Saturday, July 31, 2021
Wednesday, July 28, 2021
Shre and Eish do a recap of the first season of Footloose By Shre and Eish
As they close the first season of Footloose by Shre and Eish, they both chat about their favourites of the season and what worked for different age groups and audiences. After producing and editing 65 episodes of #TidyBytes and #Footloose over the last three months, Eisha deserves her two-month break from podcasting. It will be good to sit back and analyse and see what direction to go forward in, Shreyasi tells her. There are many stories to be told with loads of fun and laughter. We'll be back soon!
---
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/footloosebytidybytes/message
Tuesday, July 27, 2021
My journey as a podcaster in Free Press Journal
Story of a Podcaster
Eisha Sarkar wears many hats - journalist, educator, writer, designer. Here, she recounts how a friendly banter on Facebook turned her into a podcaster
Free Press Journal dated 25 July 2021
I have had many careers; journalist, writer, educator, peacebuilder, and designer, over 18 years, but writing has been my way of expression. It has made me overcome my timidity to tell stories from the weakest sections of society or the most forgotten parts of the world. In the twilight of my thirties, I have found my voice. And people have loved it! As a female podcaster in India, this is a very big deal.
In October 2020, I started chatting on Facebook with Reagan Gavin Rasquinha, a journalist in Mumbai, who I have known through his articles in various media (including TOI) for 16 years but never met in person. Reagan’s hilarious and during one banter on Facebook, I told him, “We should start a podcast.” Our phone conversations had flowed from one subject to another: art, film, journalism, business, cryptocurrency, video games, coffee, tea, chocolates, cheese, food, my elaborate breakfasts, cooking and music. He would send me YouTube links that I would respond to with Spotify links and with that I came across the Anchor ads.
One day in April this year, Reagan asked me when we were going to do the podcast. He had worked at Channel [V] so I asked him to write a script. “We don’t need one,” he replied, “Let’s just talk.” I wasn’t convinced but agreed to a trial episode. We needed a name. There were a few contenders. Then, TidyBytes popped into my head. He loved it. I designed a logo. He suggested we use the microphone icon. An audiophile, he sifted through sound editing software and recording apps and we settled on Anchor because it was free. As a dummy episode, I added some music to a WhatsApp voice note he had sent me about going to the BNHS to buy bananas and published it. It appeared on Spotify, as our first episode. We had set up TidyBytes on a whim in just two days! I was sceptical about whether my unmodulated recorded voice would work but Reagan egged me on. With each episode, I gained an inch of confidence. I had never edited sound before but my experience as a text and design editor helped me learn the new skill. In 2.5 months, TidyBytes with Reagan and Eisha crossed 600 plays with 37 episodes over two seasons. We’re on iTunes, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Anchor, Breaker, Pocketcasts and RadioPublic. “Ideas were and are never a problem. But when we got things going, we knew we were on to something. When you get that soul train, hop on! We recently completed a landmark with zero sponsors, zero ads, zero paid publicity. And we continue,” Reagan shares. We built our audience through social media like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, WhatsApp and blogs and want to reach 5000 plays in six months. It’s because of TidyBytes, many of our friends and acquaintances want to try out social podcasting.
After the first season of TidyBytes, while Reagan was grappling with PTSD, which he bravely talked about in season 2, I had enquiries from women who wanted to get into podcasting but did not know the technology. I wanted someone to talk about subjects we had not covered in TidyBytes. A conversation with Shreyasi Majumdar, my dear friend and PhD scholar in environment from New Zealand, led us to Footloose By Shre and Eish.
