Mic and Magic with Manan

He was 14-20 down. Six match points against him. What happened next is why you need to watch this episode till the end.India's badminton smash machine Kiran George (BWF Top 50, Thomas Cup medallist) sits down with 15-year-old host Manan for his most unfiltered conversation yet — pressure, pain,comebacks, and the one David Goggins idea he uses on court every single day.About the host: Manan is a Grade 10 student who interviews India's top athletes with the kind of questions adults are too polite to ask.About the guest: Kiran George comes from badminton royalty — his father is an Arjuna Awardee,his mother played at state level — and heleft home at 14 to train at the Prakash PadukoneBadminton Academy alongside Lakshya Sen.Why watch this? Because Kiran reveals exactly how he stayed calm at 14-20 down against Alex Lanier at India Open 2025, what was going through his head facing World No. 1 Shi Yu Qi at match point, and why he walked into the Swiss Open certain he'd beat former World Champion Loh Kean Yew — after losing to him twice.A rising Indian badminton star breaks down the mindset, sacrifices, and rituals behind competing with the world's best — told to a teenager who asks what fans actually want to know.Kiran's achievements covered in this episode:Historic Thomas Cup medal with Team IndiaBeating former World Champion Loh Kean Yew in straight games (Swiss Open)The legendary 14-20 comeback vs Alex Lanier (India Open 2025)Facing World No. 1 Shi Yu Qi (Thailand Open 2023)3 lessons you'll take away:One point at a time — why thinking about the scoreboard is the fastest way to lose itLearn to love the hard part — the Goggins principle Kiran applies to 6 AM trainingConsistency beats talent — what training beside Lakshya Sen taught him about work ethicMentioned in this episode:Lakshya Sen • Shi Yu Qi • Loh Kean Yew • Alex Lanier •Jonatan Christie • Viktor Axelsen ("Linden" — bestaura) • David Goggins • Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy (PPBA) • Thomas Cup • India Open • Swiss Open • Thailand Open • Sidemen Comment below: Could YOU come back from14-20 down? What's the biggest pressure you'veever played under?ABOUT MIC & MAGIC WITH MANANThis is a podcast hosted by young India's most curious interviewer — bringing you honest,inspiring conversations with the country's rising sports stars, achievers, and changemakers. New episodes drop every fortnight at 7 AM.Subscribe to Mic & Magic with Manan for raw, real conversations with India's sporting stars — SUBSCRIBE so you don't miss the next conversation: www.youtube.com/@micandmagicpodcastFollow us on Instagram:instagram.com/mic.and.magicListen on Spotify:open.spotify.com/show/1kbEtEA5YS6sES1shYvBJLListen on Apple Podcasts:podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/mic-and-magic-with-manan/id1835196806Twitter/Xx.com/micandmagicWrite to us - Email: [email protected]#KiranGeorge #Badminton #MicAndMagic#IndianBadminton #ThomasCup #LakshyaSen#PrakashPadukoneAcademy #BWF #IndiaOpen#SwissOpen #BadmintonIndia #SportsPodcast#LohKeanYew #ShiYuQi #DavidGoggins#AthleteMindset #BadmintonLovers #IndianSports#PodcastIndia #TeenPodcaster

The first Asian to ever jump over 8 metres sits down with Manan. This is T.C. Yohannan — long jump legend, Asian Games gold medallist, and the man whose national record stood untouched for 30 years.Watch this if you've ever been told you're "not ready yet" — because this entire career started with a 10-year-old falling into a stream for a glass of lemon water, and ended with a name written permanently into Indian sporting history.T.C. Yohannan is the Kerala-born athlete who became the first Asian to clear 8 metres in long jump, jumping 8.07m to win gold at the 1974 Tehran Asian Games while injured and on painkillers.Mic & Magic with Manan is a youth sports podcast where 15-year-old host Manan sits down with India's most extraordinary athletes to pull out the stories behind the medals. 3 CAREER-DEFINING ACHIEVEMENTS- First Asian in history to jump over 8 metres — 8.07m gold at the 1974 Tehran Asian Games (a new Asian Games and Asian record)- Held the Indian national long jump record for nearly 30 years (1974–2004)- Arjuna Award winner (1974) and Olympian — represented India at the 1976 Montreal Olympics MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE (SIMA PLS CHECK)Athletes: Neeraj Chopra (@neeraj____chopra), Murali Sreeshankar (@sreeshankarmurali), Anju Bobby George, P.T. Usha, Milkha Singh, Suresh Babu, and son Tinu Yohannan (first Keralite Test cricketer for India)Coaches: Suresh Gujarati, Dr. Muthaiah, M.B. GaneshInstitutes: Bhilai Steel Plant, NIS Patiala, Sports Authority of India (SAI), MRF Pace FoundationGear: Adidas, Asics Tiger  TAKEAWAYS1. Don't specialise too early — build all-round athleticism and a strong foundation first. Yohannan's "three seasons" (off-season, middle season, competitive season) made the medals possible.2. Long jump is speed + strength + coordination + a powerful core. Jumping straight into the event without conditioning is how athletes get hurt.SUBSCRIBE so you don't miss the next conversation: https://www.youtube.com/@micandmagicpodcastFollow us on Instagram: instagram.com/mic.and.magicListen on Spotify: open.spotify.com/show/1kbEtEA5YS6sES1shYvBJLListen on Apple Podcasts: podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/mic-and-magic-with-manan/id1835196806Twitter/X: x.com/micandmagicWrite to us — Email: [email protected]#TCYohannan #LongJump #IndianAthletics #MicAndMagic #SportsPodcast

