South Central

This week South Central looks at Kerala’s elections and the transgender amendment law. Hosts Dhanya Rajendran and Pooja Prasanna are joined by MG Radhakrishnan, Sreejan Balakrishnan, and TNM’s Haritha John to unpack why the UDF may have a slight edge but no clear wave against Pinarayi Vijayan. In the second segment, Azeefa Fatima and Lakshmi Priya discuss the trans bill’s fallout, with reports of fear, threats, and uncertainty within the community.The 2026 reset: Assam to Puducherry Election Fund: https://pages.razorpay.com/zTQadhQFFTOnce a month, we will invite one TNM subscriber to the show. Write to us on what you would like to speak about to southcentral@thenewsminute.com Send your thoughts, suggestions and criticism as well. You can also let us know what you think by filling out our quick feedback form. Your suggestions help shape future episodes of South Central. Audio Timecodes00:00:00 - Introductions00:02:22 - Headlines00:09:27 - Kerala Elections00:51:39 - Trans Bill Horror01:11:57 - RecommendationsCheck out the recommendations and references from this episode.Become a subscriber - Click here.Contribute to our reporting fund. Click here. To check out our other shows, Click here To not miss any updates, join TNM's WhatsApp Channel! Click hereProduced by Bhuvan Malik, edited by Jaseem Ali. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Arvind Narrain, legal activist and founder of the Alternative Law Forum, explains how the Transgender Persons Amendment narrows self-identification and adds medical gatekeeping. Sukanya Shaji, Associate Editor at The News Minute, and Shivani Kawa, TNM senior reporter, dissect the KD: The Devil song controversy, probing item-song mechanics, the male gaze, translation issues and Kannada industry responses.

Sravasti Dasgupta, senior political correspondent at The Wire, offers sharp takes on parliamentary maneuvers and impeachment moves. Aruna Chandrasekhar, climate and energy researcher, explains global supply shocks and geopolitics. Shreya Jai, energy journalist, breaks down India’s LPG import vulnerability and policy options. They discuss LPG shortages, panic buying, industry shifts, and the politics around moving to impeach an election commissioner.

Nirmal Abraham, political analyst and professor of finance and international business, discusses geopolitics and how the Iran–Israel–US confrontations affect India. Dr Thankam Subramonian, senior gynaecologist and MSF volunteer, recounts her legal fight to altruistically donate a kidney. They explore the court case, organ donation hurdles, conflict escalation risks, strategic aims, and implications for energy, diaspora and diplomacy.

NP Ashley, professor and writer, critiques Kerala Story 2 as political propaganda. Adhira S Magesh, a Grade 9 karate black belt and baker, shares a teenager’s take on phone bans and online life. Sama Adil, child psychologist, discusses adolescent mental health, screen time and counseling. They debate practical limits, regulation versus prohibition, misinformation spread, misogyny in film narratives, and civic responses to polarising media.

Sukanya Shaji, gender editor at The News Minute who leads gender coverage, and Charan Teja, a reporter known for caste and ground reporting in Telangana and Andhra, reminisce about TNM’s growth. They discuss building a breaking-news desk, intentional accountability reporting, shifts in caste and gender language, video experiments, and the move to subscription-funded, South-focused journalism.

Sushant Singh, strategic analyst and Caravan consulting editor, unpacks an unpublished memoir by former Army Chief MM Naravane. MK Venu, founding editor of The Wire and veteran political journalist, discusses media freedom and national security. They probe vetting delays, India-China border decisions, Galwan details, political timing and a growing clampdown on journalism.

Smita Sharma, seasoned foreign policy journalist, unpacks the India–US trade negotiations and geopolitics. TK Arun, political economy columnist, analyzes tariffs, trade politics and economic policy. Professor Muralidhar PS, Bangalore University academic and teachers council president, discusses the move to revive student elections in Karnataka. They cover trade talks, tariff cuts, strategic ties and the return of campus politics in short, focused conversations.

Mridula Vanangamudi, a Bengaluru rights lawyer, and Sudipto Mondal, The News Minute executive editor, break down the UGC equity regulations and campus protests. They probe caste protections, contest the “misuse” narrative, and unpack regulatory vagueness. They then trace rapid Kerala political twists around SNDP and NSS, explaining why unity talks collapsed and the wider communal and electoral stakes.

In this episode, hosts Dhanya Rajendran and Pooja Prasanna discuss the organised hate campaigns against film reviewers in the country. The discussion spans themes including the communal profiling of actors and reviewers and delves into whether fan culture catalyses the polarisation of films based on nationalism, religion, and gender politics. Joining the hosts are acclaimed film critics Anna MM Vetticad and Sucharita Tyagi.Once a month, we will invite one TNM subscriber to the show. Write to us on what you would like to speak about to southcentral@thenewsminute.com Send your thoughts, suggestions and criticism as well.Audio Timecodes 00:00:00- Introduction 00:01:46 - Headlines 00:14:34- Film Review Backlash01:23:27-  RecommendationsYou can also let us know what you think by filling out our quick feedback form. Your suggestions help shape future episodes of South Central. Check out the recommendations and references from this episode.Become a subscriber - Click here.Contribute to our reporting fund. Click here. To check out our other shows, Click here To not miss any updates, join TNM's WhatsApp Channel! Click hereProduced by Bhuvan Malik, edited by Jaseem Ali, written by Sukanya Shaji. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.