This is an audio and video podcast, where I interview professionals from a diverse set of backgrounds. Each guest profiled has a story to share about how they acquired a set of skills and knowledge in a creative and innovative manner. In the process, I hope to uncover a new understanding of learning as narrated and imagined by our guests. Through these conversations, I hope to create a kinder more empathetic version of the Internet where we hold space for each other and understand the years of effort, sacrifice, learning and love that goes into building a meaningful career in any field.
#96 - Dr. Punam Medh on Instructional Design, Education & Stories about Science
On Episode 96 of #LearningStories, I chat with Dr. Punam Medh. Punam is a science educator, passionate about reimagining how teachers learn. Drawing on a Ph.D. in Education she works at the intersection of science education, instructional design and teacher professional development. She is an experienced instructional designer in the eLearning and Education Technology space where she has held key leadership and strategic roles for over two decades. She has experience in creating digital and hybrid learning experiences that connect organizational goals with employee learning needs. A sustained interest in using stories as a powerful medium for making learning more engaging, accessible, and meaningful shapes both her work in instructional design and science education.
Show Chapters
(00:02) - Podcast Introduction
(00:20) - Guest Background
(01:25) - Stories from Punam's childhood
(02:08) - "I have been a learner forever"
(02:20) - Parent's Influence
(03:20) - "Stories always helped me as a learner"
(03:55) - Stories of Scientists in School Textbooks
(06:20) - Teachers that had an impact on my life
(09:30) - Why did you study Chemistry at the Undergradute Level?
(10:22) - "My mother was a chemist and worked in a chemical factory"
(12:20) - Learning about computers and programming languages in college
(12:50) - "I started writing code in BASIC"
(13:20) - Experience as a corporate trainer
(15:20) - Working as an Instructional Designer with the TATA Group
(17:40) - "I wanted to bring instructional design to more schools in India"
(18:30) - Starting an instructional design organization called iDesign Skills
(21:30) - What is instructional design? What do instructional designers do?
(25:00) - Pursuing an MA in Elementary Education at TISS
(28:30) - How children tell stories?
(36:40) - What was your Ph.D. thesis about?
(37:00) - "I wanted to understand how to bring stories into science in education"
(38:00) - "Science is collaborative and creative"
(40:00) - How teachers can use stories in the classroom
(41:30) - Main findings from thesis and teacher interactions
(44:00) - The story of Lise Meitner
(57:00) - Closing Notes
Show Links
Punam on Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/punam-medh-ph-d-328982232/
Punam on Twitter - https://x.com/pmedh/with_replies
Punam on Research Gate - https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Punam-Medh-2
iDesign Skills - http://www.idesignskills.com/
Epistoria - https://www.epistoria.in/
Show Description
#LearningStories is an audio and video show where we interview a diverse set of learners from the 21st century. Each guest profiled here has a unique story to share about how they acquired a set of valuable skills and knowledge in a creative and innovative manner.
Show Description
Learning Stories is an audio and video show where we interview a diverse set of learners from the 21st century. Each guest profiled here has a unique story to share about how they acquired a set of valuable skills and knowledge in a creative and innovative manner.
17 Feb 2026
#95 - Samarth Mahajan on Storytelling between Tracks and Borders
On Episode 95 of #LearningStories, I chat with Samarth Mahajan. He is a Mumbai-based filmmaker, passionate about telling human stories that remain invisible to the mainstream. His work includes two national award-winning documentaries - the 2022 feature "Borderlands" explores lives defined by India's borders, and the 2018 film "The Unreserved" captures stories from general compartments of Indian Railways. Samarth's films have screened across six continents to favorable reviews and received broadcast and theatrical releases in India. His projects have featured in major film markets, including the Marché du Film, the business counterpart of the Cannes Film Festival. Recognized by IIT Kharagpur as a Young Alumni Achiever, Samarth's commercial collaborations include brands like Vice Studios, Applause Entertainment, and Discovery+. He is currently working on his debut fiction short. You can find Samarth on Youtube and IMDB.
Show Chapters
(00:02) - Podcast Introduction
(00:20) - Guest Background
(01:50) - What has filmmaking taught you about human beings
(02:20) - "Storytelling is about understanding our place in the world"
(02:40) - "I really admire resilience shown in difficult situations"
(03:00) - What has story telling shown me as a filmmaker?
(03:40) - "I also understood how we are all connected"
(04:00) - Why create films around universal themes?
(06:00) - What stories did you love as a child and teenager?
(06:50) - "My father loved eating good food and watching films"
(07:00) - My relationship to films and books as a young person
(07:30) - "Lagaan made me fall in love with cinema and was magical"
(08:20) - "I loved reading encyclopedias and books about space and dinosaurs"
(09:30) - "I still do not read a lot of fiction"
(09:38) - "Most of my fiction work is around fantasy themes"
(10:30) - Who was Samarth till the age of 25?
(11:00) - "I spent five years doing a B.Tech/M.Tech at IIT Kharagpur"
(11:30) - "Two years studying for JEE in Chandigarh was quite difficult"
(11:40) - "I come from Dinanagar in Gurdaspur District in Punjab"
(12:15) - "My childhood was quite sheltered and in a small town"
(13:00) - "I thought I will clear JEE and my life will be set"
(13:10) - Experience as a student for 5 years at IIT Kharagpur
(15:00) - How stories can shape your thinking as a young person in India?
