That's So Hindu - podcast cover

That's So Hindu

Hindu American Foundationwww.hinduamerican.org
The podcast that interviews entrepreneurs and activists, politicians and professors, journalists, entertainers, spiritual teachers, and more on how Hinduism shapes their work and lives. All American. So Hindu. Brought to you by the Hindu American Foundation.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episodes

HAF Shop Talk: All about Ram Janmabhoomi

In this HAF Shop Talk episode, Samir Kalra, Mat McDermott, and Dr Vijay Satnarine have a wide ranging informal discussion of the history and archeology of the Ram Janmabhoomi site, media's curious unwillingness to discuss the full history of the situation going back centuries, the capture of the discussion by Marxist historians, and more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....

Jan 19, 202446 minEp. 102

How can Hindu parents get their kids to love Indian culture? Prof. Pankaj Jain has some tips.

In this episode Mat McDermott speaks with Professor Pankaj Jain. Pankaj has been on the show before speaking about his area of professional expertise, Hinduism, Jainism and ecology. But today we’re speaking about something he’s become particularly passionate about: parenting. Specifically how Hindu parents can help their children develop a love of Hindu and Indian culture. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....

Jan 11, 202431 minEp. 101

Why Hindus should be paying attention to Hamas' funding sources. Sam Westrop explains.

In this episode of That's So Hindu, our 100th, Samir Kalra speaks with Middle East Forum's Sam Westrop about their new report detailing how Hamas raises money through charitable organizations in the West, and the connections with funding for Islamist groups in India and South Asia more broadly. Download the report here Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....

Dec 21, 202355 minEp. 100

Wrongly accused of caste discrimination by California, Sundar Iyer tells us what really happened

In this must-listen episode, Samir Kalra speaks with Sundar Iyer, one of the Cisco employees wrongly accused of caste discrimination by California's Civil Rights Department. Sundar gives us the background of what really happened on his team that led to the lawsuit, what the CRD chose to overlook that didn't support its case, and how it all upended his life, before the case was dismissed against him. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....

Dec 08, 202352 minEp. 99

Sanjay Lazar, orphaned by the 1985 Air India bombing, tells his story - Part 2

In the second part of this two-part episode, Suhag Shukla speaks with Sanjay Lazar who lost his entire family in the Air India Flight 182 bombing and was literally orphaned while still a child. This is the story of his life beyond the tragedy of the worst terrorist act in aviation history until 9/11. Pre-order the first part of Sanjay's book series on his experience "On Angel's Wings" here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....

Nov 16, 202351 minEp. 98

Sanjay Lazar, orphaned by the 1985 Air India bombing, tells his story - Part 1

In the first part of this two-part episode, Suhag Shukla speaks with Sanjay Lazar who lost his entire family in the Air India Flight 182 bombing and was literally orphaned while still a child. This is the story of his life beyond the tragedy of the worst terrorist act in aviation history until 9/11. Pre-order the first part of Sanjay's book series on his experience "On Angel's Wings" here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....

Nov 16, 202350 minEp. 97

Hindu by Heart: Coerced into Islam, Seeking Freedom - Part 2

For this special two-part episode we’ve got something a little bit different. This time, Dr indu Viswanathan, who’s been a guest on the show twice, is on the other side of the interviewing equation. She’s speaking with a young Hindu man, who has a unique and important story to tell. Keshav was raised Hindu and began questing his beliefs, to the point that he converted to Islam and began publicly making stereotypical Hinduphobic comments and denouncing India. But Keshav had a change of heart and ...

Nov 02, 202340 minEp. 96

Hindu by Heart: Coerced into Islam, Seeking Freedom - Part 1

For this special two-part episode we’ve got something a little bit different. This time, Dr indu Viswanathan, who’s been a guest on the show twice, is on the other side of the interviewing equation. She’s speaking with a young Hindu man, who has a unique and important story to tell. Keshav was raised Hindu and began questing his beliefs, to the point that he converted to Islam and began publicly making stereotypical Hinduphobic comments and denouncing India. But Keshav had a change of heart and ...

