EP-449 I “India Looks So Poor”: Manu Joseph on Broken Cities, Gen Z, Jobs, CM Vijay & PM Modi

ANI Podcast with Smita Prakash · Sep 13, 2026 · 2h 19m

Manu Joseph is a journalist, columnist, novelist and screenwriter known for his sharp and often provocative observations on Indian society. He is the author of 'Why the Poor Don’t Kill Us' and the creator of the Netflix series 'Decoupled'.

In this episode of the ANI Podcast with Smita Prakash, he discusses India’s broken cities, the jobs crisis facing Gen Z, and the decline of civic sense. He also speaks about Noida versus Gurugram, Vijay’s rise in Tamil Nadu politics, freedom of expression, privilege, merit and why India “looks so poor”.

0:00 – Introduction

1:13 – Life in Gurugram

2:33 –…