SBS Spice

To be Indo-Fijian is to carry one of the most extraordinary origin stories in the South Asian diaspora. 147 years ago, Indians were taken to Fiji under Girmit, a British system of indentured labour that severed families and reshaped generations. In this special Girmit Day episode, Suhayla Sharif invites five Indo-Fijian Australians to confess what that legacy means to them today. There is black magic, caste, music, poetry, migration and a love story that crossed religion and class. Listen, only on SBS Spice.

Satinder Sartaaj is more than a singer to many Punjabi Australians. He is a poet, philosopher and a reminder of home. Fresh off the viral success of his song “Jaiye Sajana” from 'Dhurandhar: The Revenge', Dilpreet Kaur Taggar met Sartaaj backstage before his Heritage Tour concert in Sydney for this interview. Why Gen Z is connecting with his work, how solitude shapes the Punjab he sings about, plus a compliment he couldn't stop gushing about. Listen now on SBS Spice, wherever you get your podcasts, or watch on YouTube.

Some things are easier to keep to yourself. Comedians Sashi Perera and Urvi Majumdar don’t. And we're so glad. Ahead of the Sydney Comedy Festival, they join Dilpreet Kaur Taggar to talk about their shows, 'Pear Tree' and 'Miss!'. From identity and family to bad dates and classrooms, this is about figuring it out in public. Australian comedy is better for it.

He served two armies before 25. Now his wife marches for him. Born in Punjab in 1948, Sergeant Major Kuldip Singh served both the Indian and Australian armies, marching in Sydney from 2007 until his passing in 2020. His story sits within a longer, often overlooked history of Sikh service in Australia. Ahead of her fourth march, Suhayla Sharif visits Ravinder Kaur Singh at home, where his absence is felt and the march continues. Listen now on SBS Spice.

Comedian Abby Govindan is asking big questions through stand-up: why is dating so broken, what has the internet done to intimacy, and why does tech keep pushing manosphere content? Fresh off a sold-out worldwide tour, she brings 'Pushing 30' to the Sydney Comedy Festival and stops by for an unexpectedly intimate conversation about the pressure South Asian women face to be desirable, marriageable and less themselves. Listen only on SBS Spice.

As SBS Spice turns two, we are reflecting on the legacy we stand on. And so, we had to speak to Manpreet Kaur Singh — a Walkley-nominated, multi-award winning journalist who has spent over three decades shaping South Asian media in Australia, from SBS Punjabi in 1993 to now leading SBS South Asian. She’s also our boss, so we’re on our best behaviour… for once. She might be the spiciest one in the room. Listen now.

There’s a gap within the South Asian community in Australia. We don’t talk about it enough. In this episode, Dilpreet and Suhayla unpack the divide between second gen South Asians and new migrants. Why do we love the culture but keep our distance from the people? Who gets included. Who gets ignored. And what “community” actually means in practice. Listen on SBS Spice, wherever you get your podcasts.

The sari has never stood still. From the Indian independence movement to the Met Gala, it has carried politics, power and reinvention across generations. As 'The Offbeat Sari', a global exhibition exploring the contemporary sari, arrives in Australia curator Priya Khanchandani joins Suhayla Sharif to unpack the histories and wearers of one of South Asia's most enduring and the world's oldest garments.

The year is 2079. India survives only in memory. Digital artist Avinash Kumar (Thiruda) and sound designer Sri Rama Murthy (Murthovic) invite you into a one-night simulation to rebuild it. Would you step in? ‘Elsewhere In India’ drops Australian clubgoers into a collision of electronica, Indian classical sound, AI art and 3D worldbuilding. The duo behind the experience speak to Suhayla Sharif about the global pull of Indofuturism. Listen on SBS Spice, wherever you get your podcasts.

From Kolhapuris on global runways to Indian craft shaping luxury, fashion is looking to India. But is it understanding it? Sanjay Garg has reimagined the sari through his label Raw Mango, moving beyond ornament and towards intention. Currently touring Australia, he speaks with Dilpreet Kaur Taggar about handloom as rarity and why respecting weavers is the only way. Plus, when migration can freeze a version of “home,” is the diaspora keeping up? Listen on SBS Spice, wherever you get your podcasts.

