Should I share pictures of my life on social media even if I fear being judged by conservative relatives? What are the no-nos of social media in more conservative Indian families? If you are in a desi/non-desi relationship, maybe you have some of the same questions we do. How do you protect your relationship but also interact on social media with the ever watchful Indian aunties? Jessica shares her top 5 tips for protecting family relationships online.  Plus, bonus - Is our life really...

Kevin Wilson has formed his identity as fitting in the spaces between black and white binary spaces throughout his life. Best known as "The CEO of Chai" on social media, he goes by @crossculturechristian as an expression of someone who wants to invite people into a safe place on the harsh landscape of critical social media sites. People talk about the "vibe" of his tiktoks and reels, but he sees his social media presence as a way to encourage and nourish people. And if you learn how to make...

The dissonance caused by learning a new culture and language can be one of the most disorienting things that humans can go through.    How can one respectfully and responsibly learn a new language without doing harm to those around them or losing themself in the process?    Join Jessica Kumar, Invisible India Podcast host and lifelong Hindi learner as she guides us through being aware of our own motivations, practicing cultural humility and decolonizing the language learning process....

What does it take to successfully learn Hindi? Jessica breaks down tips and tricks and answers the most common questions about how to learn Hindi fluently. -What is unique about learning Hindi? -Why is it so hard to learn Indian languages from a book? -Is language school worth it? -Is it more important to focus on Hindi pronunciation or vocabulary? -Does age matter in learning a language? -How important is it to learn Devnagri script? Also check out previous episode and YouTube video "Why...

Are you in a relationship with an Indian? Overwhelmed by the differences between your culture and Indian culture? In Episode 59 of the Invisible India Podcast | Navigating Indian Culture with Love.... we dive in! As a veteran in India (15 years) and being married to Abhishek from Bihar for 11 years, Jessica shares 3 main tips for engaging with Indian culture and understanding the deep undercurrents of how language, family and cultural contexts influence the way people behave in...

"Maid in India" is a masterful work that not only uncovers some of the biggest challenges to India's informal labor sector, but some of the greatest opportunities it presents. Jessica rates it as one of the best books she has read on Indian culture as a whole, as it highlights the invisible aspects of hierarchy and classism through storytelling and hard data. Tripti Lahiri, Author, joins Jessica for an enlightening conversation about the book and personal experiences of grappling with the...

"Maid in India" is a masterful work that not only uncovers some of the biggest challenges to India's informal labor sector, but some of the greatest opportunities it presents. Jessica rates it as one of the best books she has read on Indian culture as a whole, as it highlights the invisible aspects of hierarchy and classism through storytelling and hard data. Tripti Lahiri, Author, joins Jessica for an enlightening conversation about the book and personal experiences of grappling with the...

Jessica hosts Anita Sachariah to share on tidbits of how to teach Indian origin children heritage languages like Hindi, Malayalam, Telugu, Gujarati, Marathi, Urdu, Tamil, Punjabi and many more.   Jessica and Anita speak about their experiences teaching their own children and creating resources for children and adults to bridge the gap in learning Indian languages wherever learners are in the world.   This conversation was part of the Lingua Cultura Experience held on June 24-27, 2021 on...

Vaishali Patel is passionate about passing on the Gujurati and Hindi languages and cultures to others! Hear her story of how she immigrated to the US and started teaching others Gujurati.  Her company, Sanskar Teaching, includes a number of programs both online, live classes and products to bring students closer to Gujurati, Hindi and Punjabi languages.   _________________________________________    Discount for Sanskar Teaching:   Vaishali is offering discounts for listeners to the...

Enjoy this conversation lesson including Hindi words with English explanation.  The lesson is 10 minutes, including simple instructional vocabulary and vocabulary about fruits (mango, lichi and banana.)  Learn more about Indian culture from Jessica's perspective (an American living in India since 2006.) She shares her learnings about cultural significance of different fruits, where they come from and the kids demonstrate how to eat them!  A few words we are going to review before we...

Rashmi Chadha is an entrepreneur, travel influencer and international speaker. Despite her ever smiling persona, there is depth and pain in her story. Overcoming sexism at many junctures, the tragic loss of her mother and obstacles from society, she continues to push forward to make the world a better place for women. She is the founder of wovoyage, a travel company making women’s travel experiences more safe and enjoyable. And with her media background now she is consulting companies like...

What is really happening in India right now with the COVID Crisis?   Jessica, an American living in India with her family tells a first hand account of what it feels like to be in the midst of India's huge COVID crisis. How did we get here and what was the progression like from lockdown #1 in 2020 to a life of normalcy in late 2020, to complete chaos now in April 2021.    What does it feel like to be in a small city and how is the healthcare infrastructure holding up?    Hear from her...