“Footloose began as an experimental labour of love. I had never really given podcasting or podcasts much thought…this was completely new territory for me. I was a novice. But soon I realized that I really enjoyed talking about things close to my heart – nature, my garden, wildlife. Talking to people like Sagar Tanna, (about how he beat terminal cancer) and Waleed Hussain, (about sufism) was humbling and inspirational. But the most fun I had was chatting with Eisha, just like the old days when she and I would chat in the ‘woods’ at Xavier’s or laugh maniacally over a John Oliver episode on YouTube or epic Bollywood ‘dancercise’ moves in her Brisbane home. Revisiting the good days and making new memories, while learning about a whole new communication medium – my podcasting journey with Footloose has been an enriching and refreshing one. As the first season draws to a close, I remain grateful for the opportunity to have talked, laughed and learned – with the comfort of an old friend,” Shreyasi says.
TidyBytes and Footloose appeal to very different audiences. The chemistry between Reagan and me drives TidyBytes while we effortlessly navigate from one subject to another. It’s high on emotion and there have been episodes where we have made people laugh hysterically and then shed a few tears, within the span of minutes. We draw references from music and cinema and have not shied away from talking about abuse, bullying, depression and sex. In our favourite episode, Reagan talks about his career as a film critic. We had planned for something else but when we started recording at midnight, the conversation veered to movies and we talked for two hours. Even the most seasoned film critics have needed a script to speak on their beloved subject at such length. Reagan’s passion about cinema and depth of knowledge was loved by an audience that stretched from Uruguay to Australia.
Most Footloose episodes cover travel and nature, subjects that are especially popular with children and family audiences. One of the most popular episodes was Shreyasi’s talk with her husband, Sushil, about gardening. Our ability to bring humour into serious subjects like sustainability has been noticed by green corporates and we shall be building partnerships with them.
TidyBytes is discovering newer pastures. Reagan says, “It’s not everyday that, out of the blue, we get a request from Copenhagen-based social podcasting start-up, Omnipodcast, to be their start-up joinee from India. Eisha and I grow not by integers but exponentially. Everything starts small but faith, belief, the will to never be discouraged, consistency and of course the A+ content that we effortlessly put out, that is everything. It’s just our chemistry that has got us heard all the way in Denmark! The party has not even begun.”
My adventure into podcasting has just begun. There are few women voices out there. With the evolution of social audio, I hope more women will tell their stories through this medium.
Google, Apple and Spotify links
TidyBytes
https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy81ODM4YWJjOC9wb2RjYXN0L3Jzcw?ep=14
https://podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/tidybytes/id1565116914?i=1000526868686
Footloose By Shre and Eish
https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy81ZGVlM2FjNC9wb2RjYXN0L3Jzcw?ep=14
Monday, July 26, 2021
Dreams, connections and music on TidyBytes
In this episode of TidyBytes, Reagan and Eisha talk about their dreams. Most of Reagan's dreams are about his deceased parents. Eisha surprises him by telling him that after the fallout they had during the first season of TidyBytes, when she had to abruptly end the season (she called it a 'roadblock'), she saw his mother in her dream and complained to her about his offensive behaviour. Reagan had a dream where his parents wagged their fingers in front of his face and admonished him. Bizarre! They then talk about music and how Paul McCartney dreamt up the lyrics of Scrambled Eggs and Let It Be. Reagan suggests Pink Floyd's Any Colour You Like in The Dark Side of the Moon might have also been composed in a dream. Eisha discloses that all her dreams have always come true.
#sigmundfreud #dreams #inception #roadblock #tidybytes #tidybyteswithreaganandeisha #paulmccartney #dreamingofthedead #communicatingthroughdreams #twinflames #pinkfloyd #beatles #johnlennon #scrambledeggs #letitbe #anycolouryoulike #thedarksideofthemoon #ayahuasca #coca #incas #aztecs #aborigines #australia #dreamings #walkabouts #connections #music
---
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/tidybytes/message
Molecular Biology, Labels and Holistic Wellness: Sarada Raghavan talks about science, alternative therapy and Iryasa
In the final episode of this season of Footloose by Shre and Eish, Sarada Raghavan takes us through her journey from a student of life sciences and biochemistry at St Xavier's College, Mumbai, to working on biomarkers in Germany and then gradually starting her entrepreneurial journey in Singapore with her holistic beauty and wellness brand, Iryasa. The conversation meanders through what's organic and what's not, responsible sourcing, the tedious process of getting certified, quality control, digital marketing and consumer behaviours.