Aditya Gautam was addicted to porn. As Australia rolls out new laws requiring age checks to access online adult content, the India-born comedian speaks to Dilpreet Taggar about how porn became his sex education and how digital desire reshaped his expectations of intimacy, relationships and masculinity. Can new laws change behaviour, or has porn already changed a generation? Listen, only on SBS Spice.

Shocking new research suggests one in three Gen Z men believe wives should obey their husbands. Are we moving forward or quietly going backwards? Dilpreet Kaur Taggar and Suhayla Sharif unpack feminism, financial independence and the battles a single International Women’s Day cannot fix.

Thaikkudam Bridge doesn’t do neat genres. A band like no other, it moves between soulful ragas, roaring rock riffs and flashes of metal, all powered by a fifteen-member lineup. Ahead of their Australian tour, founding member Govind Vasantha and vocalist Anish Gopalkrishnan join Suhayla Sharif to talk creative clashes, big arrangements and how a band this large keeps its edge.

In a world that rewards neat labels, identity can start to behave like currency. In this episode, Dilpreet and Suhayla get into the tension between being seen and being flattened: the pressure to clap for “brown wins” no matter the craft, the fear of disagreeing within community, and the way “firsts” can become a marketing strategy instead of a milestone. Listen now, only on SBS Spice.

Bhumi means land in Sanskrit. Boodja means land in Noongar. The BhuMeJha Project brings both into the same space and it’s coming to Perth Festival. It unpacks the Indian concept of rasa, immersion over spectacle, and what it means to practise custodianship rather than ownership on this land. Suhayla Sharif speaks with creative producer Kamal Thurairajah and dance mentor Sukhi Shetty Krishnan about their collaboration between South Asian, Malaysian and First Nations performance traditions.

We’ve gone feral for the new Netflix India slate. Thrillers in foggy Punjab. Sex-ed chaos in rural villages. Family feuds. Lust. Politics. Mess. Dilpreet and Suhayla share the shows they’re queueing immediately and why Indian storytelling finally feels brave again. Listen now, only on SBS Spice.

When did dating stop being romantic? Between Hinge prompts and gym-obsessed bios, the meet-cute feels extinct. On this episode of SBS Spice, Dilpreet and Suhayla unpack the male gaze on apps, and get honest about body image, first kisses, sex, and when “I love you” should actually mean something. If everyone’s lonely, why is nobody willing to risk their heart? Listen, only on SBS Spice.

Tales of songbirds, or Bulbuls, have inspired South Asian storytellers for centuries. British dancer and choreographer Aakash Odedra's latest work 'Songs of the Bulbul' intertwines Kathak dance, Indian classical music and Sufi storytelling to harmoniously trace a songbird's journey through love, enlightenment and freedom. As the performance tours Australia, Aakash opens up to Suhayla Sharif about boundless stages, the duty of dancers and the next steps for Indian classical dance. Listen now, only on SBS Spice.

Passion, ghosting and heartbreak— all part of Danish Sheikh's intimate yet toxic relationship with the law. The lawyer-activist and theatre-maker is now deep in his creative era after witnessing how judicial systems have both turned their back on and embraced LGBTQIA+ communities. From navigating Section 377 in India to celebrating his sexuality in the streets of Melbourne, Danish shares with Suhayla Sharif how his experiences have formed his understanding of acceptance. They also unpack how authentic stories and Taylor Swift helped shape his show 'Much to do with Law, but More to do with Love' at Midsumma Festival 2026. Listen now, only on...

"Australia Day", January 26, is often framed as a day of belonging— but belonging for whom? A good yarn can unsettle that idea. Suhayla Sharif is joined by John-Paul Janke, Karen Mundine and Giridharan Sivaraman to question how migrants engage with this date, and what listening to First Nations voices really demands of us.

Conflict is found in every corner of our world and within, yet lingers silently as many refuse to acknowledge it. 'Conflictorium' aims to instead shed light on dissent, inviting viewers from all works of life to consider how they wrestle with the ideas and experiences that challenge them. Founded in 2013, the participatory museum has already been housed twice in India but has now made its way to Australia for Sydney Festival 2026. Artistic Director YSK Prerana and Project Associate Gargi Verma unpack the sensory installation, spice dabbas and the power of reflection with Suhayla Sharif. Listen now, only on SBS Spice.

