Brown Colored Glasses

This season finale episode coinciding with Pride Month and celebrating the idea of normalizing all kinds of identities and perspectives, especially from our Brown Colored Glasses, is so very fitting.  Specifically, as a listener, you get to hear from a panel of those within the South Asian community who identify with LGBTQ+ and who share their stories - their struggles, their wins and what they represent. Fayzan Gowani, a queer and trans Muslim passionate about intergenerational healing; Nazesh Ali, also a trans individual, an entrepreneur, creative artist and a host on Radio Azad and our very own Shama Dharani, BCG's beloved co-host, who identifies as a lesbian and is passionate about financial literacy. Tune in to listen to this grand finale of an episode where you will walk away feeling a real "sense of pride" and ensuring you grant yourself and others around you the self-love that we all deserve.

As South Asians, we are all too familiar with the dreaded word "dating" and what that can mean in terms of stigmas, taboos, expectations, outcomes and more. This episode discusses it all - the idea of dating, what it means today for the current generation versus our parents generation, dating only within our cultural community, how dating to marry (and not to explore relationships) is a rite of passage that a South Asian must go through and so much more. Tune in to this light hearted episode coming in from all the various angles of the  co-hosts perspectives, but definitely intersecting with so many of our own notions when it comes to South Asians and dating.

As a bonus episode to all the listeners, this was a special live recording with the BCG hosts and Rizwan Mawani, a passion educator, author and researcher in the field of anthropology and religious studies. His work has taken him across the globe to address audiences from students to policy makers and BCG had the opportunity to host him and ask any questions from the live audience related to faith, identity and spirituality. On the heels of the last episode (For The Love Of God) and all the buzz and chatter, this episode serves as a linchpin to answer all those burning questions we have about our faith, as the next generation of South Asians living in a Western society.

Do you find yourself questioning your own faith and those of others based on how deeply they follow the practices of their faith? Do you wonder about the impact of Covid-19 on our beliefs and what this past year has meant for us in a spiritual sense? Do you feel that your sense of faith has evolved over time as you have begun to form your own identity and come to realize what offers you comfort and serenity? If you answered "Yes" to any of these questions or ponder about the intersection of our South Asian culture, our evolved identity, religion, faith and spirituality - this episode is for you! Come listen to the hosts share their personal perspectives on this topic and challenge each other on what it truly means to be a "person of faith".

As we continue to honor Women's History Month, this episode covers the all too familiar topic and ideal that we as South Asians struggle with quite a bit: body image. You will get to listen to heartfelt, personal experiences from each of the hosts and how they experienced body shaming in different ways and it's impact on them as individuals. We also discuss social media and "what's trending now" and its ramifications when it comes to internalizing body image as well as how as parents we can impact our children and infuse the right ideals when it comes to our relationships with our own bodies.  Last but not least, we share and discuss the newest diet with you that's here to stay and that is to "embrace your imperfections".

In this second episode which delves into the notion of South Asians and colorism, the hosts discuss all aspects of our obsession with the lighter skin - whether it's the "Fair & Lovely" face cream, the tone filter on shaadi.com or our own parents telling us not to stay out in the sun for too long. What is also discussed is the why - where did this stem from and how as a society we ended up discriminating those with darker skin. How does this also parallel with the racism we see within the Western World, especially within this past year, and how and where we can begin to dismantle these belief systems and embrace all the shades of brown, because dark is lovely too.

Brand New Season for BCG and a whole new team! In this episode, you get to be a fly on the wall and listen in on four friends, aka your new hosts, talk about the good, bad and the ugly when it comes to Valentine's Day. What are some of the pressures one feels when this day comes around? Does this day really need to be just about romantic love? What about self-love, Galentine's Day and in general, love for humanity? Take a break and and enjoy listening to the back and forth banter on what should and shouldn't constitute Valentine's day and what we can do to take charge of our thoughts, emotions and actions, all from our proverbial "brown colored glasses".

This episode is the season finale for the first season of Brown Colored Glasses and features the host's daughter, Imaan, to reflect upon the topics of this season such as mental health, unconscious bias, gender and racial conversations and more - all from the lens of a child. Many times, as an adult, we succumb to an invisible threshold that society places upon us whether in terms of our personal or professional lives. What we really need is to be able to look at life from a childlike perspective - one that is free of bias, guilt, and societal expectations and rather filled with innocence, joy, passion and curiosity. "Unleash Your Inner Child" and listen to this dialogue which will evoke feelings of conquering the world, dreaming the impossible and living in that spirited feeling of complete freedom.

