Santiniketan Podcast

An article by Madhusree Mukherjee alerts us of possible humanitarian and ecological disaster unfolding in a remote jungle in India, threatening flora and fauna of an unique eco-system and an indigenous jungle tribe under onslaught of surface mining.

Reading Parashanta Pal’s Rabi Jeebani, 5th volume, on marriage of Meera Tagore with Nogen, Kanyadaygrostho Tagore and his views on religious rigidity. Anjana Sen recites Santiniketaner Chithi of 26-9-53. Songs by Sudeshna Bose, Paromita Das, Anjana Sen.

Anjana Sen reads Subhomoy Ghosh’s Santiniketaner Chithi of 9th sept 53 covering Binoy Bhavans efforts at rural education. Tonu reads his blog ‘A changing world’ covering the past month. Songs by Anjana Sen, Sudeshna Basu, Paromita Das.

A memorial service held on 15th August 2011, at the residence of Tan Lee in Delta, BC, Canada, with participation from Tan Lee, Leena Chatterjee, Tonu, Anuradha, Anjana Sen, Alaka Rao, Steve Dhillon, Paromita Naidu and Somita Guha.

Covering talks of 7th August 2011 between Tonu in Canada, Tapas Basu in UK, Piyali Palit in Mauritius and Chitra Palchoudhury in Kolkata, India, about everything under the sun. Songs by Tamojit Ray, Sugata Sen, Suchitra Mitra and Kanika Bandopadhyay.

Tonu reads out his blog analyzing why Tagore’s rural reconstruction program failed, and how that the ex-students and teachers are collectively responsible. Songs by Mohan Singh, Sinjini Majumdar, Indranil Sen and Florda Ahmed.

Tonu talks about his blog KMG-6 on Kalimohan Ghosh, but specifically about Madanmohan Ghosh and Piyali Palit, both of whom had new information to pass about Kalimohan Ghosh. Songs from Basabi Dutta, Ankhi Bose, Vikram Singh and Rajeswari Dutta.

Tan Lee and Leena Chatterjee remembers folks from their younger days in Santiniketan – Subhomoy Ghosh, Anil Chanda, Mukul De, also books by Sir Perceival Sykes. Songs by the young folks from Vancouver and surroundings, and Mohan Singh and Santideb Ghosh.

Dr. Jonathan Fine, founder of PHR, USA, and co-founder of International Federation for health and human rights organisations, the Netherlands, speaks on Binayak Sen. Songs by Purnadas Baul, Pramita Mallick, Sasha Ghoshal, Arudhuti Hom Chowdhury.

Covering a 150 year old question on the origin of Harappans, Indo Aryans, and the origin of Vedic people – with new study of genetics. Songs by Chandraboli Rudra Dutta, Sharmila Roy, Rajashree and Shromona Mukherjee, WB Sangeet academi, Shompa Kundu

Tonu talks on randomly chosen topics, such as human genome, our chromosomes and their tudy might affect the future, and also the need to study the history of plants such as rice. Songs by Manna De, Tapan Mallick, Sandhya Mukherjee, Indrani Sen.

Reading two notes from Piyali, and about Mahasweta Devi's book “Aranyer Adhikar” covering India's tribal people's struggle against destruction of forests. Songs from Sugata Sen, Ramkumar Chatterjee, Pulak Dutta, Pramita Mallick, Chitralekha Chowdhury.

Reading from 3 books : Tagore's ambivalence by Hogan and Pandit, Economic Exploitation of India in the Victorian Era by Dutt, and Root of Environmentalism by Guha. Songs by Swagatalakshmi Dasgupta, Kanika Bannerjee, Indranil Sen, Sandip Tagore and chorus

Piyali Palit talks about the spiritual movement started by Chaitanyadeb out of Bengal five centuries ago that was to sweep Northern India with Krishna-Radha worship. Songs by Shyamal Mitra, Chittaranjan Deb, Amar Pal, Tamojit Ray and Pramita Mallick

Tonu tries to predict the future to the end of this century, on the expected state of organized religion, nationalism and language. Songs and recitation by Rabindranath Tagore, Satyabhushan Gupta, Arundhati and Indranil, Subhomoy Ghosh, Amar Pal

Describing five books, by Craig Roberts, Madhusree Mukherjee, James Gustave Speth, Joseph Stiglitz and Clyde Prestowitz. Songs by Sasha Ghosal, Lopamudra Mitra, Rajeswari Dutta, Santideb Ghosh and Pramita Mallick

Madhusree Mukherjee speaks about the subjects of her books “Land of Naked People” and “Churchill's Secret War: The British Empire and the Ravaging of India during World War II”. Songs from Rama Mandal, Paban Das Baul and Lopamudra Mitra.