Nov 02, 202353 minEp. 95

How do Hindu Americans celebrate Navaratri?

For this episode we have something a bit different for you. It’s a special episode for Navaratri. We've interviewed several members of our extended HAF team as well as members of the Hindu American community about how they celebrate Navaratri today, what they remember about the holiday growing up, and how their understanding of it has changed over the years. What you’ll hear are excepts from longer interviews our staff writer Syama Allard did with each person. Here are the full versions of these...

Oct 19, 202332 minEp. 94

What is Critical Caste Theory and why it's a "dubious discourse" | Akshar from The Emissary

In this episode we speak with Akshar from The Emissary about an article he published earlier this year about Critical Caste Theory, as well as the activists who view Hinduism, Hindu culture, and India’s history and contemporary society through this very narrow lens. Read the article that we're talking about here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....

Sep 28, 202341 minEp. 93

There are definite parallels between growing antisemitism and rising Hinduphobia | Sarah Stern

In this episode Samir Kalra speaks with Sarah Stern, the founder and president of the Endowment for Middle East Truth, a think tank and policy institute based in Washington DC. They speak about the parallels between growing antisemitism and rising Hinduphobia, the US-Israel relationship, and efforts to strengthen the Israel-India relationship. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....

Aug 17, 202358 minEp. 91

On bringing the life and legacy of Swami Vivekananda to the cinema | Nico Oscoff

In this episode we're speaking with film director Nico Oscoff on his latest project 1893: Year of the Yogi , a documentary currently planned to be released in 2024. Learn more: https://www.instagram.com/1893yoty/ Donate to the film here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....

Aug 10, 202358 minEp. 90

Here's why it's adharmic to lose money | Easan Katir

In this episode we're again speaking with HAF's own Easan Katir on the topic of dharmic investing, with a focus this time on why it's adharmic to lose money. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jul 27, 202325 minEp. 89

How everything isn't as it seemed in the BAPS and Cisco caste discrimination allegations | Suhag Shukla & Samir Kalra

In this special episode Mat McDermott moderates a discussion between HAF Co-Founder Suhag Shukla and Managing Director Samir Kalra about the latest revelations in the case of alleged caste discrimination at the BAPS temple in Robbinsville, New Jersey, and how the connect to the similar allegations as Cisco Systems in California. Please note: The audio quality on this one isn't quite up to our usual standards as the That's So Hindu recording studio is in the midst of being moved to another locati...

Jul 26, 20231 hr 2 minEp. 88

The US-India relationship has been a success in so many ways | David Santoro, The Pacific Forum

In this episode Samir Kalra speaks with David Santoro, President and CEO of the Pacific Forum, a non-profit foreign policy research institute based in Hawaii. They discuss the state of the India-US relationship, the positive changes he's seen in India in recent years, and much more. Learn more at: https://pacforum.org and follow David Santoro on Twitter here: @DavidSantoro1. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....

Jul 13, 202336 minEp. 87

Preserving dharma by restoring one ancient temple at a time | Behind Every Temple

In this episode we speak with Ananda and Suguna Prathik, the husband and wife team behind the non-profit Behind Every Temple, who are are doing some really interesting work restoring ancient temples in Tamil Nadu. Learn more: www.behindeverytemple.org Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....

May 25, 202327 minEp. 86

How Hinduphobia has been constructed and unleashed from the West | Prof Lavanya Vemsani

In this episode we're speaking with Lavanya Vemsani, professor of history at Shawnee State University in Ohio, specializing in Indian history and religion. Her latest paper in the International Review of Modern Sociology is titled “Global Hinduphobia: Construed, Constructed, and Unleashed from the West” and that’s what we’re going to talk: Hinduphobia, the fallacy of Aryan Invasion Theory, and how to revamp the study of Hinduism so that a more accurate picture of Hinduisms past and present can g...