#saradaraghavan #molecularbiology #cellbiology #biochemistry #researcher #germany #india #mumbai #singapore #lifesciences #stxavierscollegemumbai #biomarkers #sustainability #holisticwellness #therapy #aromatherapy #essentialoils #skincare #organicproducts #naturopathy #alternativetherapy #wellness #iryasa #supplychainmanagement #organicfarms #digitalmarketing #labels #certification #qualitycontrol #consumerbehaviour #natural #shreyasimajumdar #footloosebyshreandeish #eishasarkar
---
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/footloosebytidybytes/message
To Korea, With Love on Footloose By Shre and Eish
Shre has achieved a new milestone in her life. She has watched over 150 episodes of K-dramas. No mean feat, says Eish, who cannot sit through a series longer than ten episodes. In this penultimate episode of Footloose by Shre and Eish, they talk about Korean entertainment and the Korean influences in their lives.
#kdrama #empresski #netflix #korean #koreanlanguage #koreandramas #koreanfilms #film #movies #tv #americantv #seoul #soccerworldcup #fifa #japanandkorea #japaneseoccupationofkorea #classicalmusic #piano #berlin #german #music #art #newzealand #singapore #cabmusic #footloose #travel #footloosebyshreandeish #socialpodcasting #socialaudio #socialpod #culture #societyandculture #entertainment
---
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/footloosebytidybytes/message
https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy81ZGVlM2FjNC9wb2RjYXN0L3Jzcw?ep=14
Thursday, July 22, 2021
Art, video games and perceptions on TidyBytes with Reagan and Eisha
I have grown up wanting a dog but we couldn't keep one so my mom, Sujata K. Sarkar had painted this in 1993. It still hangs in their living room in Mumbai. In the latest episode of TidyBytes with Reagan and Eisha we talk about how she taught me about art and then we veer into video games and perceptions. Here's the Google Podcasts' link
Saturday, July 17, 2021
Durians and vegans on Footloose by Shre and Eish
Shre is just back from a trip to the far north of New Zealand where she has been talking to avocado farmers for research. The conversation moves from avocados in New Zealand to durians, the intense-smelling fruit in Singapore, to the Gujarati delicacy, handvo, Eisha made for Shreyasi's parents in Mumbai, to veganism and monoculture soya farms in the USA.
#avocado #durian #singapore #newzealand #travel #food #culture #bengali #bong #america #handvo #gujaratidelicacy #gujaratifood #vegetarian #vegan #monoculture #soya #soyaplantations #almonds #crops #ethics #foodchoices #sustainability #ecology #environment #footloose #shreyasimajumdar #eishasarkar
---
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/footloosebytidybytes/message
Shre and Sushil talk about monarch butterflies in their garden on Footloose By Shre and Eish
Shre loves her butterflies and has studied them through her undergrad and graduation years. In this episode, she has a conversation with her husband Sushil about the beautiful monarch butterflies in their garden in New Zealand.
#gardens #gardentalk #monarchbutterflies #caterpillars #swanplants #gardening #hobbies #insects #nature #naturelovers #ecology #environment #travel #newzealand
---
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/footloosebytidybytes/message
An eternal sufi, Waleed Hussain talks about his 40Km walk from Agra to Fatehpur Sikri on Footloose By Shre and Eish
In this episode of Footloose By Shre and Eish, Mumbai-based journalist Waleed Hussain walks the audience through his journey from Agra to Fatehpur Sikri. He followed the footsteps of the 16th-century Mughal Emperor Akbar to the home of the renowned Sufi saint, Salim Chishti. The heirless emperor sought the saint's blessings and then went on to have three sons. Waleed did not have any particular goals when he embarked on the journey. At one point, he almost gave up. He persisted and managed to walk the 40 Km until the Buland Darwaza towered over him. Endurance, faith, patience, triumph, fear and humility mark this journey inwards and outwards.