Second part of talk with Tathagata Sengupta, about the internally displaced tribals of India's forest belt. Songs by Saunak Chatterjee, Sraboni Sen, Rina Srimal, Kanika Bannerjee, aditi Mohsin, Lopamudra Mitra

Tathagata Sengupta of AID group, discusses his trip and meeting with the internally displaced tribal folk in eastern India, a victim of India's development drive. Songs from Sugata Sen, Mistuni Roy Bevins, Basabi Dutta Roy, Supriti Ghosh and Vikram Singh.

Second part of the talk with Binayak Sen and family. Songs by Aditi Mohsin, Abhirup Guhathakurta, Mukti Saha, Krishna Roy and Purna Das Baul

Covering a conference call interview with Binayak Sen and his wife Ilina, organized by the Boston volunteers of Association for Indias Development (AID). Songs by Lopamudra, Bauls of Bengal, Sandip Thakur, Manoj Murali Nair, Laisa Ahmed Lisa.

A talk with Ravi Kuchimanchi and Somnath Mukherjee on starting an AID chapter, followed by 4 letters written by Rabindranath Tagore to Kalimohan Ghosh, from the book Kobi O Kormi by Purnananda chattopadhyay. Songs by Neela Mazumdar and from Chitrangada.

Reading from Santiniketaner Chithi by Subhmoy ghosh of 28.8.53 and 12.9.53, and Atal Babur Antim Chinta by Prashuram. Songs and recitation by Suchitra Mitra, Arabindo Biswas, Tanaya Guha, Manabendra Mukherjee, Ramkumar Chatterjee and Pramita Mallick.

Tagore plays catalytic role in Geddess writing the introduction to Mukherjee's book, mentioning Goldsmiths poem of 1770. Songs and recitation by Santideb Ghosh, Lopamudra Mitra, Phulomoni Dasi, Sumantra Sengupta, Pijushkanti Sarkar and Anirban Guha.

A global adda between Tonu, Tapas Basu, Tamojir Ray and Sutapa Bhattacharya (Nina di) – conducted on the 15th of August 2010. Songs by Vikram Singh, Prahlad Brahmachari, Phulomala Dasi, Sugata Sen and Basabi Dutta Roy.

Presenting 5 letters by Subhomoy Ghosh, from 20th June to 16th August 1953, published in Ananada Bazar Patrika. Songs by Kalim Sarafi, Sharmila Roy Pommot, Kanika Bandopadhyay, Indranil Sen, Ishita Ganguly and Mohan Singh.

Presenting Short story Reba Roshadhi by Saradindu Bandhopadhyay, based on historical background of the 13th century. Songs by Prabhat Pal, Firoza begum, Kartik Das Baul, Mistuni Roy Bevins, Ramkumar Chatterjee.

Anuradha Mitra covers a talk with Shyamali Khastagir, and the last Podcast of Nature Stories on the changing Canadian Arctic. Songs by Alpona Roy, Sandip Tagore and Japanese friends, Suchitra Mitra, Subinoy Roy, Pramita Mallick, Laisa Ahmed Lisa.

An interview of Ramachandra Guha by Chris Lydon of Radio Open Source, where Guha discusses the bright and the darker sides of India's past present and future. Songs by Suchitra Mitra, Aditi Mohsin, Amala Das, Anuttama Ghosh and Arghya Sen.

Reading from two books, How much should a person consume by Ramachandra Guha and Dilemmas in Agriculture by Gorrepati Narendranath. Songs by Parvathi Baul, Sharmeen Omar, Rajewsari Dutta, and Rina Srimal.

Reciting a kobigan on Tagore geneology, and reading from three books related to Tagore and Santiniketan, by Kalyali Sur, Santideb Ghosh and Palit, Mitra and Bannerjee. Songs by Chintamoni Dasi, Tamojit Ray, Shyamali Sur, Purabi Mukherjee, Anjana Sen.

Prof Afshin Marashi speaks at UCLA on Rabindranath Tagore's visit to Iran in 1932 and an identity based on Indo-Iranian civilization. Recitation and songs by Tonu, Krishnachandra De, Basabi Dutta, Aloke Roychowdhury, Anuttama Ghosh, Arghya Sen.

Ravi Kuchimanchi at Wharton, Navi Raju at Cambridge and Katy Clark at PRI, speak about changing India at both top and bottom end. Songs from Santideb Ghosh, Aditi Mohsin, Abdul Aleem, Dhanajay Bhattacharya, Krishna Chatterjee and Arati Mukherjee

Presenting a conference call involving Somnath Mukherjee of Boston and the residents of the Cyclone ravaged island of K Plot in the Sunderbans. Songs from Laisa Ahmed Lisa, Maya Sen, Hemanta Mukherjee, Tanaya Guha and Sugata Sen.

