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After Congress leader Praveen Chakravarthy’s tweet, one economic comparison has gone viral: that Tamil Nadu’s total debt is now higher than Uttar Pradesh’s.
The claim is being used to suggest a simple story: fiscal failure in one state, discipline in the other.
But is that really how numbers are read?
In this episode of Let Me Explain, Pooja Prasanna puts the debt figures in context. Because debt, by itself, tells us very little. What matters is how large an economy is, how fast it is growing, how much revenue it raises, and what that borrowing is used for.
Produced by Megha Mukundan, Script by Pooja Prasanna, Camera by Ajay R, Edit by Nikhil Sekhar ET, Graphics by Dharini Prabharan
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In 2024–25, the BJP received over ₹6,000 crore in political donations - that’s about 85% of all donations.
Much of this money came from large corporate donors, many operating in sectors heavily dependent on government contracts, approvals, subsidies, or regulation. This includes major business groups such as L&T, Tata Group, Megha Engineering (MEIL), and Mahindra Group.
Many donors were also the companies under regulatory scrutiny, or recipients of major government contracts.
What does it say about quid pro quo? What does this level of financial dominance mean for electoral competition and democratic accountability? Pooja Prasanna explains in this week’s Let Me Explain.
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Produced by Megha Mukundan, Script by Pooja Prasanna, Camera by Ajay R, Edit by Nikhil Sekhar ET, Graphics by Jaseem Ali
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MGNREGA allowed rural workers to ask the government for work and be paid if work was not provided. That basic promise shaped how the programme worked on the ground. Now, the Union government plans to replace MGNREGA with a new law called VB G RAM G, 2025. The new framework changes how jobs are approved, funded, and delivered. In this special episode of Let Me Explain, Pooja Prasanna walks through what is changing and what it could mean for workers and states.
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Produced by Bhuvan Malik, Script by Pooja Prasanna, Edited by Dharini Prabaharan.
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The 2017 actor assault verdict has split Kerala. While six men were convicted for abducting and sexually assaulting an actor, Dileep, the alleged mastermind was acquitted of conspiracy charges.
Protests followed, and the survivor issued a public statement saying justice felt incomplete. In this episode of Let Me Explain, Pooja Prasanna breaks down what the court accepted, what it rejected, and why proving criminal conspiracy is so difficult under Indian law.
➡️ Read our coverage of the case here: https://www.thenewsminute.com/topic/tnm-special-stories-kerala-actor-assault-case
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Produced by Megha Mukundan, Script by Lakshmi Priya, Edited by Nikhil Sekhar ET, Camera by Ajay R
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The unrest in Thiruparankundram during this year’s Karthigai Deepam festival did not emerge overnight. What unfolded on December 3 and 4 was the result of coordinated mobilisation, a controversial court order, and the reopening of a long-sensitive dispute on a shared sacred hill.
TNM’s reporter was on the ground documenting how activists from BJP, RSS, Hindu Munnani and other right-wing groups mobilised from across Tamil Nadu. How did this mobilisation happen? What is the controversial court order? Pooja Prasanna explains in this week’s Let Me Explain.
Read our ground reports here:
https://www.thenewsminute.com/tamil-nadu/ayodhya-of-the-south-a-timeline-of-time-immemorial
https://www.thenewsminute.com/tamil-nadu/ayodhya-of-the-south-the-sanghs-southern-rehearsal
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Produced by Megha Mukundan, Script by Pooja Prasanna, Research by Azeefa Fathima, Reporting by Abhishek Vijayan, Camera by Ajay R, Satish, Edit by Nikhil Sekhar ET, Dharini Prabharan
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Why has the BJP struggled to translate its long presence in Kerala into political power? In this episode of Let Me Explain, Pooja Prasanna looks at the Sangh Parivar’s decades-long organisational work in the state, the slow rise in BJP’s vote share, and why electoral success has remained limited. From Kerala’s lived secularism and dense social geography to literacy, political culture, and strong rival fronts, we break down what makes Kerala different and why the BJP’s familiar playbook has not worked here.
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Producer: Megha Mukundan
Script: Lakshmi Priya
Research inputs: Pooja Prasanna
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Nearly half of India’s women factory workers are employed in one state: Tamil Nadu. In this week’s Let Me Explain, Pooja Prasanna travels to factory floors in the state to understand how women came to power Tamil Nadu’s industrial economy. From electronics and garments to auto components, women form the backbone of manufacturing. This success is shaped by decades of industrial policy, welfare schemes, and investments in education.