#fatehpursikri #bulanddarwaza #agra #walk #agratosikri #historybuff #historicalwalks #mughalhistory #salimchishti #sufi #sufism #akbar #emperorakbar #waleedhussain #journalist #footloosebyshreandeish #sufisaints #india #travel #history #mumbai
---
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/footloosebytidybytes/message
Beach finds in New Zealand: Sting rays, puffer fish and Indo-Pacific man of war on Footloose By Shre and Eish
In New Zealand, Shreyasi steps out with her dog, Koru, for some fresh air at the beach and sees a spectacular sunset. While most of us find shells, seaweed, driftwood and coconut shells on beaches, Shre has managed to find some unusual creatures in the sand.
#beach #beachbaby #newzealand #travel #pandemic #pufferfish #blowfish #stingray #snakes #manofwar #portuguesemanofwar #indopacificmanofwar #bluebottlejellywish #pacificocean #ocean #underwater #wildlife #japan #delicacy #sashimi #food #poisonous #steveirwin #oceania #footloose #footloosebyshreandeish #shreyasimajumdar #NZ #newzealandtourism #dogwalks #kelp #seaweed #food
---
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/footloosebytidybytes/message
A Hitchcock fan, Reagan now has crows eating out of the palm of his hand on TidyBytes
In 2002, Reagan went to the lesser-known parts of the Himalayas in Himachal Pradesh. The dak bungalow where he stayed after a ride in a rickety bus dated back to the times of the British Raj. His curiosity led him to a raised cemented structure, which was a huge squat toilet. Not many have the nose for shit but Reagan's not ordinary. What he found was a huge spider, the sight of which has traumatized him for 19 years. Next, he listened to a chowkidar tell him the story of a girl who drowned in a well there, which reminds Eisha of some of the Ramsay Brothers' horror flicks. The following day, on a trail, a goatherd caused a minor avalanche. Reagan had to spider-crawl across the mountain slope to save his life. This episode of TidyBytes has it all!
#tidybytes #tidybyteswithreaganandeisha #gunsnroses #calvinandhobbes #spiders #britishraj #himachal #himachaltourism #travel #mountaineering #adventures #avalanche #delhi #bombay #ramsaybrothers #therevenant #leonardodicaprio #goats #socialaudio #socialpod #socialpodcasting #anchorapp #spotify #music #film #virarlocal #spiders #himalayas #mountainclimbing #chirodeepchaudhuri #jerrypinto
---
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/tidybytes/message
On TidyBytes: Reagan's mountaineering tales; butter chicken, a giant spider, a haunted well and an avalanche
In 2002, Reagan went to the lesser-known parts of the Himalayas in Himachal Pradesh. The dak bungalow where he stayed after a ride in a rickety bus dated back to the times of the British Raj. His curiosity led him to a raised cemented structure, which was a huge squat toilet. Not many have the nose for shit but Reagan's not ordinary. What he found was a huge spider, the sight of which has traumatized him for 19 years. Next, he listened to a chowkidar tell him the story of a girl who drowned in a well there, which reminds Eisha of some of the Ramsay Brothers' horror flicks. The following day, on a trail, a goatherd caused a minor avalanche. Reagan had to spider-crawl across the mountain slope to save his life. This episode of TidyBytes has it all!