Apr 13, 202325 min

The connections between advaita vedanta and ecology are, well, deep | Prof. Jeffery D Long

In this episode we're speaking with Professor Jeffery D Long, who teaches religion and Asian studies at Elizabethtown College in Pennsylvania. This his second time on the show. And today we’re discussing a recent paper he’s written on the connections between deep ecology and advaita vedanta.  Read more: Advaita Vedanta and Its Implications for Deep Ecology Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....

Mar 23, 202324 minEp. 83

TEASER: All about All About Hinduism

Do you want to know more about Hinduism? Like actually understand what karma is? Or what dharma means? Do you want to know what the sacred texts of Hinduism are? Or, maybe, you just want to know why Hindu women wear a dot on their forehead? Or, perhaps, if all Hindus vegetarian?  If so, then All About Hinduism is just what you’ve been waiting for. We’ll give you an overview of Hinduism as a lived and contemporary spiritual path. We’ll explore the history of how Hinduism has c...

Feb 02, 202351 secEp. 82

How a former Pentecostal Christian preacher and missionary in India first lost his religion and then embraced Hinduism | Andrew Jasko

In this episode Suhag Shukla speaks with Andrew Jasko. Andrew was born into a minister’s family and became a preacher and missionary to India, after studying theology at Wheaton College and Princeton Seminary. After an agonizing crisis of faith, he rejected religion and spirituality. Later, after finding healing through practices like meditation, psychedelics, and breathwork, that introduced him to profound mystical experiences for the first time, he embraced Hinduism. He currently counsels peop...

Dec 29, 202244 minEp. 81

'Unshackled' demystifies immigration & gives you more control over your future in the US | Soundarya Balasubramani & Sameer Khedakar

In this episode Samir Kalra speaks with Soundarya Balasubramani and Sameer Khedakar, co-authors of “Unshackled”, a practical guide for immigrants in the US to become entrepreneurs, solopreneurs, or just have more creative autonomy over their careers. https://curiousmaverick.com/unshackled/ https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/soundarya/unshackled-a-guide-for-highly-skilled-immigrants-in-america Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....

Oct 13, 202249 minEp. 79

The US-India relationship could take off like a rocket ship | Akhil Ramesh

In this episode Samir Kalra speaks with Akhil Ramesh, research fellow at Pacific Forum International. They discuss the current state of the US-India relationship, where it could be headed, the challenges that relationship faces, as well as some of the challenges the Indian diaspora faces due to skewed perspectives on current Indian politics. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....

Aug 11, 202239 minEp. 76

How an immigrant student with $250 in her pocket & 2 suitcases went on to be the first Hindu woman in Michigan’s legislature | Rep. Padma Kuppa

In this episode Mat McDermott speaks with Michigan State Representative Padma Kuppa, who serves the 41st House District. Padma is an engineer by training, who also served on HAF’s Board of Director for a number of years, before turning to politics. We talk about how she decided to focus on elected office, the connections between her Hindu faith and public service, the attacks she’s faced based on her Hindu identity, and some of the more contentious public policy issues we’ve faced in the past mo...

Jul 14, 202237 minEp. 75

How herons can help us make better financial decisions | Easan Katir

In this episode we’re bringing back HAF’s very own California Advocacy Director Easan Katir, who, doesn’t just do Hindu advocacy work, but rather since 1983 has provided wealth management for families, individuals, and retirement plans. Last time we spoke about Dharmic Investing in general. Today we’re talking about the current state of the financial markets, how to weather them, which sectors are doing well, and how to think about wealth management through the lens of dharma. Learn more: www.ea...

Jun 30, 202222 minEp. 74

There’s no such thing as Indian food. The cuisine is far more complex than that. | Chef Keith Sarasin

In this episode Suhag Shukla speaks with Keith Sarasin. Keith is a chef, three-time author, restauranteur, and public speaker who grew up in a small city in New Hampshire. Keith learned to cook Indian cuisine studying with a home cook, and went onto study with archeologists and food historians from across India. Keith currently runs Aatma, a pop-up tasting experience showcasing food from the Indian subcontinent. https://www.aatmarestaurant.com https://www.keithsarasin.com https://www.youtube.com...

Jun 09, 202235 minEp. 73
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