Ep 14: More liberty is always better! | Kumar Anand on freedom, coercion and the role of the state

Ep 19: Why should animals matter? | Bhargavi Zaveri-Shah on animal ethics, sentience, and what we owe other species

Bhargavi Zaveri-Shah believes animals are sentient, and that sentience, not species, is what determines who counts morally. But why not limit moral consideration to the human species? What about pets and wild animals? And how does the mathematics of utility work? Bhargavi is a lawyer turned researcher turned founder. She holds a PhD in law from the National University of Singapore, was Research Lead at xKDR Forum, and writes a fortnightly column on finance and governance in The Print. She is the CEO of Litanalytics, where she is building TheProfesseer, India's first litigation analytics engine.

Ep 18: Do you own what you create? | Rahul Matthan on intellectual property, ownership, and AI

Rahul Matthan believes intellectual property is not like real property. It's a legal fiction the state grants to protect publishers and incentivize innovation. But if you spent years writing a novel or a lifetime developing a drug, don't you own that? And if AI can train on your life's work without asking, who does it really belong to? Rahul is India's most prominent technology lawyer, a partner at Trilegal, and author of The Third Way. He has written the weekly column Ex Machina in the Mint since 2016, on the intersection of law, technology, and society.

Ep 17: In federalism we trust! | Abishek Choutagunta on political power, devolution, and why federalism works

Abhishek believes that federalism is a good idea. Power should devolve across political levels, and there should be multiple tiers of elected government. But doesn't federalism make politics more dysfunctional? What kind of federal system is best? And why do states need to be part of a nation at all? Abhishek Choutagunta is a political economist with a PhD in economics. His research examines India’s federal structure, including his work on “centripetal federalism,” the use of President’s Rule, and how institutional design shapes governance outcomes. Podcast website [https://deepakvs.com/podcast]

Ep 16: Nationalism ain't so bad! | Pranay Kotasthane on what liberals get wrong about nationalism

Pranay believes that nationalism is not only unavoidable, but unfairly criticised by liberals and libertarians. But what exactly is a nation? Isn't nationalism often linked with violence and exclusion? And is it fair to say that liberals aren't nationalists? Pranay Kotasthane is the Deputy Director of the Takshashila Institution, where he also leads the High Tech Geopolitics programme. He co-hosts the Puliyabaazi podcast, and authors the Anticipating the Unintended newsletter. He’s also co-authored several widely read books on public policy, including Missing in Action, When the Chips Are Down, and We, the Citizens. Episode notes [https://deepakvs.com/podcast]

Ep 15: Open borders, free trade! | Ajay Shah on autarky, globalisation, and pragmatism

Ajay Shah believes that global free trade is good, and that state autarky is a bad idea. Borders, he says, should be relatively open, and there should be low levels of control on people, goods, services and capital moving across borders. But what does openness really mean? Can controls on individual liberties ever justified? And what about bad actors like China? Ajay is one of India's most prominent economists, the co-founder of the XKDR Forum, and co-author of the widely-acclaimed In Service of the Republic. His work spans financial markets, public finance, state capacity, and economic reform in India. Episode notes [https://deepakvs.com/podcast]