Shows / South Asian Trailblazers
South Asian Trailblazers
Diving deep into the journeys of trailblazing South Asians. To date, Host Simi Shah has interviewed Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Zarna Garg, Raj Shamani, Ananya Birla, Vas Narasimhan -- from founders to Fortune 300 CEOs, comedians to congressmen. Learn more at SouthAsianTrailblazers.com.
Episodes
South Asian TrailblazersLIVE EPISODE: Aparna Shewakramani, Indian Matchmaking Star and Author
In this special edition of South Asian Trailblazers, Simi sits down with Aparna Shewakramani in front of a live audience, hosting our first-ever live podcast…
South Asian TrailblazersShilpa Shah, Founder and Chief Experience Officer of Cuyana
Simi catches up with Shilpa Shah, Co-Founder and Chief Experience Officer of Cuyana. Founded in 2011, Cuyana is a direct-to-consumer luxury fashion brand…
South Asian TrailblazersUsman Ahmed, Head of Global Public Policy and Research of PayPal
Simi speaks with Usman Ahmed, Head of Global Public Policy and Research at PayPal. Usman began his career in public service at non-profits focused on voting…
South Asian TrailblazersSushma Dwivedi, Head of Communications and Brand Marketing of Daily Harvest
In this episode, Simi catches up with Sushma Dwivedi, Head of Communications and Brand Marketing at Daily Harvest and Founder of the Purple Pundit Project…
South Asian TrailblazersSaeed Ahmed, Director of Digital News of NPR
Simi speaks with Saeed Ahmed, Director of Digital News at NPR. Prior to joining NPR in 2021, Saeed served as Assistant Managing Editor of CNN Digital. He began…
South Asian TrailblazersPayal Kadakia, Founder of ClassPass, Artist, and Author
To kick off Season 4, Simi welcomes Payal Kadakia, Founder of ClassPass, Artist, and Author. ClassPass is a subscription-based platform that enables people to…
South Asian TrailblazersSunayna Tuteja, Chief Innovation Officer at the Federal Reserve
For our Season 3 finale, Simi catches up with Sunayna Tuteja, the first-ever Chief Innovation Officer of the Federal Reserve. Prior to joining the Fed in…
South Asian TrailblazersParaag Marathe, President of 49ers Enterprises
In this episode, Simi speaks with Paraag Marathe, President of 49ers Enterprises & Executive Vice President of Football Operations. Paraag is no stranger to…
South Asian TrailblazersChitra Nayak, Mythili Sankaran, Sruthi Ramawami, Founders of Neythri
Simi welcomes a founder trio to the podcast. Mythili Sankaran, Chitra Nayak, and Sruthi Ramaswami are the co-founders of Neythri, an organization dedicated to…
South Asian TrailblazersDhanusha Sivajee, Chief Marketing Officer of Angi
Simi catches up with Dhanusha Sivajee, Chief Marketing Officer at Angi. In her role, Dhanusha is responsible for brand and marketing strategy. Angi, previously…
South Asian TrailblazersBrinda Adhikari, Showrunner and Executive Producer of The Problem with Jon Stewart
Simi welcomes Brinda Adhikari, Executive Producer and Showrunner of The Problem with Jon Stewart. This new AppleTV show marks the famed Jon Stewart’s return to…
South Asian TrailblazersReshma Saujani, Founder of Girls Who Code and Marshall Plan for Moms
Simi sits down with Reshma Saujani — Founder of Girls Who Code. Reshma is also an international bestselling author, attorney, and activist. The daughter of…
South Asian TrailblazersSruthi Lanka, CFO of Public.com
Simi welcomes Sruthi Lanka, Chief Financial Officer at Public.com. Public is a platform that makes investing easy, accessible, and social. The Robinhood rival…
South Asian TrailblazersNik Sharma, CEO of Sharma Brands
Simi sits down with Nik Sharma of Sharma Brands. Nik got his start in one of the most unique ways we’ve yet to see on this podcast: by managing social media…
South Asian TrailblazersGeetha Murali, CEO of Room to Read
In this episode, Simi welcomes Geetha Murali, CEO at Room to Read. Dr. Geetha Murali is the first non-founder CEO of Room to Read, an international education…
South Asian TrailblazersPaul Grewal, Chief Legal Officer of Coinbase
In our Season 3 opener, Simi welcomes Paul Grewal, Chief Legal Officer at Coinbase. As Chief Legal Officer, Paul spearheads all legal and regulatory matters…
South Asian TrailblazersAnn Mukherjee, Chairman and CEO of Pernod Ricard North America
Simi speaks with Ann Mukherjee, CEO and Chairman at Pernod Ricard North America. Ann is a marketing maven turned rebel executive at various household consumer…
South Asian TrailblazersSnigdha Sur, Founder and CEO of The Juggernaut
