recommendation

In episode nine, hosts Dhanya Rajendran, Pooja Prasanna, and Leena Reghunath are joined by TNM’s senior journalist Anisha Sheth and journalist Yunus Lasania. This week, we discuss why communal violence went down in coastal Karnataka in 2024. On the changing trends of communal violence in Karnataka, Pooja highlights, “These incidents don’t happen in isolation. They happen for a reason, and that reason is to convert the region first to think in a certain way and then get electoral benefits out of it. They are part of a long-term strategy to polarize communities, first culturally and then politically, as seen in the coastal belt.” Anisha explains how violence has declined in coastal Karnataka but risen in northern districts, “Ideologically, nobody has had a change of heart. But they're no longer participating in violence. There is also the realization that communities like the Billawas have always been sidelined and considered unimportant, never given important positions in leadership. This transform

In episode eight, hosts Dhanya Rajendran, Pooja Prasanna and Leena Reghunath are joined by senior journalist Ramya Kannan and Save Nimisha Priya Action Council member Babu John. On the Anna University student sexual assault case, Ramya highlights the critical issue of safety and institutional responsibility, “No administration can hide behind the fact that this happened in a remote location within the campus.”Leena calls out the language used in the FIR, “While the narrative of the victim should be accurately recorded in FIR, if the language is victim-blaming, I think it is not the language of the survivor but it’s the police’s language.”Ramya adds, “This will become an index case, setting the tone for how such incidents are reported and handled in the future.” On Indian nurse Nimisha Priya’s death sentence in Yemen, Babu John says, “Everything is with the Indian government now. If they intervene immediately, we can save Nimisha Priya.” Ramya points out, “Is it a case of being a poo

In episode seven, hosts Dhanya Rajendran and Pooja Prasanna are joined by author Sowmya Rajendran, lawyer and activist Vinay Srinivasa, and journalist Rajeshwari Kalyanam.On the controversy surrounding Allu Arjun and the tragic stampede, Rajeshwari reflects on the shift in public sentiment: "Initially, there was a lot of sympathy for Allu Arjun, but that died down after the whole spectacle once he came out on bail.” Sowmya adds, “If he goes to a theatre, he knew very well what would happen. He knew that there would be a tsunami of people.”Sowmya also highlights the obsession with first-week box office collections: “Producers bank on strong word-of-mouth during this period. The desperation to draw crowds is evident in the aggressive marketing and sky-high ticket prices.”Pooja notes that Revanth Reddy has made a political choice to project himself as a tough man who takes on even the most popular faces. As the conversation shifts to Bengaluru’s public spaces and how they are regulated, Vinay points

In episode six, hosts Dhanya Rajendran and Pooja Prasanna are joined by journalist Geeta Seshu, independent activist-writer Madhu Bhushan, and public health expert Dr. Swathi SB. Dhanya highlights the troubling narratives emerging from Atul Subhash’s case, “deliberately a confusion is being created that men are dying by suicide because of marriage related issues, fake dowry harassment cases or the 498 A law.”Geeta says, “the misuse of laws exists, but dismantling them is not the answer. These laws were designed to protect against misogyny, and systemic misuse should be the focus.”On the misuse of laws like 498A and the challenges women face when seeking justice, Madhu says, “Society is still not willing to accept that violence against women continues despite the existence of all these laws.” She adds, “If Atul had reached out to an organization, I’m glad that he reached out to an organization. The question is, how does that organization then support him?”The conversation delves into the

In this episode, hosts Dhanya Rajendran, Pooja Prasanna, and Leena Reghunath are joined by author and activist Meena Kandasamy and TNM's senior editor Ragamalika Karthikeyan. Leena delves into Kerala’s actor assault case, highlighting judicial delays and systemic issues. Dhanya discusses how the visuals of the sexual assault were illegally accessed by court employees and no criminal proceedings are being done on them.The survivor has meanwhile written to the President for help. Raga says, “I think it's process as punishment for the survivor. Everything that is happening, whether it is the courts, how the judges are reacting, how the people are reacting, all of this is patriarchy in action. It should shock us that this is a person who does have access to more resources. And yet, this is what she's facing.”Pooja adds, “At the end of the day, they’re fighting multiple battles to ensure they aren’t further traumatized or shamed, while still living with the stigma that comes with it.”As the conversa