As social media spirals into remembering the year that was 2016, SBS Spice asks why then and why now? From the flower crown filter to fluorescent sneakers, we reminisce on the good, the bad and the spicy that defined a formative year for many Gen Z and Millennials. Get your eyebrows "on fleek" and listen to this "lit" conversation, only on SBS Spice.

Writing brown characters isn’t just creative. It’s political. From brown villains to badly researched accents to the pressure to be “positive,” this episode asks who gets to be complex, messy and wrong on screen in 2026. Dilpreet Taggar is joined by Urvi Majumdar, Nicole Reddy and Sunanda Sachatrakul to talk about work that refuses neat ideas of representation.

When will South Asian stories stop being “emerging”? In this spicy roundtable, Dilpreet Taggar sits down with Arka Das, Arundati Thandur and Renny Wijeyamohan to talk craft, compromise and the quiet politics of working as South Asian actors, writers and directors in Australian film and TV. Watch the full episode on YouTube or listen wherever you get your fix.

It’s our first chat of 2026, and we’re keeping it real. Messy. Honest. Very girly-pop, and not built around perfect resolutions. Just two women reflecting on the year that was, slowing things down, paying attention and figuring it out in real time. Listen on SBS Spice.

This final episode of Rethinking South Asian Philosophy asks what philosophy looks like when we take caste, gender and lived experience seriously. Host Bhanuraj Kashyap speaks with Dr Supriya Subramani, Dr Swati Arora and Dr Samiksha Goyal about everyday indignities, Dalit feminist thought, Gandhian ideas of truth, and the limits of Anglophone philosophy, in Australia and beyond. Listen now, on your favourite podcast app.

Across South Asia, philosophers have asked two enduring questions: What is consciousness? And what shapes the world we live in? In this episode, Bhanuraj Kashyap speaks with Dr Miri Albahari about enlightenment and the claim that pure consciousness is the ground of reality, and with Dr Yarran Hominh and Dr Supriya Subramani on caste, graded inequality and how our social identities are formed. If you’ve ever wondered how metaphysics meets the everyday, this episode is just for you. Tap to listen.

Australia is set to ban social media accounts for under-16s. It’s a world first. And yes, it’s causing a little panic. Will it keep teens safer or just push them into new loopholes and unregulated spaces? Dilpreet and Suhayla aren’t too convinced. They talk through the safety, the scepticism and the likely chaos that’s coming. Tap to listen.

How does meditation generate psychological benefits, and can deep meditative experiences open new philosophical insight? In this episode, Associate Professor Bronwyn Finnigan (ANU) and Dr Leesa Davis (Deakin) explore Buddhist approaches to meditation, non-dual philosophies, and the aesthetic and contemplative language of Japanese dry gardens. We also talk about the joy of teaching non-Western philosophy to undergraduates and how it can help revive the philosophical imagination in Australian universities.

How do perspectives on the world formed thousands of years ago still shape our worldviews today? In this episode of 'Rethinking South Asian Philosophy', host Bhanuraj Kashyap sits down with Professor Monima Chadha (University of Oxford) and Distinguished Professor Graham Priest (CUNY and University of Melbourne) for a wide-ranging and mind-boggling chat about Ancient Indian philosophy. We discuss the Buddhist denial of the self, how Buddhist philosophy can reshape moral responsibility and some strange puzzles in logic that have captivated philosophers for centuries. Along the way, we also reflect on the barriers that persist between Indian and Western philosophical traditions...

Welcome to 'Rethinking South Asian Philosophy', a journey through the world of philosophy and where South Asian philosophy and philosophers currently stand in this complex academic space. In our opening episode, we sit down with Dr. Bryan Mukandi (UOW), Assoc. Prof. Karen Jones (University of Melbourne), and Dr. Helen Ngo (Deakin University) to discuss with them diversity issues within Australian academic philosophy and why non-Western perspectives our underrepresented in our curriculum. We swap stories about loneliness among minority students, why non-Western philosophy gets overlooked, the financial pressure the University sector is facing, and how exclusion in academic philosophy functions. Beyond...

