Hafta letters: Babones interview, ignorance on caste, thoughts on spirituality

Great job, NL team, throughout the year, be it election coverage or the great job in ground reporting...

One request, can we get back Sansad Watch?

Sapan

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Thanks NL team for a nuanced discussion on caste. I am not quite convinced that every story has a caste angle to it. I believe it happens a lot that people fighting entrenched forms of institutional discrimination – like caste or race or gender – come to see everything from only that perspective to the extent of alienating potential allies.

I have observed casteism in the corporate world to be more casual/covert than overt. Being an optimist, I still take that as a sign of progress. Of course, we do have a long way to go further.

Wishing a glorious 2023 for NL.

Sugandh

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Dear Abhinandan,

I never asked you why you interviewed (or what's the use of interviewing) people like Babones. Nor was it the other subscriber who was critical of you but you kept accusing me. It was your friend whose message you read out.

My point was this interview did seem (and it was confirmed by you) like a hit job on Babones. I was only expecting a civil interview but what I got was a boxing match (with no holds barred).

And if you think people will see what a hack Babones is when they Google him because of your interview – boss, let me break it to you. Unless they are on your side, neutral people will see you as the dick. You can just check the comments section in your Babones interview page for reference. And since he is an academic, his image comes from his academic writing, not such interviews. So, you haven't exactly put a dent in his image. Rather, you have now made him more famous in non-academic circles.

AK

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Before they take space at the microphone, the panelists (read: Abhinandan and Manisha) need to at least intuitively know if they are equipped enough to handle a conversation on caste. And if they are not, they must let the other better-equipped panelist (Jayashree) take the lead for that part of the podcast. This will save your listener's time since your questions bordered on ignorance of facts said more than once by your guest on that very episode!

Sumit's point came across VERY clearly and he kept repeating the same thing about Dalit interests being sidelined in newsrooms, to which A and M ask, what about Muslims? Are they not important for you?

Clarifying your questions with more questions brought you back to the conversation, but it came at the cost of ignoring Sumit's previous point and subtly but misleadingly telling him that the question was different and his answer insufficient. The guest has no obligation to entertain what is result of clearly your individual ignorance.

Abhinav

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I wanted to ask the panel if you think you are leading a spiritual life. And what your thoughts are on spirituality? I would especially like to know Abhinandan and Anand's views on this. I would also like to suggest you interview Acharya Prashant. I think he had a book release recently. 

Rohan