Goethe-Dialogues

Our guest today is actress Tillotama Shome who has created a repertoire of exceptional performances in critically acclaimed award-winning films both international and national. She is an extraordinary actress who navigates between cultures and languages effortlessly. Her debut as Alice in Mira Nair’s ‘Monsoon Wedding’  won hearts the world over and was applauded by The New York Magazine as something that has “ a moonstruck quality right out of A Midsummer Nights Dream”. Find more information about our guest here. 

Tillotama will share her path to success, from being a young girl to becoming a famous actress and even reveals her secret passion for the German Language. 

Following personalities, movies and terms are part of the episode: 

• Bertolt Brecht: a German theatre practitioner, playwright and poet.
• Monsoon Wedding: a 2001 Indian comedy-drama film directed by Mira Nair and written by Sabrina Dhawan.
• Dilip Shanker: Indian writer and Casting Director who has introduced new exceptional talent to the film industry.
• Mira Nair: an Indian-American filmmaker based in New York City; her production company "Mirabai Films" specializes in films for international audiences on Indian society.
• NYU - drama therapy: advanced clinical training in counselling and course work that prepare students to promote health and well-being in a range of wellness contexts. 
• Shadows of time: a 2004 romantic Bengali language film, shot in Calcutta, India.
• Florian Gallenberger: a German film director and writer.
• Qissa: a 2013 Indian-German drama film in Punjabi.
• Anup Singh: a Geneva-based filmmaker.
• Irrfan Khan: Indian actor who worked in Hindi cinema as well as British and American films.
• Mentalhood: Indian Hindi drama web series produced by Rupali Guha under her banner Film Farm India for the online streaming platform ZEE5 & ALTBalaji.
• Sir: 2018 Indian Hindi-language romantic drama film directed by Rohena Gera.

We hope you enjoy the first episode of our new podcast series. Listen to our other episodes as well.

Our guest today is Shammi Narang, the face of Doordarshan. Voice-over artist, ex news anchor and the voice of the metro. More information about our guest can be found here. 

Together with our host Puneet Kaur, Shammi travels back to the days of television in the 70s and 80s and tells exciting anecdotes from his life. 

The following people, terms and institutions are part of the episode: 
 

• The Delhi Metro: a mass rapid transit system serving Delhi and its satellite cities of Ghaziabad, Faridabad, Gurgaon, Noida, Bahadurgarh and Ballabhgarh, in the National Capital Region of India.
• Doordarshan: an autonomous public service broadcaster founded by the Government of India, which is one of two divisions of Prasar Bharati.
• Voice of America: an international multimedia broadcaster with service in more than 40 languages.
• BBC: national broadcaster of the United Kingdom; headquartered at Broadcasting House in London.
• USIS/USIA: operated from 1953 to 1999; was a United States agency devoted to "public diplomacy". In 1999, USIA's broadcasting functions were moved to the newly created Broadcasting Board of Governors. The agency was previously known overseas as the United States Information Service (USIS).
• Salma Sultan: an Indian television journalist who worked as a news anchor in Doordarshan, and later worked as director.
• Elattuvalapil Sreedharan: an Indian politician and engineer who is known for transforming the public transport sector in India. His leadership in the building of the Konkan Railway and the Delhi Metro is acknowledged globally.
• Rini Simon Khanna: an Indian television news anchor, who worked with state-run Doordarshan (1985 – 2001) which made her well known, and later started a career as voiceover professional and anchor person for various events. 

We hope you enjoy this episode of our new podcast series. Listen to our other episodes as well.

Our guest today is Ali Syedain, the director at Civilizations Public School in Karachi, Pakistan. His school is known for its emphasis on sports and co-curricular activities. It has been teaching German for the last 12 years. Ali is a local boy, founding and leading a school in his old neighborhood. He has studied at the London School of Economics and INSEAD in France and was a banker in London in His previous career.

In this episode Ali Syedain and our host Puneet Kaur will get to the bottom of the question: What is the educational system like in Pakistan? And what are the differences to India? 

The following people, terms and institutions are part of the episode: 

School System in Pakistan: Education in Pakistan is compulsory and free for children between the ages of five and 16 years old. The education system in Pakistan is divided into six levels: preschool, primary, middle, high, intermediate and university.

IGCSE System: The International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) is an English language based examination similar to GCSE and is recognised in the United Kingdom as being equivalent to the GCSE for the purposes of recognising prior attainment. It was developed by University of Cambridge International Examinations.

Aga Khan Board: The Aga Khan University Examination Board (AKU-EB) is a Pakistan based examination and education system that was established in 2003 by Aga Khan University, in accordance with Ordinance CXIV of the Government of Pakistan.

CAIE: Cambridge Assessment International Education prepares school students for life, helping them develop an informed curiosity and a lasting passion for learning. Their international qualifications are recognised by the world’s best universities and employers, giving students a wide range of options in their education and career. 

The Aga Khan University: Founded in 1983 as Pakistan’s first private university, AKU is a not-for-profit institution and an agency of the Aga Khan Development Network. Starting in 2000, the University expa​​nded​ to Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Afghanistan, and the United Kingdom. ​

Habib University: Habib University is a liberal arts and sciences university that offers an interdisciplinary education drawing from the fields of science, engineering, arts, humanities and the social sciences.

Lahore University: The University of Lahore is recognized as the largest private sector university of Pakistan with state-of-the-art purpose-built campuses in five cities.

National University of Science and Technology: The National University of Sciences & Technology (NUST) is a multi-campus public research university having its main campus in Islamabad, Pakistan. The university offers undergraduate and graduate degrees, including doctoral and professional degrees

Mian Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif: Mian Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif ( born 23 September 1951) is a Pakistani politician serving as the 23rd and current prime minister of Pakistan, in office since 11 April 2022.

