Don't Know, Do Care

Don't know who turned Mayong into India's Hogwarts!

Mayong, Assam: A beautiful village with rhinos, riverbanks… and apparently, shape-shifting sorcerers who turn bullets into fish. That is, if you believe the truly unhinged travel blogs and SEO clickbait out there. In this episode, we unspool the myth of “India’s land of black magic” and how a small village got buried under internet nonsense, why mainstream media couldn’t be bothered to fact-check, and how bad tourism copywriters turned folklore into fantasy fiction. Spoiler: there’s no Hogwarts. Just history, oral traditions, and a museum being held together with hope and one man’s tea shop. Come for the myth. Stay for the unhinged blog quotes. And please, stop asking villagers about necromancy. Important links: 1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mayong,_Assam [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mayong,_Assam] 2. https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/travel/destinations/mayong-the-land-of-black-magic-witchcraft-and-necromancy/articleshow/91669288.cms [https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/travel/destinations/mayong-the-land-of-black-magic-witchcraft-and-necromancy/articleshow/91669288.cms] 3. https://www.treebo.com/blog/mayong-village/ [https://www.treebo.com/blog/mayong-village/] 4. https://www.outlookindia.com/travel/from-kites-to-black-magic-visit-these-five-quirky-indian-museums-news-196779 [https://www.outlookindia.com/travel/from-kites-to-black-magic-visit-these-five-quirky-indian-museums-news-196779] 5. https://villagesquare.in/mayong-the-ancient-hogwarts-of-india/ [https://villagesquare.in/mayong-the-ancient-hogwarts-of-india/] 6. https://www.makemytrip.com/tripideas/blog/mayong-village-in-assam [https://www.makemytrip.com/tripideas/blog/mayong-village-in-assam] 7. https://raiot.in/ [https://raiot.in/] 8. https://raiot.in/demystifying-black-magic-mayong-village-museum-and-research-centre-assam/ [https://raiot.in/demystifying-black-magic-mayong-village-museum-and-research-centre-assam/] Don’t Know, Do Care is the brainchild of Ashmita, Sandy, and Prakhar, three friends from different backgrounds and interests. Ashmita works in sustainability, Sandy's an entrepreneur (puke) who’d rather not be, and Prakhar works with Sandy and is just trying to make sense of it all.  Three mildly confused friends, one weirdly specific topic each week. We don’t know much, but we care just enough to talk about it for up to an hour each week. Don’t Know, Do Care is produced by "Ghar Pe Productions", edited by Prakhar and Sandy, critiqued (thoroughly) by Ashmita, and enjoyed mostly by our friends. Thanks for giving us a listen!

Don't know why protein is hard to digest (not literally)!

Whey, dal, sattu, tofu, (insert anything else you want here) - in this episode, we try to figure out if we’re doing protein the whey we should. Spoiler: we’re probably not. We talk desi diet myths, gym bro science, and the rising panic of hitting protein goals in your 30s without turning into a spreadsheet. Is sattu legit? Is pea protein just vibes? Why does everyone suddenly care about macros? If you’ve ever Googled “high protein vegetarian diet” and immediately closed the tab, this one’s for you. Don’t Know, Do Care is the brainchild of Ashmita, Sandy, and Prakhar, three friends from different backgrounds and interests. Ashmita works in sustainability, Sandy's an entrepreneur (puke) who’d rather not be, and Prakhar works with Sandy and is just trying to make sense of it all.  Three mildly confused friends, one weirdly specific topic each week. We don’t know much, but we care just enough to talk about it for up to an hour each week. Don’t Know, Do Care is produced by "Ghar Pe Productions", edited by Prakhar and Sandy, critiqued (thoroughly) by Ashmita, and enjoyed mostly by our friends. Thanks for giving us a listen!

Don't know who (not Ed Sheeran) made these symbols up! (Hinglish)

Why does “+” mean add? What even is “@”? And why did school kids accidentally name the ampersand? In this episode, we deep-dive into the bizarre origin stories of the everyday symbols we type, tap, and totally take for granted, from ancient math hacks and monk scribbles to the merchant roots of the @ sign and the absolute chaos behind the humble equal sign. Also featuring: toddler mispronunciations, Alan Tudyk appreciation, and an asterisk that might just represent your... well, you’ll find out. Important links: 1. https://mathshistory.st-andrews.ac.uk/Miller/mathsym/operation/ [https://mathshistory.st-andrews.ac.uk/Miller/mathsym/operation/] 2. https://www.scribendi.com/academy/articles/common_symbols.en.html [https://www.scribendi.com/academy/articles/common_symbols.en.html] Don’t Know, Do Care is the brainchild of Ashmita, Sandy, and Prakhar, three friends from different backgrounds and interests. Ashmita works in sustainability, Sandy's an entrepreneur (puke) who’d rather not be, and Prakhar works with Sandy and is just trying to make sense of it all.  Three mildly confused friends, one weirdly specific topic each week. We don’t know much, but we care just enough to talk about it for up to an hour each week. Don’t Know, Do Care is produced by "Ghar Pe Productions", edited by Prakhar and Sandy, critiqued (thoroughly) by Ashmita, and enjoyed mostly by our friends. Thanks for giving us a listen!