This episode is the third and final segment of the 3-Part Series on Unconventional Career Paths in South Asians. This one features, Saqib Siddiqui, a Pakistani engineer cum lawyer who shares his personal story of how his culture, his family and the giant expectations of acceptable and lauded career choices affected him from a very young age. What is really delightful about this particular episode is that even though Saqib is discussing conventional career paths, his path towards how he arrived at who he is today is very unconventional and frankly extremely inspiring for those listeners wanting to figure out how to get out of the rut of the all too familiar deadly trios of career choices (lawyer-engineer-doctor) for South Asians and how to embrace professions that may not be supposedly revered, but will offer that deep inner satisfaction and joy. After all, work really should be an extension of your passions and talents coming together and your culture should not be a barrier to achieving that.

This episode is the second segment of a 3-Part Series on the topic of Unconventional Career Paths in South Asians and features Aelia Hassan, a senior at Indiana University studying Sports Media and Broadcast Journalism. This dialogue really hits home the idea of empowering young girls to pursue their dreams and passions and in this case, it all began with Aelia's love of sports from a young age. Aelia talks about the struggles she faced and continues to face as a woman in the male dominated sports industry and also her challenges as a woman of color. There is so much to be learned in this dialogue for all kinds of listeners and also a lot to be proud of in terms of unconventional career choices, especially as a South Asian woman, that have led to happiness, success and internal satisfaction.

The episode is the first segment of a 3-Part Series on the topic of Unconventional Career Paths in South Asians and features Anisa Butt, a successful British Indian television and film actress, podcast host and more! This inspiring and motivating dialogue allows you as a listener to learn about the world of acting, from the lens of a South Asian woman - the struggles, the wins, the joys, and most of all, the desire and passion to pursue a career in this field. Anisa also shares her journey towards a career in acting in terms of how she grew up, what she was drawn towards, her schooling, her influences and has some pointed advice for both South Asian parents and youth that are considering a career in the liberal arts.

This bonus episode serves as a precursor to a three part series on the topic of pursuing unconventional career paths within South Asians. It shares the perspectives and possible reasons of both the South Asian parents and the youth that may be at odds in terms of what is considered to be an honorable career and trajectory of life (the trilogy of medicine, law or engineering) versus what one may desire out of life as an actor, writer, poet or anything else within the liberal arts or otherwise. What are the reasons for the South Asian notions of successful careers to be so narrow and how can the youth even begin to navigate these tough conversations with their families and not feel the guilt for pursuing their passions? BCG doesn't have all the answers, but hopes to start and continue this difficult discussion.

This episode is all about that D-word - divorce - and how we as South Asians struggle with the idea of casting a final end to marriage, something sought after as the end all, be all of a person's life and worth. In addition to analyzing the reasons for the stigmas, taboos and the fear of divorce, we also have the opportunity to hear from Naila Aladdin, a South Asian Muslim woman, who shares the story of her experience with divorce, her life with her two children, how she makes family time jointly for all four of them work, how she has come out stronger and now leads her life with purpose and significance. She also shares wisdom for those going through a divorce as well as pointers for family and others that can serve as a strong support system for the individual going through the divorce.

This episode discusses interfaith and interracial marriages within our South Asian community and how and why we tend to shy away from and shun these types of relationships due to the stigmas attached of marrying outside of the community. We also have the opportunity to chat with a happily mixed married couple, Fareena Lalani and Carlos Torruella, who share their story of how they met, the challenges they encountered both internally and externally, as well as the advice they have for parents and others that may be facing the idea of interfaith and interracial marriages in their own close knit cultural circles.

This episode takes a deep dive into the notions of culture and identity and the important role that language plays in the formation of one's identity and heritage. "Hinglish", a blend of Hindi and English, and it's role as a new mother tongue for South Asia is discussed in terms of the preservation of our culture, heritage and identity for generations to come. We also get to hear from Shireen Lakhani, a teacher and podcaster for Urdu Seekhiye, who shares her love for Urdu as well as her personal thoughts on language loss and what we can all jointly do to prevent our rich heritage from going into extinction.

This episode discusses the idea of normalizing LGBTQ+ within South Asians and features two powerful and successful women, Shama Dharani and Sanya Matani who identify themselves within the queer community. From learning about their individual stories, to discussing authenticity and spirituality and how desi (South Asian) parents can be more accepting, this is one eye-opening dialogue that will make you challenge your original beliefs and notions surrounding LGBTQ+.

This episode delves into the reasons for the stigma, taboo and societal discomfort surrounding mental illness in our culture as well as an opportunity to hear from two experts within the field, Farahana Kassam and Naureen Dharani, who share what actionable things we can do to address our own mental health and well being and how we can provide support to those within our families that may be struggling with mental illness.

This inaugural episode takes a deep dive into unconscious bias, what it means, and how South Asians are both at the giving and receiving end of these biases. How does this play a role in how we stand up against racism? What are the actions that we can take now in order to begin the process of dismantling these biases?