We hope you enjoy this episode of our new podcast series. Listen to our other episodes as well.

Our guest today is Reuben Abraham, CEO of the IDFC Institute in Mumbai and an expert on urban development in India. He describes his institute as a think tank that focuses on examining the political, economic and spatial dimensions of India's current transformation. More information about our guest can be found here. 

Together with our host Puneet Kaur, Reuben Abraham explores the essential questions of urban India in our podcast: Why are our cities growing so fast? How can we control growth? What is the role of politics? And is India even a rural or urban subcontinent? 

The following terms and institutions are part of the episode: 
 

• IDFC Institute & Foundation 
• 74th Constitutional Amendment Act: The 74th constitutional amendment act mandated the setting up and devolution of powers to Urban local bodies (ULBs) or city governments as the lowest unit of governance in cities and towns.
• RWA's: A resident welfare association (frequently abbreviated as RWA) is a Non-governmental organization that represents the interests of the residents of a specific urban or suburban locality, particularly in Indian cities.

This conversation was part of our URBAN SPACES project, working with young people to tackle the challenges of modern urban development. We hope you enjoy this episode of our new podcast series. Listen to our other episodes as well.

Thinking of working in an NGO? Then this episode “Goethe-Dialogues” is for you. Our guest today Nivritti Samtaney is an alumna of Mayo College for Girls, Ajmer. After studying in England for five years she chose to work in the underprivileged and under resourced state and private education sector. She talks about her journey and what motivated her to give her time to work for kids from the poorer strata of society.She also has a piece of advice for youngsters looking to work in NGOs. Listen in!

Nivritti Samtaney: As the India Fellows Program Lead, Nivritti manages the operational and strategic aspects of the India Fellows Program, and works closely with the India Fellows Manager. Nivritti holds a Bachelors' degree in Psychology from the University of Exeter, UK and a Masters in Counselling in Education from the University of Bristol, UK.

Acumen Academy: Acumen was founded by Jacqueline Novogratz in 2001 to use power of entrepreneurship to build a world where everyone had the opportunity to live with dignity. Their goal was to invest “Patient Capital” to bridge the gap between the efficiency and scale of market-based approaches and the social impact of pure philanthropy.

Mayo College: Mayo College Girls' School is an all-girl boarding school in Ajmer, Rajasthan, India, founded in 1987.

Teach for India: The Teach For India Fellowship is an opportunity for India’s brightest and most promising youth, from the nation’s best universities and workplaces, to serve as full-time teachers to children from low-income communities in under-resourced schools.

Pratham ASER report: Established in 2008, ASER Centre is Pratham’s autonomous research and assessment unit. ASER Centre promotes a culture of evidence-based decision making and seeks to develop and use simple yet rigorous methods to generate evidence on scale on the outcomes of social sector programs, especially education.

Sarv Shiksha Abhiyan: Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan , or SSA, is an Indian Government programme aimed at the universalisation of Elementary education "in a time bound manner", the 86th Amendment to the Constitution of India making free and compulsory education to children between the ages of 6 to 14 (estimated to be 206 million children in 2001) a fundamental right (Article- 21A). 

We hope you enjoy this episode of our new podcast series. Listen to our other episodes as well.

Algeria, France, Germany, Pakistan, New York & China. In his long career with the Indian Foreign Service, TCA Rangachari has seen many continents. In our new episode of Goethe Dialogues, host Puneet Kaur talks to the former Ambassador about the many stages of his life and the parallel developments in the country.TCA Rangachari

TCA Raghavan is a former Indian diplomat who was a 1982 batch officer of the Indian Foreign Service.  He has considerable experience in South Asia policy issues and considered an expert on Pakistan studies, including heading the Joint Secretary the Division of the Ministry of External Affairs in Pakistan Afghanistan and Iran (PAI) division.

Amravati: Amravati is the second largest city in the Vidarbha region and ninth largest city in Maharashtra, India.

Hindu College: is a constituent college of the University of Delhi in New Delhi, India. It offers undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in sciences, humanities, social sciences and commerce.

Dr Manmohan Singh: Manmohan Singh (born 26 September 1932) is an Indian politician, economist and  statesman who was the 13th prime minister of India from 2004 to 2014.

Kothari Commision: was formed on July 14, 1964 under the chairmanship of Dr. D. S. Kothari, which is why it is also known as the Kothari Commission.

CUET: The Common University Entrance Test (CUET (UG) - 2022) is being introduced for admission into all UG Programmes in all Central Universities for academic session 2022-23 under the Ministry of Education, (MoE).

Indian Foreign Services: The IFS is the diplomatic service and a central civil service of the Government of India under the Ministry of External Affairs.

Richard Nixon: Richard Milhous Nixon, (born January 9, 1913, Yorba Linda, California, U.S.—died April 22, 1994, New York, New York), was the 37th president of the United States (1969–74).

Mao Zedong: Mao Zedong (26 December 1893 – 9 September 1976), also known as Chairman Mao, was a Chinese communist revolutionary who was the founder of the People's Republic of China (PRC).

Tsinghua University: The university was established in 1911, originally under the name “Tsing Hua Imperial College”. The school was renamed "Tsing Hua College" in 1912.

Ministry of external affairs: The Ministry of External Affairs of India is the government agency responsible for implementing Indian foreign policy.

We hope you enjoy this episode of our podcast series. Listen to our other episodes as well.

From being a German Teacher in India to a life in Germany and an Insta-Page with more than 100k followers. In the seventh episode of Goethe-Dialogues, host Puneet Kaur talks to Nandani Dung about her path of becoming a digital content creator and the daily ups and downs of an influencer.

We hope you enjoy this episode of our podcast series. Listen to our other episodes as well.