Table Talk: Teen Bachchan Women on Air

This column generally covers OTT shows and movies, but there is now a significant amount of overlap between the entertainment industry and the podcasting space (which has seen rapid expansion over the past two to three years). Therefore, podcasts will appear here from time to time, especially when the people involved are from the film/TV world. this week, it is what the hell navyaProduced by IVM Podcasts and ‘Empowered’ (Read Sponsored) by Bumble.

Hosted by Navya Naveli Nanda, the weekly podcast (fresh episode releases every Saturday) features her mother Shweta Bachchan Nanda and her maternal grandmother Jaya Bachchan. The ‘Hook’ of the show is three generations of women who provide their own insights on friendship, family, balancing personal and professional life and more; Three talk shows in one, essentially. The name is derived from Jaya and Shweta’s claim to be one of Navya’s favorite expressions, as well as the way they sometimes feel when they see that 20-something exceeds her days and weeks of activities. Is.

From the very first episode, the pranks between the three are affectionate and deeply committed to getting some solid jibes. Like when Shweta introduces herself as Navya’s mother and says, “I’m here as the voice of reason, to balance 50-plus and 30-minus.” Jaya, without missing a beat, shoots back, “Let me remind you that age is only in the head” in a very Maggie Smith-from- Downton Abbey Way.

humor and some heavy

Part of the fun, however, is always hearing three distinct personalities mingle with each other: Jaya with her chosen words and her sarcastic humour, Shweta’s no-nonsense pragmatism, and Navya’s fresh-eyed, optimistic outlook. During the pandemic, 24-year-old Navya co-founded Aara Health, a non-profit that researches and develops affordable health care products and services for women across India. She speaks about her work with the passion of a young founder, and Jaya and Shweta talk about their professional experiences, drawing a straight line among the women of the last four to five decades in the workplace in India.

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“You are a bit crazy and passionate about your work,” says Jaya at one point in the first episode of ‘Round of Introduction’. “I can understand that, it happens to people who start something different and new. But at the same time, I’ve never seen you argue. You might not agree with a lot of us. [Shweta’s and mine] You think, but you listen to them.”

Individual Goals, Universal Appeal

The second episode (released October 1), called ‘Girl Besties: Almost Therapy’, is about the friendship between women, not only in their own lives but also in the workplace. Jaya has a very eloquent segment towards the middle where she talks about how she and her oldest friend – the women she has known for four decades – still go on holidays as a group almost every year. Is. According to Jaya, this type of enduring friendship, as well as what she calls “old school family values,” are things that are being significantly destroyed by modern life. Shweta stresses the importance of being challenged intellectually by her friends (something Navya is even more optimistic, as she makes absolutely clear during this segment), to be inspired to pursue new interests, You should expand your horizons so to speak.

what the hell navya The panel is susceptible to some problems with the format. The three women are not seasoned podcasters and so there is a certain amount of talking and talking about each other. Photo Credit: Courtesy IVM Podcast

During this episode Shweta says, “I can’t befriend someone who just gossips all the time.” “They have to add something to the table.” This talk about ‘adding to the table’ leads to a lively discussion about the workplace and the kinds of bonds that all three have built with other women at their workplaces over the years. (Jaya is, of course, a Member of Parliament, which is still an extremely male-dominated position in India.)

what the hell navya Certainly, the panel is susceptible to some problems with the format. All three women are not seasoned podcasters and therefore have a certain amount of intervening and talking to each other. And maybe it’s just Navya’s youthful impatience, but several potentially interesting strands are cut in favor of the next segment. In this context, the producers of the show can refer to the podcast as red table talk (which features Jada Pinkett-Smith, along with her daughter Willow and mother Adrienne) smoothly proceeds to talk point of view. These interventions can help what the hell navya become more finished products than at present.

The author and journalist is working on his first non-fiction book.