Patna, Bihar’s historical sites are in danger. Kunal Dutt shares about the top 5 historic sites in Patna, the capital of Bihar, India. Kunal founded the Save Historic Patna Collectorate campaign to raise awareness of how Patnaites are allowing their history to be cannibalized in the name of becoming a “smart city.”  He shares the tragic story of losing several iconic pieces of history and what you can do to get involved to stop further demolition of Indian history!   Follow Kunal Dutt:...

In Jessica's 15 years in India, there have been countless interesting and exciting moments.    Here in our 50th EPISODE she reflects on 2 dumb newbie mistakes, 1 religious experience, 1 natural disaster and 1 wild animal story.    Hear about the crazy, dumb mistakes that Jessica made as a young intern in India and the other wild experiences that come with living off the beaten path.    Learn more about Jessica and Abhishek's life in Bihar, whey they moved back to India after settling in...

Is COVID really worse in American than India?   What did it feel like on the ground in India during the world's biggest lockdown.   Why on earth would anyone travel between the US and India right now?    Listen to Jessica and Abhishek share about their experience traveling from Bihar, India to Chicago and BACK AGAIN in the middle of a pandemic! Why did they go? What were their observations? What was the flight like? We answer questions that many people have asked us in the past few months...

The standard for Indian-Americans is seemingly impossibly high wherever they go. Not fully accepted as "American" nor fully embraced as "fully Indian."  Rashmili Vemula and Gurtej Singh join Jessica in a conversation about assimilation, cultural retention and language learning as Indian-Americans. Rashmili talks through her Telegu roots and how dance was a connection point to Indian culture. Gurtej shares how American Sikhs are used to being a minority wherever they go.    Check YouTube for...

Direct vs indirect communication has been a painful point for Indians working with Westerners and vice versa. Craig Storti, author of “Speaking of India” draws on his decades of international consulting experience to share about the common pain points between Western and Eastern professionals. Jessica and Craig dive in deeper to see how these differences in direct vs indirect communication impact personal relationships, marriage, parental relationships between 1st generation diaspora desis...

In this bilingual episode, Jessica tells all the questions you may be wondering about what its like to be a foreigner in India, how she learned fluent Hindi and what it is like being married to an Indian while living in a conservative community in North India. do people treat her weird as a foreigner? how do people react to her speaking fluent Hindi? how did Abhishek's parents feel about their son marrying an American?  Hear her answers and how she relates some of the off the wall...

At first glance, one may assume Aparna Mulberry is a Western woman who has merely visited India. But only a few moments after speaking to her, you realize the depth and knowledge of her experiences as growing up in the Amritapuri Ashram in Kerala, India.    Aparna is an American born, but India raised woman who spent her formative years in Kerala. Fluent in Malayalam, her story of finding her place of fitting in in India and also America is inspiring and enlightening for anyone living a...

This month we are focusing on Transnational Adoption and hearing the stories of 3 families who are perfectly blended, where at least one member of the family is South Asian.   What are the things adoptive parents need to be aware of before adopting from India? What is it like to be Indian parents of an adopted African-American child?  What is it like to be two Australian parents living in India with two adopted Indian children?  This week,  we talk to Mahi. She and her husband are an...

This month we are focusing on Transnational Adoption and hearing the stories of 3 families who are perfectly blended, where at least one member of the family is South Asian.  What is it like to be adopted as a South Asian into a totally different culture across the world?  What is it like to be Indian parents of an adopted African-American child? What is it like to be two Australian parents living in India with two adopted Indian children? This week, we hear from Jacob, born into a...

Indian weddings are generally a multi-day affair, including a number of rituals and family get togethers. And lets not forget the food! After 10 years of marriage, Jessica and Abhishek reflect on what they would change about their "Big Fat Indian Wedding." What are the important things to include and what doesn't matter years later? What do a bride and groom need to compromise? Is it better to have one ceremony or two? How do you convince your family to include what you want in your...

From the outside, the Indian educational system is a confusing landscape that produces some of the world's top talent, CEOs and world leaders, yet is criticized for inequality and illiteracy.  What are the basic building blocks of Indian education? How did India move from the Guru/Shishya ancient system to a high tech, competitive enterprise? Does the Indian school system really start at age 3? Shubhada Ranjan is the Head of Public Relations at a 3000 student school in Patna City,...

Indian weddings are knock-down, drag-out get togethers work remembering! What are 10 aspects that are unique to Indian weddings?

Karl Rock, popular YouTuber in India, tells Jessica more of his personal story of marrying his Indian wife, making India home and learning Hindi.