(17:00) - How engineering shaped your approach to filmmaking?
(18:00) - "All filmmakers are very unique in their approach"
(21:00) - Experience watching films at MAMI Film Festival in Mumbai
(25:15) - Experience studying Liberal Arts for 2 years at Ashoka University(29:50) - Building strong relationships with editors and cinematographers
(30:00) - Meeting Ashay Gangwar, Producer and CEO of Camera and Shorts
(32:00) - Meeting Anadi Athaley, Editor of 'Borderlands' and 'The Unreserved'
(33:00) - "We had nine hours of footage for a ten minute film"
(34:40) - Meeting Omkar Divekar, Cinematographer of 'Borderlands'
(36:00) - How much raw footage do you capture for your films?
(38:00) - What are your memories and experiences of traveling on trains in India?
(46:00) - What are your memories and experiences of living in a border town in India?
(54:00) - Working on my first fiction feature film
(55:30) - Documentary Film Recommendation
(56:30) - Fiction Feature Film Recommendation
(57:30) - TV Show Recommendation
(58:00) - Food Recommendation
(59:30) - Closing Notes
Show Links
Samarth's Website - https://samarthmahajan.in/bio
'Borderlands' (2022) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6KKDkFo1IQ8&t=1s
'The Unreserved' (2018) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fWvoCicq9eo&t=1s
'Kazwa' (2015) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6hnX97HV7uc
Show Description
#LearningStories is an audio and video show where we interview a diverse set of #learners from the 21st century. Each guest profiled here has a unique story to share about how they acquired a set of valuable #skills and #knowledge in a creative and innovative manner.
10 Feb 2026
#94 - Ajay Kamalakaran on Documenting the World Through History and Travel
On Episode 94 of #LearningStories (https://www.youtube.com/hashtag/learningstories), I chat with Ajay Kamalakaran. He is an independent journalist and writer with a special interest in Russia and the Soviet Union. He has lived in Russia and the US and is now based in Mumbai. Ajay if the author of four books including: 'Globetrotting for Love and Other Stories from Sakhalin Island' (2017), 'A Week in the Life of Svitlana' (2019), 'Colombo: Port of Call' (2026). His articles regularly appear on Russia Beyond, Manorama Online, Scroll and other publications. You can find Ajay on Goodreads.
Show Chapters
(00:02) - Podcast Introduction
(00:20) - Guest Background
(02:50) - Stories from your Childhood
(03:40) - "I was born here in Bombay"
(03:50) - "When I was quite young we moved to the US"
(05:00) - My love for basketball and the New York Yankees
(08:20) - What did you study at university?
(09:40) - "I first wanted to be a lawyer"
(10:00) - "You could chose between Science, Arts and Commerce in India"
(10:50) - "I always enjoyed writing as a student"
(11:30) - "I was told writing is a hobby and not a profession
(11:40) - "I studied banking and finances for my masters"
(12:10) - "I did not want to live my father's dream"
(12:30) - "I wanted t interact with people from different parts of the world"
(13:00) - "I decided to take the plunge and do journalism full time"
(13:40) - How did you acquire the skills and knowledge to become a journalist/writer?
(15:20) - Why did you want to move away from big cities?
(15:30) - What motivated you to learn Russia and move to the Russian Far East?
(16:00) - "There was an oil boom in Sakhalin Island and lots of expat families moved there"
(16:50) - "I started working for an English language newspaper
(17:30) - "I was also freelancing for the wire services"
(17:50) - "I edited that English newspaper in Sakhalin Island for four years"
(18:40) - "In America, I was the Indian Kid. In India, I was the American Kid"
(19:40) - The cultural, social and political history of Sakhalin Island
(28:00) - What was your experience as a journalist and editor in Sakhalin Island for 4 years?
(32:00) - "There would be months where the only space I spoke English was at work"
(33:40) - Why did you chose to write fiction to talk about your experience in Sakhalin Island?
(35:00) - The experience of working on a translation of my book into Russian
(37:20) - What was your experience working on your second work of fiction?
(43:15) - The challenges of writing fiction
(44:15) - Why writing is always a work in progress?
(46:00) - "Colombo is a home away from home for me"
(47:20) - Why did you want to write a book about Colombo
(48:30) - "I started reading about famous people that lived and travelled to Colombo"
(50:40) - What is the timeline you explore in your book about Colombo?
(54:00) - Exploring the golden era of steamships and ocean travel in this book
(57:00) - The elements of Malayali culture in Colombo
(58:10) - The idea of slow travel(58:30) - "It is about being where you are completely"
(59:40) - "I believe I am a traveller and rarely a tourist anywhere
(1:00:15) - Book and Film Recommendations
(1:03:30) - Closing Notes
Show Links
Ajay's Author Website - https://www.ajaykamalakaran.com/
Book Recommendation 1 - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/54906247-the-amur-river?ref=nav_sb_ss_5_13
Book Recommendation 2 - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/52319117-upon-a-sleepless-isle?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_19
Film Recommendation - https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0071411/
Show Description#LearningStories is an audio and video show where we interview a diverse set of #learners from the 21st century. Each guest profiled here has a unique story to share about how they acquired a set of valuable #skills and #knowledge in a creative and innovative manner.
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Eshna Benegal
Saqib Ahmad
Minaz Ansari
Neha Garg
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