#tidybytes #tidybyteswithreaganandeisha #gunsnroses #calvinandhobbes #spiders #britishraj #himachal #himachaltourism #travel #mountaineering #adventures #avalanche #delhi #bombay #ramsaybrothers #therevenant #leonardodicaprio #goats #socialaudio #socialpod #socialpodcasting #anchorapp #spotify #music #film #virarlocal #spiders #himalayas #mountainclimbing #chirodeepchaudhuri #jerrypinto
---
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/tidybytes/message
Thursday, July 15, 2021
Fiction became real: Dreams she wrote into a novel led Eisha to her twin-flame, Reagan on TidyBytes
After the death of her beloved granny-in-law in 2016, Eisha had the same recurring dreams for four years. Then in 2020, while she struggled with depression trying to cope with the pandemic, she started writing them. New to fiction-writing, she first wrote a film and then turned it into a novel. Over the course of three months, the words just flowed into a 1,55,000-word trilogy. After sending the first part to a publisher, who promptly gave her a positive reply, she started chatting with Reagan Gavin , and discovered, to her astonishment that he is exactly like the fictional character in the book. Over the next nine months, the book played out in their lives. Creepy? Yes. They both discovered they're twin-flames. In this episode of TidyBytes, Eisha tells their story.
#twinflames #twinflameunion #souls #connections #twinsouls #mirrorsouls #books #music #writing #fiction #nonfiction #reallife #fictionbecomesreal #reallifestrangerthanfiction #reagangavinrasquinha #eishasarkar #timesofindia #timesgroup #journalists #pandemic #covid19 #depression #tidybytes #tidybyteswithreaganandeisha #dreams #communicationthroughdreams #gujarat #vadodara #nagarbrahmins #bengali #bombay #southbombay
Saturday, July 10, 2021
Tuesday, July 6, 2021
Relationships and Heartbreak on TidyBytes with Reagan and Eisha
This episode of TidyBytes with Reagan and Eisha starts with Reagan singing Lionel Richie's Hello. He and Eisha then talk about marriages and live-in relationships including the latest news of Aamir Khan separating from Kiran Rao after 15 years of marriage. Reagan enumerates the life lessons about love he learnt from his mother. Eisha tells him he is very similar to Florentino Ariza, the protagonist in Gabriel Garcia Marquez's Love In The Time Of Cholera, which Reagan has gifted her. They discuss Jared Diamond's Guns, Germs and Steel that Eisha gifted him a while ago and then Yuval Noah Harari's Sapiens. Reagan prefers Herodotus instead. The conversation then moves onto two big incidents that turned Reagan's life upside down. A girlfriend left him heartbroken in 2003 and he never fully recovered after that. In early 2005, he was run over by a car outside Leopold Cafe in Colaba. The accident left him with a broken arm but the ache he felt when his parents didn't come back from the UAE to see him in the hospital left him with the insecurity of abandonment. Few men talk about their pain. Reagan stands out for his courage. This episode has laughter, music, memories and tears.
#pain #heartache #aamirkhan #kiranrao #marriage #relationships #romantic #liveinrelationships #books #jareddiamond #gabrielgarciamarquez #mumbaiuniversity #bombaytimes #bombay #leopold #cafe #accident #yuvalnoahharari #sapiens #herodotus #loveinthetimeofcholera #gunsgermsandsteel #tidybytes #tidybyteswithreaganandeisha #abandonment #insecurity #courage #boysdontcry #boysshouldcry #lionelrichie #natkingcole #hello #smokeyrobinson #tracksofmytears #music #songs
Look where you jump especially in the middle of the ocean on Footloose by Shre and Eish
Shre talks about the time she jumped out of a kayak in the middle of the ocean near Singapore. A figure waved to her from the beach. She waved back. When he started running into the water towards her, she discovered it was the lifeguard who thought she was drowning.
Lesson learnt: If you jump into the water in the middle of the sea, DO NOT wave towards people on the beach if you are not drowning.
Shre then goes on to talk about how sea turtles have their own grooming salons. How cool is that!
#singapore #indianocean #kayak #kayaking #waterbaby #beach #lifeguard #dolphins #hawaii #seaturtles #travel #southeastasia #USA #indianocean #ecology #wildlife #underwater #underwaterlife #discovery #symbiosis #cleaningstations #fishschools #drowning
---
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/footloosebytidybytes/message
Shreyasi recites Colonel Fazackerley Butterworth-Toast on Footloose By Shre and Eish
Shreyasi recites one of her childhood favourites from memory.