Simi welcomes Snigdha Sur, Founder and CEO of The Juggernaut. The Juggernaut is a subscription media company and community that produces deep-dive reporting on…
South Asian TrailblazersRenu Gupta, VP of Sales @ Thrive Global
It's not all that often we see South Asians in sales. This week, Simi welcomes Renu Gupta, Head of Sales at Thrive Global. Renu is a seasoned sales executive…
South Asian TrailblazersManik Gupta, Former Chief Product Officer @ Uber and Investor
Can you imagine a world without Google Maps? Well, imagine building it. Simi meets the man behind Maps, Manik Gupta, Investor and Former Chief Product Officer…
South Asian TrailblazersAdi Raval, Head of Communications @ Shield AI
In this episode, Simi welcomed Adi Raval to the pod. Adi currently serves as Head of Communications for Shield AI, a venture-backed AI company that serves the…
South Asian TrailblazersSheel Mohnot, Co-Founder of Better Tomorrow Ventures and Investor
Sheel Mohnot is a serial entrepreneur, fintech investor, and acquired podcaster — so naturally this was quite the conversation for Simi. A graduate of Carnegie…
South Asian TrailblazersAnita Kumar, POLITICO's White House Correspondent
In quite the role reversal for Anita Kumar, Simi interviews the White House Correspondent and Associate Editor at POLITICO. An expert on the institution of the…
South Asian TrailblazersRabia Chaudry, Attorney, Advocate, Author
Rabia Chaudry is an attorney, advocate, and author of the New York Times bestselling book "Adnan's Story.” Her book follows the story of Adnan Syed, a very…
South Asian TrailblazersHitha Palepu, CEO @ Rhoshan Pharmaceuticals
Simi welcomes Hitha Palepu to the pod. Hitha is the definition of a multi-hypenate -- an entrepreneur, investor, writer, and speaker. With a background in…
South Asian TrailblazersRinki Sethi, Chief Information Security Officer @ Twitter
Simi opens the season with Rinki Sethi, the Chief Information Security Officer at Twitter. Rinki’s hiring at Twitter was a watershed moment. Not only because…
South Asian TrailblazersRaja Krishnamoorthi, U.S. Congressman (IL-08)
Subramanian Raja Krishnamoorthi is an American businessman and politician who has been the U.S. Representative for Illinois's 8th congressional district since…
South Asian TrailblazersDeepa Subramaniam, Chief Product Officer at ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union)
Simi Shah catches up with Deepa Subramaniam, the first-ever Chief Product and Digital Officer for the ACLU. Deepa began her career at Adobe, where she spent a…
South Asian TrailblazersPriya Krishna, Food Journalist
Simi speaks to Priya Krishna, contributing food writer for the New York Times, the New Yorker, and other prominent news outlets. Priya Krishna is a…
South Asian TrailblazersS Mitra Kalita, CNN Senior Vice President
Simi sits down with S. Mitra Kalita. Mitra is a media veteran who currently serves as Senior Vice President at CNN Digital. Mitra has served as Managing Editor…
South Asian TrailblazersArianna Afsar, Hamilton Star-Singer-Songwriter
Simi catches up with Arianna Afsar. Arianna is best known for her starring role as Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton in the Chicago production of Hamilton. But Ari…
South Asian TrailblazersRooshy Roy, CEO of Aavrani
In Episode 5, Simi welcomes Rooshy Roy to Trailblazers. Rooshy is Co-founder and CEO of Aavrani. Aavrani is a premium skincare brand for women, inspired by…
South Asian TrailblazersNandini Jammi, Founder of Sleeping Giants & Check My Ads
Nandini Jammi, brand safety expert and digital advertising activist, visits the pod. In 2016, she co-founded Sleeping Giants, a social media campaign that…
South Asian TrailblazersSujata Day, Actor and Director
Simi catches up with Sujata Day, actress-model-screenwriter-director extraordinaire. She is best known for her starring role as CeCe in Issa Rae’s series, The…
South Asian TrailblazersSarina Siddhanti & Arian Agrawal, Founders of Riya Collective
Simi sits down with Sarina Siddhanti and Arian Agrawal, co-founders of Riya Collective. Riya Collective is a YC-backed social shopping platform where customers…
South Asian TrailblazersSopan Deb, New York Times Journalist
In our inaugural episode, Simi catches up with Sopan Deb, a journalist for the New York Times. Previously, he covered Donald Trump's presidential campaign for…
- South Asian Trailblazers
Introduction to Trailblazers
Welcome to Trailblazers! In this trailer, we introduce our new podcast. Trailblazers dives deep into the journeys of trailblazing South Asians, sharing the…