This episode looks closely at both sides of the story: the opportunities that factory work has created for women, and the deep inequalities that continue to structure their labour. Through ground reports and conversations with workers, union organisers, and economists, we unpack what Tamil Nadu’s model has achieved and what still remains unresolved.
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Did the RSS hire US lobbyists? Official disclosures in the US list the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh as a client of one of America’s biggest lobbying firms. But the RSS denies any involvement. In this episode of Let Me Explain, Pooja Prasanna breaks down the filings, the controversy, the firms involved, and what this means for India’s democracy and for India–US relations.
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What happens when a government designs welfare with women at the centre?
In Karnataka, the five guarantee schemes — Shakti, Gruha Lakshmi, Gruha Jyoti, Anna Bhagya and Yuva Nidhi — have reshaped how women move, work, spend and decide. Two major studies now give us the clearest picture of what changed on the ground. A 151% rise in women’s bus travel. Better spending on food and healthcare. Reduced household stress. New access to work and education.
In the 100th episode of Let Me Explain, Pooja Prasanna travels across Karnataka to understand how intentional welfare has shifted women’s lives and what it means for public policy.
Let Me Explain just turned 100! A hundred attempts to cut through noise. A hundred times we asked the questions that needed asking.
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Produced by Megha Mukundan, Script by Lakshmi Priya, Camera by Ajay R, Graphics by Dharini Prabharan, Edited by Nikhil Sekhar
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India has just won its first-ever ICC Women’s World Cup — a victory decades in the making.
From travelling in unreserved train coaches to lifting the trophy before packed stands, this is a story of grit, resilience, and history rewritten.
But behind the celebrations lies another story, of unequal pay, limited matches, and a cricketing system that still treats women as an afterthought.
In this week’s Let Me Explain, Dhanya Rajendran looks beyond the trophy to trace the long, uneven journey of women’s cricket in India — from the forgotten years of the WCAI to the billion-rupee WPL — and asks whether this World Cup win will finally bring the change Indian cricket has long owed its women.
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For decades, Karnataka’s old Mysuru belt remained out of the BJP’s reach, shaped instead by Vokkaliga-led caste equations and JD(S) dominance. But that’s changing fast. From Maddur’s clashes to the propaganda of fictitious characters Uri Gowda and Nanje Gowda, Hindutva politics is entering Karnataka’s heartland.
In this episode of Let Me Explain, Pooja Prasanna breaks down how the BJP–JD(S) alliance is transforming old Mysuru into a new political and communal battleground, and what it means for Karnataka politics.
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Produced by Megha Mukundan, Script by Pooja Prasanna, Edited by Nikhil Sekhar ET, graphics by Vignesh Manickam, Camera by Ajay R
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VC Sajjanar, the IPS officer who led the 2019 “Disha encounter,” is now Hyderabad’s new Police Commissioner. In this episode of Let Me Explain, @PoojaPrasanna68 looks at what his rise says about India’s dangerous glorification of encounter killings — and how cinema, media, and public adulation have helped turn cops who kill into heroes.
From the Warangal acid attack case in 2008 to the Disha case in 2019, Sajjanar has come to symbolise “instant justice.” But when a man accused of extra-judicial killings is rewarded, what does that say about our justice system?
This is not just one man’s story. It’s about a country that celebrates vengeance as justice, and the growing impunity of those in uniform.
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Produced by Megha Mukundan, edited by Nikhil Sekhar ET, script by Lakshmi Priya, research by Anjana Meenakshi, camera by Ajay R
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Suresh Gopi — the angry cop on screen, the fiery journalist, the man whose monologues once shook theatres. Now, he’s Kerala’s first BJP MP.
In this episode of Let Me Explain, Pooja Prasanna unpacks how Suresh Gopi took his mass-hero energy from the movie set to Parliament. From his image as a generous philanthropist who built homes and funded surgeries, to his temper with journalists and theatrics in political life — this is the story of an actor who never really left the screen.
Why did Kerala, a state known for its strong secular politics, vote for the BJP? How did Suresh Gopi’s emotional connect and celebrity appeal achieve what decades of political strategy couldn’t? And what happens when the line between reel and real starts to blur?
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Produced by Megha Mukundan, edited by Nikhil Sekhar ET, script & research by Lakshmi Priya, camera by Ajay R
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At least 23 children in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan have died after consuming cough syrup contaminated with diethylene glycol (DEG), a toxic industrial chemical used in brake fluid.