In this episode, hosts Dhanya Rajendran, Pooja Prasanna, and Leena Reghunath are joined by weather blogger Srikanth (@ChennaiRains) and political consultant Tara Krishnaswamy.Srikanth highlights the gaps in India’s weather prediction infrastructure, “We should aim for radar coverage within 200 kilometers everywhere in the country, but large parts of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and the Western Ghats still don’t have enough coverage. Critical areas like Bengaluru, for instance, lack a dedicated radar system, which affects timely warnings.”The conversation shifts to the legal challenges faced by fact-checker Mohammed Zubair. Dhanya remarks, “Personally, people can like Zubair, dislike him, agree with some of his tweets, or think he is a political stooge of some party or the other. But a state's power is being used against an individual.”Pooja notes, “But the fact that a fact-checker is booked again and again shows how those in power are so averse to anybody correcting their misinformation.”Leena obser

Welcome to South Central, a brand-new TNM podcast that delves into the stories shaping southern India.In the third episode, hosts Dhanya Rajendran, Pooja Prasanna, and Leena Raghunath are joined by journalist M. Rajshekhar and writer Nadika Nadja.On Adani’s alleged bribery case, Rajshekhar explains, “This is the first time we’ve seen evidence of money flowing back to politicians in exchange for favors.” Dhanya questions, “Why does every political party avoid confronting Adani?”The conversation then moves to actor Siddique’s controversial bail in a sexual assault case. Pooja remarks, "There’s so much focus on the victim, how they spoke to the alleged perpetrator or whether they were smiling, that the real issue gets overlooked." Leena reflects on how this judgment impacts women in the film industry, questioning the challenges they face in coming forward with complaints.Finally, Nadika and the hosts discuss the movie industry’s push to delay reviews. Nadika observes, “Cinema is art, but it

In the second episode, hosts Dhanya Rajendran, Pooja Prasanna, and Leena Reghunath are joined by Frontline’s Senior Associate Editor RK Radhakrishnan and lawyer Nikhil Narendran.On actor Nayanthara’s stand against Dhanush, Dhanya observes, “I think it’s very uncharacteristic for a female actor to take on someone like Dhanush, who is so embedded in the system.”Adding to the discussion, Nikhil notes, “It seems unnecessary to create a controversy, or perhaps Dhanush acted unfairly towards Nayanthara. I don’t think she’ll face much trouble because the footage was shot on a mobile phone, and courts often view such cases favorably under the doctrine of de minimis.” Nikhil, an expert on IP law explains why Dhanush is on a weak wicket. Highlighting male dominance in the film industry, RK remarks, “Despite the spirited struggle in Kerala, it remains confined to the state and hasn’t influenced other regions. Exploitation, catcalling, and even passing off lewd acts as humor on sets or at audio rel

Welcome to South Central, a brand-new TNM podcast that delves into the stories shaping southern India.In the first episode, hosts Dhanya Rajendran, Pooja Prasanna, and Leena Reghunath are joined by Prof. of Law Anup Surendranath and Newslaundry’s Abhinandan Sekhri.Discussing former Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud’s comment that he turned to god during the Ayodhya case, Abhinandan says, “Religiosity is something that progressives or liberals mock at their own peril because not everybody who is religious or invokes religion is a bad person.”Anup was critical of the ‘Chandrachud project’, as he called it, “He was, in a very strange sense, prostrate – very reluctant to hold the state accountable on the sharpest questions.”As the conversation shifts to Tamil actor Vijay’s entry into politics, Dhanya remarks, “He has actually come in when he’s at his peak, and he’s clearly made that a talking point.” Pooja adds, “There is no structure to the party. There’s one superstar on top,