Join Sidharth Bhatia on an engaging episode of The Wire Talks as he sits down with Salman Khurshid, the Former Minister of External Affairs of India. As the nation edges closer to the 2024 elections, their conversation delves into various topics, including the recent victory of the Congress Party in the Karnataka elections, discovering whether the party is making strategic adjustments in light of the approaching elections and gain valuable insights from an experienced political figure. Stay informed and engaged with the latest developments in Indian politics on this compelling episode.

Get ready for an enthralling episode of The Wire Talks as Sidharth Bhatia engages in a captivating conversation with Ujjal Dosanjh, a renowned Canadian lawyer. Embark on a journey through Ujjal's remarkable life story, beginning from his humble origins in Jalandhar, Punjab, India, to his eventual settlement in Canada.

The Supreme Court is currently hearing a case on whether same-sex partners should be permitted to marry. The petitioners argue that marriage is a union between two individuals regardless of their gender, but the government appears to disagree with this perspective. Meanwhile, there is a proposal to establish an administration to examine this issue further. LGBTQIA+ community too having significant interest in this case; our host Sidharth Bhatia invited Filmmaker Onir to discuss the matter on our podcast, The Wire Talks.

The recent revelation by Jammu & Kashmir's former governor Satya Pal Malik about the death of 40 soldiers in Pulwama attack in 2019 to The Wire, has caused a major political stir. While the government remains tight-lipped, it was then blamed on Pakistan. Back then the former governor mentioned PM Narendra Modi had asked him to stay quiet when he had raised questions regarding security issues and more. In August 2019, Article 370 which had given Kashmir a special status was revoked, thus left everyone shocked.   This week on The Wire Talks joining Sidharth Bhatia is Anuradha Bhasin, the executive editor of The Kashmir Times. The duo talks about Kashmir as what happened after Article 370 was revoked till now, in her book A Dismantled State. She has written about Kashmir's politics for over 3 decades.  Know more about Anuradha Bhasin on Twitter @AnuradhaBhasin_

This week on The Wire Talks, Sidharth is in conversation with Mridula Mukherjee, Noted Historian. Historic movements are always penned in textbooks in order to let the readers know about the rise and fall of that particular era. And this compilation of various happenings in the past is nothing less than painstaking efforts by experts over decades. But post Independence, the history chapters reflected in the Indian textbooks focused more on the Indian perspective over the Colonial. Currently, as per news regarding NCERT, it is observed that many cuts were made in the textbooks, thus sending shock waves amongst academics and educationalists. There is no mention of Moghuls, Maulana Azad and more, this has lead to protests. Why do these changes matter?   To know more tune into this episode of The Wire Talks.

The protests in Israel against PM Benjamin Netanyahu have been in the headlines for quite some time now. To decode and discuss the current scenario in the country, joining Sidharth Bhatia on The Wire Talks is documentary filmmaker Danny Ben Moshe.

The Punjab government recently shut down internet access which created a huge havoc in the state. This move was taken as its law and order wanted to chase the most wanted criminal Amritpal Singh. The move which was taken with the intention to continue for a short while has been unfortunately being in action in some cities and districts in Punjab for longer time now. Media bodies criticized this move, as over 27 million people were deprived of connectivity.  To discuss this joining Sidharth Bhatia on The Wire Talks is Internet Policy Expert, Namrata Maheshwari who works at Asia Pacific Policy Counsel at Access Now.

In the past few days, Mumbai has recorded the worst air pollution ever. City's air quality level has surpassed the alarming level recorded in the country's capital, Delhi. This led to India being ranked 8th spot of the most polluted country in the world. The research was conducted by a Swiss company IQAir. To discuss this, our host Sidharth Bhatia talks to Dr. Anju Goel on The Wire Talks. An expert in Air Quality Management at the Tata Energy and the Resources Institute in  Delhi. She is a fellow in TERI's Earth science and climate change; she studied at IIT Delhi and also has a PhD in her respective field. She is currently leading Clean Air Project focusing on 4 cities along with a team of 15 researchers.  During her conversation, Anju takes us through the techniques, measurements taken by other nations to control pollution, how not just urban but rural areas in India too faced pollution issues, will government's moves help reduce this ever-increasing pollution in the country and more.

