Ideas of India

Floer and Rajagopalan look back at key themes and top episodes from the past year, address listener questions, and take a look forward to what’s in store for Shruti and the show in 2026

Lavanya and Rajagopalan discuss the 2004 increase in foreign equity limits for Indian banks, its effects on credit allocation, loan screening mechanisms, and aggregate productivity growth in manufacturing

Biswas and Rajagopalan discuss supply-side interventions in reproductive health, the impact of community health workers on maternal healthcare utilization, and evidence from India's public health landscape

Narayan and Rajagopalan discuss monetary policy surprises, central bank communication, and how financial markets distinguish between scheduled and unscheduled rate decisions

Tariq and Rajagopalan discuss how electoral redistricting affects public goods provision for Muslim communities in India, the mechanics of delimitation commissions, and the political economy of serving minority voters in a first-past-the-post system.

Sabnis and Rajagopalan discuss how Indian courts navigate extramarital relationships, polygamy, and the contested boundaries between legal marriage and social recognition in Hindu law

Rai and Rajagopalan explore the cross-cultural analysis of shame and pride in film

Srivastava and Rajagopalan discuss large-scale experiments on how strategic referral allocation improves worker retention, team productivity, and inclusion while challenging traditional hiring practices in Indian manufacturing

Basu and Rajagopalan discuss K.M. Panikkar, who shaped modern India's unity, foreign policy, and constitutional vision

Aiyar and Rajagopalan discuss Delhi's school reforms, the agency-accountability tradeoff, and building state capacity from the ground up