How does a 17th century Shakespearean tragedy hold a mirror to present hierarchies? Actor Raj Labade believes that this reflection is both a point of connection to a rich literary past and how pathways for other South Asian theatre artists can continue to be paved. As he steps into the shoes of Edmund in Belvoir St Theatre's 'The True History Of The Life And Death Of King Lear & His Three Daughters' he sits down with Dilpreet Kaur Taggar to explore the evolution of theatrical tales and representation on stage. Listen now, only on SBS Spice, wherever you get your podcasts.

The Partition of British India in 1947 that formed the countries of India and Pakistani also resulted in one of the largest instances of forced migration ever documented. Tearing apart families, communities and histories, the fallout lingers in countless lenses on the world 78 years later, including that of filmmaker Sparsh Ahuja. Co-founder of reconciliation initiative 'Project Dastaan', he explores with Suhayla Sharif the partition's deafening silence, the power of art and the potential of virtual reality. Listen now, wherever you get your podcasts.

In 2024, artist Sulochana Dissanayake, her husband Dinuka Liyanawatte and their two children moved from Sri Lanka to Australia seeking stability and a spark in the arts landscape. A year on, Sulochana and Dinuka's experiences settling as skilled migrants have inspired their latest artistic collaboration 'Free-doom Down Under' that explores the negotiations new migrants silently confront. The theatre creator unravels with Suhayla Sharif how art has anchored her career and nourishing South Asian cultural health in Australia. SBS Spice attended the OzAsia Festival, thanks to the festival organisers.

In a world growing louder with borders, Sufi music still whispers the same truth: love is the only thing worth returning to. In Adelaide, Farhan Shah leads SufiOz, a band of musicians from Pakistan, India, Japan, Chile and Nepal. With Dilpreet Kaur Taggar, Farhan reflects on what it means to keep the Sufi alive, to sing for union when everything around you asks to be divided. SBS Spice attended the OzAsia Festival, thanks to the festival organisers.

At the heart of Adelaide’s spring season is OzAsia Festival, a celebration of stories that cross borders. Senior producer Sonal Patel joins SBS Spice’s Suhayla Sharif to talk about curating 200 artists, championing Asian-Australian voices, and producing a festival built on connection and care. SBS spice attended the OzAsia Festival, thanks to the festival organisers.

Artist Rakini Devi reimagines faith as feminist revolt. Inspired by the myths of Pope Joan and the goddess Kali, her performance 'The Female Pope' transforms sacred iconography into a visceral protest against global misogyny. In conversation with Dilpreet Kaur Taggar, she reflects on how ritual, dance and visual art converge in her practice, from the temples of Kolkata to the colonial stages of Australia. SBS Spice attended the OzAsia Festival, thanks to the festival organisers.

Meet Sid Pattni: Archibald Prize finalist, painter and one of the most exciting South Asian artists in Australia today. He’s known for faceless self-portraits, a choice born from survival, identity and a belief that audiences should see themselves too. Honest, funny and fresh, Sid tells Dilpreet Kaur Taggar how he rejected his 'Indianness' growing up, why “multiculturalism” can feel hollow, and what he wants from the Australian art world now. If you love artists who break rules beautifully, this one’s for you. Listen wherever you get your podcasts or watch the interview on YouTube.

Diwali isn’t just India’s story. In Sydney’s Bangladeshi community, the festival of lights takes on new meaning, shaped by migration, memory and the divine feminine. SBS Spice's Munasib Hamid joins Ritu and her family to explore how faith and tradition evolve far from home, from dawn pujas to khichuri feasts and the quiet strength of the goddesses they honour. Watch the full video on YouTube or listen only on SBS Spice.

What do you do when you’re brown, Muslim and not meant to party? You start early! Set in 1990s London, 'Daytime Deewane' follows the secret daytime raves where South Asian kids, shut out of white nightclubs and watched by their parents, built their own world of bhangra, bass and borrowed freedom. Actor Ashan Kumar joins Dilpreet Kaur Taggar to talk about why joy can be the biggest rebellion. 'Daytime Deewane' is currently on at Riverside Theatres, Parramatta.