Cricket is not a game, but religion in the country. BCCI, the body that has helped this game flourish in the country for years now, has become one of the richest associations in the world. Thus, giving to rise corruption and more unhealthy techniques to make a big moolah out of it. Later in 2015, former Police Commissioner, Neeraj Kumar was appointed as the chief advisor of the BCCI's Anti-Corruption Unit.  But did this move of BCCI, clean the dirt in the world of cricket? Well in his new book, A Cop In Cricket released in 2023, he pens down some candid chapters from his tenure between 2015-18. His account tells us this move of the BCCI to clean up the corruption, was just taken for granted. Tune into this episode of The Wire Talks as Neeraj unveils some unheard chapters in his conversation with Sidharth Bhatia.

Income tax raid on the BBC office in New Delhi or rather survey as they are being termed, after a documentary on the Gujarat riots, has been in the headlines. This conveyed the message anything against the ruling government and the Prime Minister of the country, Narendra Modi will not be tolerated. In this episode of The Wire Talks, our host Sidharth Bhatia talks to Satish Jacob, former Deputy Bureau Chief, who worked with the BBC Network for a long period. During his tenure with BBC, he covered the Punjab Violence, the Blue Star operation and several significant incidents in the past. He shared his reactions on the Income tax raid on BBC, he gave his take on the questions raised on BBC's funds, and he also claimed the network is not a commercial organization.

Hindenburg report released merely two days before Adani's public issue, caused a stir in the industry. Resulting in business tycoon Gautam Adani canceling the public issue despite it being fully subscribed. Meanwhile, the free-fall of stocks continued. This raised many questions in the stock market as well as amongst the politicians who questioned why SEBI did not look into the group of companies.  Answering and discussing all this and more is investment banker, PN Vijay in conversation with our host Sidharth Bhatia, on The Wire Talks. With over 50 years of experience in the stock market, PN Vijay worked with CNBC as a stock market expert and also worked as a national spokesperson for BJP on economics affairs. He starts by answering if short-selling is an unethical activity.  Follow Sidharth Bhatia on Twitter and Instagram The Wire Talks is a weekly podcast, in which each week host Sidharth Bhatia, Founder Editor of The Wire, will chat with guests on politics, society and culture. The guests may or may not be in the headlines, but they will definitely have a lot of interesting things to say. With a running time of 30 minutes and maybe more, these chats will not be like much of the mainstream media today, or like the instant gratification provided by social media. You can listen to this show on The Wire's website, the IVM Podcasts website and all audio streaming platforms.

There was a huge sigh of relief in 2018 when the Government of India ruled against section 377. Sexual intercourse between same-sex couples earlier observed as a crime was debunked. But has it completely removed the stigma surrounding LGBTQIA+?  In this episode of The Wire Talks joining Sidharth Bhatia, is Sharif Rangnekar, former journalist, TEDx speaker, musician and public relation consultant. Coming out of the closet, he revealed it to his mother about his identity. Following this, he penned a book titled, Straight to Normal: My Life as a Gay Man, the book speaks about his battle for identity. Now his next book, Queersapien, takes it to the next level, diving further into his life

Indian politician and a member of the Indian Parliament, Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Yatra is one of the most talked about event in the current times. Starting in September 2022 from Kanyakumari, heading towards the north, the motto was to bring the nation together. But was this the only motto of this Yatra and what did this event achieve in the political term.  Joining our host Sidharth Bhatia on The Wire Talks is Professor of History & global thought, Shruti Kapila. She claims Yatra is a political intervention and also has a connection with the upcoming elections. The duo also talks about the potshots taken at the leader during his Yatra. Shruti further recalls some of the iconic events in the past as Mahatma Gandhi's Salt Satyagraha & L.K. Advani's Rath Yatra.  Tune into The Wire Talks, a socio-political podcast every Tuesday on the IVM Podcast and all audio streaming platforms.