He was ranked World No. 64. His opponent was World No. 2 — a three-time World Championship medallist. Sixty-six minutes later, the scoreline read 18-21, 21-12, 21-5, and Indian badminton had a brand-new name to remember.Today on Mic & Magic, Manan sits down with Sankar Subramanian — the left-handed shuttler from Chennai who stunned Anders Antonsen at the Swiss Open and announced himself to the world. But the upset is only the beginning of the story.Sankar dropped out of school at 15 to chase badminton full-time — with no Plan B. His father, a former tennis player, knew exactly what the climb would cost. His mother and father both left their jobs to travel with him. His sister, once a state champion herself, became the mind behind his schedule. This is a family that bet everything on one boy and one racket.In this episode, Manan explores what it actually takes to go from a middle-class home in Tamil Nadu to beating the world's best. Sankar opens up about why he sees the court differently as a left-hander, why he's chosen the "unglamorous" art of defence in a sport obsessed with the smash, how moving from training with his dad to the Gopichand Academy transformed his game, and what was running through his mind in real time as he dismantled a world No. 2. He also shares his lowest point — the 2024 season that quietly broke and rebuilt him — and answers a question every ambitious young person has asked themselves: is it selfish to put your dream first?This episode is for every kid who's been told to keep a "safe" Plan B, every athlete who's been made to feel that defence is boring, and every dreamer who has ever wondered whether chasing something big makes them selfish. Sankar's answer might change how you think about your own goals.3 THINGS YOU'LL TAKE AWAY FROM THIS EPISODE:Defence is a weapon, not a weakness. Sankar explains why reading the game and sustaining any pace in a rally can dismantle a pure attacker — and why the shots that never make the highlight reel are often the ones that win the match.What it really takes to turn pro. From dropping out of school with no Plan B to a whole family rearranging their lives around one career, Sankar is honest about the cost of commitment — and how results, not hope, told them they were on the right path.ABOUT OUR GUEST — SANKAR SUBRAMANIAN:First Indian to stun World No. 2 Anders Antonsen at the Swiss Open 2025 — while ranked World No. 64Former Junior World No. 1 in boys' singlesSilver medallist, 2022 BWF World Junior ChampionshipsBronze medallist, Asian Junior ChampionshipsLeft-handed men's singles player from Chennai, Tamil NaduTrains at the Gopichand Academy, known for his defence, control, and rallying gameABOUT MIC & MAGIC WITH MANANThis is a podcast hosted by young India's most curious interviewer — bringing you honest, inspiring conversations with the country's rising sports stars, achievers, and changemakers. New episodes drop every fortnight at 7 AM.SUBSCRIBE so you don't miss the next conversation: www.youtube.com/ @micandmagicpodcastFollow us on Instagram: instagram.com/mic.and.magicListen on Spotify: open.spotify.com/show/1kbEtEA5YS6sES1shYvBJLListen on Apple Podcasts: podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/mic-and-magic-with-manan/id1835196806Twitter/Xx.com/micandmagicWrite to us - Email: [email protected]#Badminton #SankarSubramanian #IndianBadminton #MicAndMagic #SportsPodcast

Today on Mic & Magic, Manan sits down with someone who proved that history doesn't always come from the people you expect. Anupama Ramachandran picked up a snooker cue at a summer camp when she was just 13 years old. Ten years later, with one perfect shot in 11 seconds, she became the first Indian woman to win the World Snooker Championship.In this episode, Manan explores how a young woman from Tamil Nadu broke into a sport long considered "a man's game" in a country that most people don't even associate with cue sports. Anupama opens up about her first century break, the cue she had custom-made in Bangkok, the coaches who shaped her game, the lonely lockdown years that quietly built her into a world champion, and what it felt like to carry the Tamil Nadu flag at the National Games. She also shares something many young athletes need to hear: snooker isn't just about pocketing balls. It is about reading the table, sequencing your shots, trusting yourself in the silence between moves, and adapting to a new table in a new country in 15 minutes flat. That lesson travels far beyond the green felt.This episode is for every kid in India who has been told their sport is "too small," every girl who has been told the game is not for her, and every dreamer who has ever stood at a table — sport, school, life — and wondered if they had what it takes to line up the next shot.In this episode, you'll learn:Why the difference between snooker and billiards matters more than most people realiseWhat really happens during the 11 seconds before a championship-winning shotWhy the 15 Red format is considered the truest form of snooker (and why shorter formats exist)How Anupama used the lockdown years to quietly build a world champion's gameThe story behind her first competitive century break — and the rival who inspired itHow the MIMS (Mission International Medal Scheme) is helping Indian athletes compete globallyWhy "adaptability" is the real name of the game in international competitionThe bow-tie debate: should snooker keep its old-school tradition or move on?What hay ball is, and why Anupama is learning a brand new sport at the top of her careerWhat excites her most about the future of cue sports in IndiaAbout our guest — Anupama Ramachandran:First Indian woman in 95 years to win the IBSF Women's World Snooker Championship (15 Red format)World ranked No. 68 national junior titlesFlag bearer for Tamil Nadu at the National Games, GoaHighest competitive break: 119Highest practice break: 139ABOUT MIC & MAGIC WITH MANANThis is a podcast hosted by young India's most curious interviewer — bringing you honest, inspiring conversations with the country's rising sports stars, achievers,  and changemakers. New episodes drop every fortnight at 7 AM.SUBSCRIBE so you don't miss the next conversation: www.youtube.com/ @micandmagicpodcastFollow us on Instagram: instagram.com/mic.and.magicListen on Spotify: open.spotify.com/show/1kbEtEA5YS6sES1shYvBJLListen on Apple Podcasts: podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/mic-and-magic-with manan/id1835196806Twitter/Xx.com/micandmagicWrite to us - Email: [email protected]