A Century Of Stories

Mumbai is home to the world's second-largest concentration of Art Deco buildings - yet few people know how or why it happened. In this episode, architect and sustainability practitioner Parineeta Katgaonkar traces the rise of Art Deco in Bombay, from reclaimed land and modern housing to jazz culture, Bombay Deco, and the city's evolving identity. A conversation about architecture, culture, memory, and the making of modern Mumbai. Watch the full episode of A Century of Stories: India featuring Parineeta Katgaonkar - out now!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of A Century of Stories: India, Kunal Vijayakar is joined by Ananth Rupanagudi to explore the story of the Bhor Ghat railway line - one of the most challenging engineering feats in India’s history. Built across the steep and unforgiving Western Ghats, this line connected Bombay to Pune, reshaping trade, travel and colonial governance. But behind the tunnels, viaducts and engineering brilliance lies a far more complex story - of the people who built it, the immense financial and human cost, and the thousands of Indian lives that were never recorded. From colonial strategy to forgotten histories, this episode uncovers what it truly took to build Bhor Ghat.The story of Bhor Ghat also offers historical context to modern projects like the Mumbai-Pune Missing Link corridor, showing how the same region continues to pose some of India’s toughest infrastructure and engineering challenges.  Watch the full episode now and discover the story behind one of India’s most iconic railway lines.   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For most Indians, the day begins with a cup of chai. But India’s relationship with tea and coffee has a far more fascinating history than we often realize. In this episode of A Century of Stories: India, Kunal Vijayakar sits down with Bhavi Patel to explore how tea and coffee travelled across continents and eventually shaped India’s drinking culture. From the legendary story of Baba Budan bringing coffee seeds to India to the rise of South Indian filter coffee, this episode traces the cultural and historical history of Indian beverages. They also examine the dominance of chai tapris and cafes across the country and the boom in drinks like matcha. Watch the full episode of A Century of Stories: India as. Bhavi Patel uncovers the surprising story behind two of India’s most beloved beverages. Episode out now!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kabaddi has travelled a remarkable journey - from dusty village fields to packed stadiums, prime-time television, and a professional league that has transformed the sport in India. In this episode of A Century of Stories: India, host Kunal Vijayakar sits down with Suhail Chandhok, CEO of U Mumba and broadcaster, one of the most recognizable voices in Indian sport, to explore the fascinating rise of Kabaddi. The conversation traces the sport’s ancient roots, its presence across Asia, and its evolution from a traditional rural pastime into one of India’s fastest-growing professional sports leagues. Suhail reflects on the launch of the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL), the role of institutions like the Amateur Kabaddi Federation of India (AKFI), and how broadcasters, sponsors, and team owners helped bring the sport into the mainstream. Is Kabaddi truly becoming India’s second-biggest sport after cricket? And what does the next decade look like for this rapidly evolving game? Watch the full conversation to understand the past, present, and future of Kabaddi. Episode out now on A Century of Stories: India’s YouTube Channel.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What does the smell of rain have to do with a 3,000-year-old city on the banks of the Ganges? In this episode of A Century of Stories India, host Kunal Vijayakar sits down with Pranav Kapoor, 8th-generation perfumer and a trained chef from Kannauj, to explore Petrichor, the science behind scent and memory, and India’s ancient distillation techniques that predate modern perfumery. From copper stills and raw botanicals to the rise of perfume tourism, this conversation traces how fragrance shapes culture, ritual, identity, and the future of Indian craftsmanship. Watch the full episode now on A Century of Stories: India’s YouTube Channel and rediscover why Kannauj remains the perfume capital of India.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.