Desi Academia Podcast

In this episode of DAP, Vatsal and Megh are joined by a friend of the pod, Dr. Rituparna Patgiri. She shares her experiences teaching sociology to STEM graduates. Most importantly, she shares her teaching and mentorship philosophy. We discuss the different roles of a teacher, what it takes to teach sociology, and how to distinguish between opinions and empirical studies. Recommendations: Recommendations:MeghAlgospeak: How Social Media Is Transforming the Future of Language by Adam AleksicTV show: Boots, NetflixRituparnaTV show: The social dilemmaRituparna's co-edited book: Food, Culture and Society in India: Social, Political, Economic and Cultural Perspectives The Attention Economy Arushi BhandariVatsalKaren Hao- interview https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8enXRDlWguUSuperboys of Malegaon

Aditya, Megh, and Vatsal are back to discuss their major life changes in 2025. Vatsal shares his shift from non-alcoholic fatty liver disease to fibrosis, the scientific and ethical training needed to work with live human doner tissue, and the challenges navigating the visa system in Canada. We also discuss the challenges of postdoc onboarding, HR in academia (or the lack thereof), 9-5 life after the PhD,  'dry lab privilege vs wet lab reality', the impact of being gym-pilled on intellectual labor, and navigating postdocs in non-English speaking countries. We end with a question- has your PhD given you the training to build a career not just outside Western Academia, but in the Global South?

We continue this season with another friend-of-the-pod Professor Indranil Dutta, as we discuss Megh's dissertation defense and thesis writing experience, and the value of a supportive research experience. Recommendations:MeghThe Rosie ProjectIndranilTV show: OrbitalParts UnknownKitchen ConfidentialVatsalAnthony Bordain’s ‘No Reservation’

It's season 10 (Yes, we can't believe it either!) and the OG gang (Megh, Aditya, and Vatsal) gets together after a very long time to vent about all things academia. In this episode of Desi "postdoctoral" podcast, we catch up with Aditya and discuss how academia has been treating him over the past year or so. We talk about what's going on in our lives, things plaguing academia, and much more!Join us for this fun conversation!

Have you ever wondered what it's like to explain your research to an immigration and customs officer? Today, Manan and Sumaira join us to discuss their work on trans-continental poetry and periodicals respectively, what it means to study the history of Islamic communities and literary traditions in Western Academia, the different aims and focii of sociology, anthropology, literature, religious studies and Islamic studies, and what it means to impart all this knowledge and passion in college classrooms.RecommendationsSumairaIdea of the Muslim WorldOttoman History PodcastWhen only God can see: the Muslim Faith of Political Prisoners Walaa Quisay & Asim QureshiThe Writings of Sharjeel Imam, Gyanendra Pandey, Papihah GhoshAdul Manān Bhat Genealogies of Religion Talal AsadThe Venture of Islam, Marshall HodsonPolitics of Piety,Saba MahmoodWhat is Islam? Importance of being Islamic, Shahab AhmedThe work of IqbalMeghBecoming Young Men in a New India, Shannon PhilipAfter I Was Raped: The Untold Lives of Five Survivors Urmi BhattacheryyaVatsalOzarc, Netflix