South Central
South Central
Podcast Description
Welcome to South Central, a podcast from The News Minute dedicated to bringing the south of India to the forefront. Each episode dives into the stories, challenges, and perspectives that shape the region and often go unheard in national conversations. South Central is led by TNM's Editor-in-Chief Dhanya Rajendran and co-hosted by TNM's Reporting Head, Pooja Prasanna, and Leena Reghunath, a lawyer and senior investigative journalist. Together, they bring sharp insights, on-the-ground expertise, and a commitment to exploring the issues that truly matter in the south. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Podcast Insights
Content Themes
The podcast covers a variety of themes including political developments, social justice issues, media critiques, and regional culture. For instance, episodes have focused on the legal implications of political incidents, communal violence trends in Karnataka, the Kumbh Mela cover-up, and archaeological discoveries in Tamil Nadu, illustrating the unique challenges faced in the southern states.

Welcome to South Central, a podcast from The News Minute dedicated to bringing the south of India to the forefront. Each episode dives into the stories, challenges, and perspectives that shape the region and often go unheard in national conversations. South Central is led by TNM’s Editor-in-Chief Dhanya Rajendran and co-hosted by TNM’s Reporting Head, Pooja Prasanna. Together, they bring sharp insights, on-the-ground expertise, and a commitment to exploring the issues that truly matter in the south.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
In this episode of South Central, hosts Dhanya Rajendran and Anisha Sheth first discuss Kerala’s announcement that it has eradicated extreme poverty. They are joined by T.V. Anupama, IAS officer and Special Secretary, Local Self Government Department and Devaswom, and Freddy Thomas, Assistant Professor at the School of Law, Christ University. The discussion explores how families were identified, the state’s micro-plan approach to welfare, and the challenges of sustaining such interventions over time.
In the second part of the episode, the hosts are joined by senior journalist Prajwal Bhatt from New York to discuss Zohran Mamdani’s election as New York City’s mayor. Prajwal explains how Mamdani’s campaign mobilised young voters and sections of Indian Americans, including “Hindus for Zohran,” while drawing sharp reactions from segments of the Indian right wing.
Read: Ayodhya of the south
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Audio Timecodes
00:00:00- Introduction
00:01:44 – Ayodhya of the south
00:04:03 – Headlines
00:14:02 – Kerala eradicates extreme poverty
00:49:26 – Mamdani wins
01:09:51 – Yogendra Yadav on SIR
01:25:02- Recommendations
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Produced by Bhuvan Malik, edited by Jaseem Ali.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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