Today we’d like to introduce you to Aniya Jain and Ishya Jain
Hi Aniya Jain, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Ever since we were little, our parents encouraged us to be up-to-date on current events. It started off with reading our local newspaper, the Murphy Messenger, and lifestyle magazines. Later, it expanded into global news and opinion pieces. Both of us loved reading articles and watching the news on TV because it allowed us to explore different worlds, like business, politics, and film. In 2022, following the pandemic, we realized the importance of staying aware of the world around us and wanted our community to be well-informed. We recognized the lack of a platform within the South-Asian American community for discussing global events, which is why we started our radio show, The American Desi, on FunAsia Radio. We took inspiration from one of our favorite shows, Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj, where Minhaj uncovers news stories and explains the topic from start to finish in casual language, making it easy for the audience to understand. It has been really exciting to see the response from our listeners who have recognized the lack of attention given to South-Asian Americans and appreciate our show!
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It took a few months to familiarize ourselves with the role. There are a lot of moving pieces like advertisements, music, callers, and more, so it is easy to get overwhelmed. Eventually, we were able to learn to create an organized system and divide the responsibilities. Another challenge we faced was learning to adapt and recover from any mistakes. As on any live platform, we are bound to mispronounce a word or play the wrong track, and it’s important to know how to smoothly transition from the mistake. Finally, it took some trial-and-error to figure out how to structure our show.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
In our show, The American Desi, we address current events and global news. We discuss anything from the upcoming presidential election to the latest international cricket tournament. Our strength lies in our ability to simplify and summarize events for our listeners to keep them informed about the world around them. Every week, we compile four to five news stories and prepare short, two-minute segments discussing each story, making sure to include background information and future implications. We realize that some of our listeners may not be up-to-date on every topic we discuss, so our goal is to provide comprehensive information that helps them stay aware of international news. Our favorite part of hosting our show is talking to our listeners, who call in to ask about the content and request music. Additionally, we have had the pleasure of interviewing South-Asian American figures to feature on our show. In the past, we have interviewed a singer-songwriter, a small business owner and artist, and youth non-profit leaders. Through these interviews, we hope to showcase the diverse nature of talent within the South-Asian American community and give young South Asians a role model to aspire to.
Do you any memories from childhood that you can share with us?
When we were in elementary school, our mom would take us to our local library every weekend over the summer to check out a bag full of books, CDs, and DVDs to keep us entertained. Since the Texas summer made it too hot to spend a lot of time outdoors, the library was the next best alternative. We loved wandering around the bookshelves to see if we could find our favorite books and looking at all of the art pieces displayed on the walls. Looking back, it’s easy to trace many of our current hobbies and interests to the books we checked out from the library.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://funasia.net