Don’t know who clapped alien cheeks! (Hinglish)

What if India had its own Area 51? What if it was in Ladakh? And what if over 100 soldiers reported UFOs but no one blinked? In this episode, we dive headfirst into the Kongka La Pass conspiracy: from CIA reports and humanoid sightings to Google Earth wipes and suspicious yellow spheres in the sky. There’s military drama, alien tourism, and a very real quote about “clapping alien cheeks.” You're welcome. Come for the mystery. Stay for the mountain-based madness. Important links: 1. The 1968 sanitized CIA report - https://www.cia.gov/readingroom/document/cia-rdp81r00560r000100070007-8 [https://www.cia.gov/readingroom/document/cia-rdp81r00560r000100070007-8] 2. The India Today report about the UFO sighting at Samudra Tapu - https://www.indiatoday.in/india/north/story/unidentified-flying-objects-ufo-sighting-in-himachal-pradesh-in-2005-120392-2012-11-01 [https://www.indiatoday.in/india/north/story/unidentified-flying-objects-ufo-sighting-in-himachal-pradesh-in-2005-120392-2012-11-01] 3. The UFO feed website for 'alien trackers' - https://www.ufofeed.com/ [https://www.ufofeed.com/] 4. The UFO feed article on the UFO sighting at Samudra Tapu - https://www.ufofeed.com/18909/robot-like-airborne-figure-photographed-by-scientific-team-in-2004-at-samudra-tapu-ladakh/ [https://www.ufofeed.com/18909/robot-like-airborne-figure-photographed-by-scientific-team-in-2004-at-samudra-tapu-ladakh/] 5. Chinese military buildings in Aksai Chin - https://www.cabinetmagazine.org/issues/27/introductoryimage.php [https://www.cabinetmagazine.org/issues/27/introductoryimage.php] 6. Article about UFO sightings in Ladakh - https://www.hindustantimes.com/india/ladakh-ufo-sightings-fox-authorities/story-6U3XDV3BL61eshk4WP9XYP.html [https://www.hindustantimes.com/india/ladakh-ufo-sightings-fox-authorities/story-6U3XDV3BL61eshk4WP9XYP.html] 7. The infamous Wired article on the UFO sightings in India - https://www.wired.com/story/india-robot-ufos/ [https://www.wired.com/story/india-robot-ufos/] Don’t Know, Do Care is the brainchild of Ashmita, Sandy, and Prakhar, three friends from different backgrounds and interests. Ashmita works in sustainability, Sandy's an entrepreneur (puke) who’d rather not be, and Prakhar works with Sandy and is just trying to make sense of it all.  Three mildly confused friends, one weirdly specific topic each week. We don’t know much, but we care just enough to talk about it for up to an hour each week. Don’t Know, Do Care is produced by "Ghar Pe Productions", edited by Prakhar and Sandy, critiqued (thoroughly) by Ashmita, and enjoyed mostly by our friends. Thanks for giving us a listen!

Don’t know how Superman took down the KKK! (Hinglish)

This week, we fly headfirst into Superman’s lesser-known stories; from memory-erasing kisses to Communist Kal-El, from the time he roasted the KKK on radio to the shocking fact that he wasn’t even supposed to fly (say what?)! Also in this episode: Indian Superman (yes, it exists), why Kryptonite was invented for smoke breaks, and a very heated debate on whether Clark Kent is the disguise or the real deal. Cape not required. Nerd rage guaranteed. Don’t Know, Do Care is the brainchild of Ashmita, Sandy, and Prakhar, three friends from different backgrounds and interests. Ashmita works in sustainability, Sandy's an entrepreneur (puke) who’d rather not be, and Prakhar works with Sandy and is just trying to make sense of it all.  Three mildly confused friends, one weirdly specific topic each week. We don’t know much, but we care just enough to talk about it for up to an hour each week. Don’t Know, Do Care is produced by "Ghar Pe Productions", edited by Prakhar and Sandy, critiqued (thoroughly) by Ashmita, and enjoyed mostly by our friends. Thanks for giving us a listen!