Colonel Fazackerley Butterworth-Toast
By Charles Causely
Colonel Fazackerley Butterworth-Toast
Bought an old castle complete with a ghost,
But someone or other forgot to declare
To Colonel Fazak that the spectre was there.
On the very first evening, while waiting to dine,
The Colonel was taking a fine sherry wine,
When the ghost, with a furious flash and a flare,
Shot out of the chimney and shivered, 'Beware!'
Colonel Fazackerley put down his glass
And said, 'My dear fellow, that's really first class!
I just can't conceive how you do it at all.
I imagine you're going to a Fancy Dress Ball?'
At this, the dread ghost made a withering cry.
Said the Colonel (his monocle firm in his eye),
'Now just how you do it, I wish I could think.
Do sit down and tell me, and please have a drink.'
The ghost in his phosphorous cloak gave a roar
And floated about between ceiling and floor.
He walked through a wall and returned through a pane
And backed up the chimney and came down again.
Said the Colonel, 'With laughter I'm feeling quite weak!'
(As trickles of merriment ran down his cheek).
'My house-warming party I hope you won't spurn.
You MUST say you'll come and you'll give us a turn!'
At this, the poor spectre - quite out of his wits -
Proceeded to shake himself almost to bits.
He rattled his chains and he clattered his bones
And he filled the whole castle with mumbles and moans.
But Colonel Fazackerley, just as before,
Was simply delighted and called out, 'Encore!'
At which the ghost vanished, his efforts in vain,
And never was seen at the castle again.
'Oh dear, what a pity!' said Colonel Fazak.
'I don't know his name, so I can't call him back.'
And then with a smile that was hard to define,
Colonel Fazackerley went in to dine.
#poem #childrenspoetry #colonelfazak #colonelfazackerley #recitation #memories
---
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/footloosebytidybytes/message
Seven Arches and a rocking cable car on Footloose by Shre and Eish
The Pavagadh-Champaner complex near Vadodara in Gujarat is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. In 2009, on a visit to Pavagadh with her cousin, Julian, Eisha took a ride in a rickety cable car. Julian was worried that they might fall and asked Eisha if there had been an accident and Eisha, the journalist that she was said, "2004, six people died." The other three passengers in the car were shocked and terrified. Julian burst out laughing. In this episode of Footloose By Shre and Eish, Eisha talks about her first post-Covid visit to Pavagadh and shares her memories of climbing the 2000 steps of the mountain to the Mahakali Temple on the top.
#travel #pavagadh #gujarat #unesco #saatkaman #sevenarches #mehmudbegada #history #gujarathistory #gujarattourist #tourism #pilgrims #pilgrimage #champaner #cablecar #covid #pandemic #devotion #goddess #mahakali #ambaji #vadodara #baroda #ahmedabad #sultansofgujarat #footloosewithshreandeish #eishasarkar #footloose
---
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/footloosebytidybytes/message
Saturday, July 3, 2021
Eisha's unsmiling like Mona Lisa, Reagan's the Bad Boy and "we're talking now"
While browsing through her pictures on Facebook, Reagan discovers one where Eisha's posing in front of the Mona Lisa at Louvre. There starts a conversation about her smile and then she asks him why he wrote a story about, "Why good girls fall for bad boys?" Rhetorical? This episode has laughs, jokes, sarcasm and a few tears.
#natkingcole #monalisa #monalisasmile #louvre #paris #france #tourism #tourists #travel #song #music #thesmashingpumpkins #disarm #badboys #goodgirls #whywomenfallforbadboys #timesofindia #bombaytimes #bombay #mumbai #newspapers #features #writing #songs #podcast #socialaudio #spotify #anchorapp #tidybytes #tidybyteswithreaganandeisha #anger #outbursts #fighting #emotions #mind #laughter
Thursday, July 1, 2021
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)