If you walk into any government office anywhere around the world you will always find a framed photo of a national leader. Well - if you were to walk into any brothel in the Mumbai red light district you will find, in every room a framed photo of a woman - an elderly, grey haired woman in a white sari edged with a gold border. No, she is not a saint. This was Gangubai, one of the most powerful madams in her time. But why, 50 years after her death, does every Mumabi sex worker have Gangubai’s...

“Deception is a necessary skill of state craft”, said the guru to the young princes, his students, “but for it to be successful it has to be practiced as an art form, it must be planned such that not even God knows what you are doing.” Surely all is fair in love and war. And after all what could go wrong! A wonderful old story from the Hitupdesh, a 2nd century text written to teach young princes how to rule a kingdom both in times of war and in times of peace. This story has been adapted from...

The gods and demons churn the ocean for the nectar of immortality, a potion that will give them everlasting life and superhuman strength. They churn together in a spirit of collaboration but each is determined to cheat the other out of their share of the nectar and keep it just for themselves. This is a story that goes back to the beginning of time and yet it is a story that could have happened yesterday - depictions, power struggles, promises made and broken and the ongoing struggle for...

“If you must breathe to stay alive then Ashwin to me is like breath. I don’t need food or water to survive, just the beautiful memories of our time together. I can happily live on that.” That was Nita Naik, in an interview to journalist Hussain zaidi, in 1997, declaring her deep and undying love for her fugitive gangster husband Ashwin Naik. Exactly 3 years later she was gunned down, in broad daylight, outside her house, on his orders. Where did it all go wrong? A blood stained tale of the...

Possibly the strangest story I’ve ever heard and I can promise you it will definitely be the strangest that you have ever come across. This is one of the a “rescued” story from an ancient Sanskrit compendium of the love stories of Ariel spirits known as the Brihad Katha or the library of romances and it is a tale of love lost, love cheated on and love regained - all on the power of a determined wife’s vomit. No more clues - the rest you shall hear! Follow me on Instagram...

They called him the Serpent because of the number of jails he had broken out of - eight different jails across different countries. They called him the Bikini Killer because the number of his victims found floating in swimming pools, brutally murdered, wearing nothing but a bikini. He was Charles Sobhraj, Killer, gangster, smuggler, jewel thief, criminal, a wanted man across continents.  But he was also the smoothest operator, suave, charming, utterly irresistible, with women falling all...

Welcome to The 3000 Step Stories Podcast! This whole podcast is a series of stories designed to last 3000 steps, walk with me as I tell you these tales and we can get fit together! The podcast is beautifully scored by @musicmerlin and she’s going to keep us on beat whilst we walk 🎶 This trailer is just a sneak peek of all the episodes from Season 1, from Charles Sobhraj’s prison escapes to stories of seduction and mystery...are you as excited as I am??! Get your shoes on, get your headphones...