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cover art for South Central Episode 4: Cyclone Fengal, Zubair and Pawan Kalyan's Politics

South Central

South Central Episode 4: Cyclone Fengal, Zubair and Pawan Kalyan's Politics

Season 1, Ep. 4
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In this episode, hosts Dhanya Rajendran, Pooja Prasanna, and Leena Reghunath are joined by weather blogger Srikanth (@ChennaiRains) and political consultant Tara Krishnaswamy.

Srikanth highlights the gaps in India’s weather prediction infrastructure, “We should aim for radar coverage within 200 kilometers everywhere in the country, but large parts of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and the Western Ghats still don’t have enough coverage. Critical areas like Bengaluru, for instance, lack a dedicated radar system, which affects timely warnings.”

The conversation shifts to the legal challenges faced by fact-checker Mohammed Zubair. Dhanya remarks, “Personally, people can like Zubair, dislike him, agree with some of his tweets, or think he is a political stooge of some party or the other. But a state's power is being used against an individual.”

Pooja notes, “But the fact that a fact-checker is booked again and again shows how those in power are so averse to anybody correcting their misinformation.”

Leena observes, “Having a Muslim name in this country means that whatever you do can turn into an offense. With a Hindu name, life becomes a bit easier. And that’s the unfortunate truth of our times.”

Tara adds, “It is not just, ‘If you have a Muslim name, we’re going to come after you.’ It is, ‘We will make an example of you because we need to instill fear in others.’ It goes against their narrative to allow anyone to rise up against them.”


Finally, the discussion moves to Pawan Kalyan’s evolving political identity. Pooja notes, “Pawan Kalyan’s ability to adapt and stay relevant is undeniable, but his shift from federalist rhetoric to aligning with hardline narratives raises important questions about his endgame.”


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Audio Timecodes 

00:00:00:00 - Introductions 

00:02:52:00 - Announcements

00:04:08:00- Headlines

00:14:50:00 - Cyclone Fengal 

00:40:05:00 -Zubair case

00:58:45:02 - Pawan Kalyan’s politics

01:25:30:00 - Recommendations


Check out the recommendations and references form this episode.


Produced by Bhuvan Malik, edited by Jaseem Ali.

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