Covering items from Chinese media, Oriya Rabindrasangeet, RTI, orphan elephants of Africa to the plight of sunderbans residents and AID groups work in there. Songs by Tamojit Ray, Trupti Panda, Kanika Bannerjee, Pramita Mallick and Mohan Singh.

Michael Madusudan Dutta's exam paper discussed in Oxford. Bratin Biswas of Surul Cenre of Services in Rural Area talks on bringing sustainable agriculture back in Birbhum. Songs by Basabi Dutta Roy, Geeta Ghatak, Hemanta Mukherjee and Indranil Sen.

Nikhil Dey at AID Seattle conference, on eradication of poverty and corruption through Rural Employment Guarantee Act and Right to Information. Songs by Aditi Kohsin, Abhirup Guhathakurta, Anuttama Ghosh, Arabinda Biswas, Arghya Sen and Kanika Bannerjee.

Association for India's Development – AID – founder Ravi Kuchimanchi addresses the AID Seattle volunteers about sustainable work at grass root level in rural India. Songs by Lata Mangeshkar, Pramita Mallick, Indranil Sen and Sharmila Roy Pommot.

Second part of talk with Udaya Narayan Singh on his work with Bhasha Mandakini, and contribution in Bengali and Maithili literature. Songs by Laisa Ahmed lisa, Tapan Mallick, Saunak Chatterjee, Sharmila Roy Pommot, Chitralekha Chowdhury and Geeta Bhatak

Self and Sandip Sukla attempting citizen's journalism, on one of the major life threatening problems the planet is facing on a global scale – scarcity of water. Songs by Sharmeen Omar Ahmed, Sharmila Roy Pommot, Sasha Ghosal, Santideb Ghosh, Basabi Dutta

During the 2010 World Economic Forum at Davos, Montek S. Ahluwalia, Shyam Saran, NK Singh, etc discus India's future agenda and place in the world. Songs from Santideb Ghosh, Abhirup Guhathakurta, Anuttama Ghosh, Arati Mukherjee, Arghya Sen, Nilima Sen.

Presenting the first part of an interview with noted poet and linguist Prof Udaya Narayan Singh. Songs and recitations from Santideb Ghosh, Tamojit Ray, Ramkumar Chattopadhyay, Sanajit Mondal, Shubhomoy Ghosh, Aditi Mohsin.

Kamal Nath talks in Sydney about his book describing this century to belong to India. Songs from Sasha Ghosal, Indranil Sen, Chorus, Srinanda Mukherjee, Chorus, Kishore Kumar, Sandip Tagore and Japanese friends, Santideb Ghosh

Maude Barlow, water advisor to the UN, speaks at Cornell University about a rights based solution to global water crisis. Songs by Lopamudra Mitra, Kabir Suman, Sandip Tagore, Bhaskar Bagchi, Santideb Ghosh, Firoza Begum, Sharmila Roy Pommot.

Reading Santiniketaner Chithi of 6th June 1953, and Gandhian Himanshu Kumar talks about the problems in the tribal mineral belt. Songs by Suchitra Mitra, Sudeshna Bose, Saunak Chatterjee, Kiran Chandra Roy, Rina Srimal, Rita Ghosh

Arundhati Roy speaks with Christopher Lyden in Open Source of Brown University on the roots of Maoist Insurgency in India. Songs by Manashi Adhikari, Abdul Aleem, Pramita Mallick, Abbasuddin Chowdhury, Tanaya Guha, Tamojit Ray

Covering a talk with Ms Lila Rajiva, author of two books, and owner of the blog Mind-Body Politic, and a self proclaimed Libertarian. Songs by Kaustav Goswami, Lata Mangeshkar, Pramita Mallick, Churus, Arundhati Hom Chowdhury, Kanika Bannerjee

Covering a discussion from Trategic talk, USA, presenting a western view on Maoist and other problems facing India and the adjacent nations. Songs by Vikram Singh, Chorus by children, Ranjana Sen, Swastika Mukherjee, Laisa Ahmed Lisa, Sagar Sen

Phillips Talbot and Narendra Singh Sarila discuss personal experience from the times leading to India's independence. Songs by Sinjini Acharya Majumdar, Surangama, Sabitabrata Dutta, Indira Shilpa Gosthi, Indranil Sen, Santideb Ghosh, Mohan Singh

Closing discussion with Ananda from episode 184, Tonu rambles a bit, then recites the 3rd Essay by Rabindranath on Visva Bharati. Songs by Tarit Chowdhury, Bauls of Bengal, Chorus, Sraboni Sen. Pramita Mallick sings Visvabidyatirthaprangana.