In Madhya Pradesh, doctors raised warnings weeks before tests confirmed contamination in the drug ‘Coldrif’, but state and central regulators cleared the drug as safe. Tamil Nadu’s lab later found nearly 50% DEG.
This isn’t India’s first such tragedy — similar cough syrup deaths have occurred since 1972. In this week’s Let Me Explain, Pooja Prasanna explains how repeated negligence, weak regulation, and political influence continue to let poisonous medicines reach patients.
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Produced by Megha Mukundan, research by Maria Teresa Raju, script by Lakshmi Priya, Edited by Nikhil Sekhar ET, graphics by Vignesh Manickam, camera by Ajay R
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What was supposed to be a show of strength at Vijay’s TVK rally in Karur turned into chaos, panic, and death. Fans waited for hours, permissions were ignored, and a preventable tragedy unfolded.
But Karur is not an isolated accident. From RCB’s victory parade in Bengaluru to Pushpa 2 promotions in Hyderabad, to temple festivals to the Mahakumbh Mela—India’s obsession with massive crowds keeps ending in stampedes.
Why do organisers and leaders chase head-counts while neglecting safety? Why are guidelines ignored despite decades of repeated disasters? And why does accountability vanish the moment lives are lost?
In this episode of Let Me Explain, Pooja Prasanna breaks down the anatomy of a stampede: What went wrong at Vijay’s rally, how India repeatedly fails at crowd safety, and what it will take to prevent the next disaster.
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2019’s “Howdy, Modi” promised a new chapter in India-U.S. friendship. But in 2025, the bond looks shaky. Trump’s 50% tariffs on Indian goods and a $100,000 H-1B visa fee are biting hard.
In this week’s Let Me Explain, Pooja Prasanna dives into why India’s over-reliance on Trump’s personal rapport backfired, how high tariffs are affecting Indian exports, and why Indian IT companies and workers face a double whammy with new outsourcing taxes on the horizon. This is not just about diplomacy, it’s about jobs, livelihoods, and the global future of India’s workforce.
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Why has the BJP failed to make real inroads in Tamil Nadu, even as it dominates much of India? From Dravidian politics and Tamil identity to Murugan yatras and cultural strategies, Pooja Prasanna unpacks why the state resists BJP’s playbook in this episode of Let Me Explain; the history, the ideological clash, and BJP’s current game plan as Tamil Nadu heads to the polls.
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Producer: Megha Mukundan
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The Karnataka government’s choice of inviting Kannada writer and Booker Prize winner Banu Mushtaq to inaugurate the Mysuru Dasara celebrations this year has stirred a controversy. It has ignited a public debate on whether the festival should reflect Karnataka’s inclusive cultural identity or remain a strictly religious event.
Critics argue that her identity and past remarks make her unfit for the role, while supporters see it as a step toward inclusivity. But at its core, this controversy raises deep questions about religion, culture, and identity in Karnataka.
From historical clashes to modern political posturing, Pooja Prasanna unpacks the complexities surrounding Mysuru’s most iconic event, in this week’s Let Me Explain.
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Produced by Megha Mukundan, script by Lakshmi Priya and Pooja Prasanna, camera by Ajay R, edited by Nikhil Sekhar ET, graphics by Dharini Prabharan.
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Hate speech has found a new home.
From X Spaces where Malayali right-wing voices urge Hindus to “arm themselves,” to YouTube’s Hindutva Pop songs with lyrics that glorify violence and rack up millions of monetised views, hate is being amplified, monetised, and often slipping past platform checks.
Unchecked sexist tirades, conspiracy theories, and calls for violence spill out from these spaces into the real world, amplified by media outlets, legitimised by repetition, and turned into political currency.
This week on Let Me Explain, Pooja Prasanna unpacks how hate spreads from chatrooms to streets, the role of platforms in fuelling and profiting from it, and what the law and the Supreme Court have said about the threat it poses to India’s secular fabric.
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Bollywood’s record on portraying south Indians has been one of stereotypes, missteps, and mockery.
From Padosan (1968) to Shah Rukh Khan’s “curd noodles” in Ra.One, and now Janhvi Kapoor’s “Thekkapetta Sundari” which literally means “dumped beauty” in Param Sundari, the tropes remain the same.
Loud voices, broken Hindi, exaggerated accents, and token visuals of jasmine and coconuts are passed off as representation. This week on Let Me Explain, Pooja Prasanna unpacks Bollywood’s long history of stereotyping, the cultural hierarchy it reflects, and the few times Hindi cinema got it right — when characters were written and performed with context and care.
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