Every 10 years, a massive number of people assigned by the government fan out to count the number of people residing in the country. This survey also includes studying citizens' incomes, the number of family members, property owned by an individual and more. This is the government's Census that has been implemented since 1872. However, the COVID- 19 pandemic pressed a pause button on it, and the census scheduled to take place in 2021 did not happen. To discuss this delay in the census, in this episode of The Wire Talks, our host Sidharth Bhatia, reaches out to journalist and columnist Pramit Bhattacharya. He is an acknowledged columnist for The Mint and The Hindustan Times. He has extensively studied Census, therefore who better than him to understand this delay and its effect on it?   Tune into The Wire Talks, a socio-political podcast every Tuesday on the IVM Podcast and all audio streaming platforms. Follow Pramit Bhattacharya on Twitter. Follow Sidharth Bhatia on Twitter and Instagram The Wire Talks is a weekly podcast, in which each week host Sidharth Bhatia, Founder Editor of The Wire, will chat with guests on politics, society and culture. The guests may or may not be in the headlines, but they will definitely have a lot of interesting things to say. With a running time of 30 minutes and maybe more, these chats will not be like much of the mainstream media today, or like the instant gratification provided by social media. You can listen to this show on The Wire's website, the IVM Podcasts website and all audio streaming platforms.

On 26th January 2023, India will mark its 74th year of the republic, with a grand parade in the capital. What does this day signify? Well, this was the day back in 1950, when the constitution of India, became into existence. Thus, forming many designations to look into the country's progress. One of these designations was of the Governor of the respective states of the country. However, lately, this designation has been in the news, for not-so-good reasons. So its time to evaluate?  Joining our host Sidharth Bhatia, on The Wire Talks, is Raju Ramchandran, the senior lawyer at Supreme Court. He has practiced for more than 45 years, he was also the additional solicitor general of India from 2002 to 2004. Gujarat Riots & Ajmal Kasab's case are a few of the cases in his portfolio. In this episode, he answers the significance of the republic day of India. During his conversation, he mentions back in time, it was the Congress government that introduced the chapter of fundamental duties during the emergency in 1975, elections commission, rights and more.  Further, he throws light on why the designation of a governor, came into existence. The governor was a link between the center and the states. Also what was the thought process between the governor being appointed or elected?  They spoke about the recent outrage against Tamil Nadu Governor R N Ravi following his speech, as he omitted some sections, during the state Assembly held on January 9, 2023.

The western part of Mumbai is far moreover desirable than its eastern seaboard, But this transition only happened 2 centuries ago, prior to that the eastern part of Mumbai was a hotspot for all the formal & informal gatherings, from the government bodies to lot of spots of socializing were majorly in the Eastern Mumbai. The western seaboard became a hot-selling cake only after Marine Drive was built, aka Queen's Necklace. Thus, giving rise to some iconic buildings many of which are still standing strong, introducing the citizens' to art decor and a new lifestyle. Leading many academics to study this massive transition. This week on The Wire Talks, joining Sidharth Bhatia, is Abigail McGowan, a professor at the University of Vermont. Our guest particularly focusses on what makes this architectural buildings in the western part of Mumbai, stand apart from the rest. Her book, Crafting the Nation in Colonial India, dives deep into how crafts seized the political imagination back in time, thus becoming fodder for debate for the present and future of the nation.

Another year has begun and this is a significant year for India. As it is the last year of the ruling government before the general elections. This year will see the political parties in power as well as in the opposition, revising their strategies to connect with their voters. To understand and decode how will this workout, joining our host Sidharth Bhatia on The Wire Talks is Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay, journalist & author. Tune into this episode, as he makes some informed guesses as to how 2023 will unfold for the nation.

A film titled Gandhi released in 1982 helmed by Richard Attenborough, won several prestigious accolades and also introduced the iconic figure of India, to the younger generation. This was followed by many films, newsreels, and documentaries allowing the audience to know more about the Father Of The Nation. However, contrary to this, Mahatma Gandhi, himself didn't like films, as he thought the technology was distractive and harmful, claimed our guest. In this episode of The Wire Talks Sidharth is joined by Prakash Magdum, former director of the National Film Archives of India, civil servant and author. Our guest takes us through his journey about what intrigued him about Mahatma Gandhi and his perspective towards the films. Prakash titles the great leader as the 'Star of The Newsreels' era for the amazing fan following he developed across the borders in the 1930s and 1940s. In addition to this, he also talks about what made him write the book, The Mahatma on Celluloid.

The Supreme Court recently raised a question on the government for hasty decision regarding the appointment of a new election commission. Arun Goel was appointed as the new Election Commissioner (EC) of India in recent times.  To discuss the same, joining our The Wire Talks host Sidharth Bhatia is S. Y. Quraishi. He has served as the 17th Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) of India, was appointed as the CEC as the successor to Navin Chawla in 2010 and had also served as a Secretary in the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.