Chai with Rai – Détails, épisodes et analyse

I know Season 6 has wrapped up but I had this episode sitting in the vaults so before we get into Season 7 (Next Year EEEK!) Enjoy this beautiful conversation with actor Faraz Ayub. 

p.s- I am very ill so enjoy my husky deep. voice in the begining and let me know what was the drink you sipped on or what was your favourite part of the episode. 

Topics Breakdown: 

• Workshopping the script and the character on Sky Peals. 
• Preparation of different mediums and your technical approach to creating the world of these characters in Film, theatre and series. 
• Discussing works such as Ackley Bridge and Screw. 
• Representation behind and infront of the scenes fro film and series.

Rapid Response Questions: 

• A tip on being financial savvy?
• Go back to any role or project what would it be and why? And if you were asked to do a part 2/ expansion of it- input 
• A great thing about being an artist in today’s social, cultural and economical and a challenging thing about it? 
• Getting into the role- auditioning or when you have booked the job? And how to let go or separate yourself from it?
• A thing you would like someone to take away with them having met you for a brief second or known you for a long time?
• Your Favourite thing about yourself either as a creative or person and something you feel is a challenge and are working on?
• A thing you would like to impart somebody but you never got told ?
• Words to your mirror self today?
• 3 things the creative culture could do with and or without?
• 3 artists really admire their journey or would suggest in checking out their work ?
• Your thoughts on the entertainment culture or theatre culture in general and a thing you would challenge the industry on?
• Does strategy and conversation of the business of the industry come in to play? 

• What the Chai- 30 second rant about anything and everything however you must start or end your rant with the phrase "What the Chai?"
• Joyfulness- What's one thing that makes Jordi joyful and whats one thing he does for others that makes them feel joyful. 

To subscribe to Patreon and become a Patron/ supporter of Chai with Rai. 

Social:

Myself: https://www.instagram.com/chaiwithrai_/ & https://twitter.com/chaiwithrai_ & https://www.tiktok.com/@chaiwithrai

Guest : https://www.instagram.com/officialfaraza/ 

Links:

Myself: https://www.raimuitfum.com/chaiwithraihomepage &

https://linktr.ee/chaiwithrai_ 

Guest: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3292959/ &  https://www.farazayub.com . 

Hope you all enjoyed it and Thank you for tuning in. To Subscribe, share, follow my work and everything else is listed above.

Welcome to Chai with Rai. 

The Podcast for the Creative in You!

Grabbed a cuppa with the talented Ra'eesah to discuss her writing process for "38%" an audio story for the series Symphonies of Beaded Threads. We also discussed her unique voice as an artist, organisational make up of the theatre industry and of course poetry. 

Also, with this I conclude the series of discussing BTS stuff and more with the writers behind Symphonies of Beaded Threads. I hope you enjoyed it and more to come! 

About Ra'eesah: 

Ra’eesah is a multifaceted creative using the mediums of theatre, film, music and spoken word to tell stories, bring people together and effect positive change. She has performed on stage as an actor and singer at the Bush Theatre as well as with The Old Vic/Neon Arts. 

She has produced projects such as The Self-Expression Sessions, a series of spoken word poetry workshops open to people of all ages and abilities, to increase accessibility to the arts and build community through creativity and culture.

Further projects Ra’eesah has produced on include Licence to DV8 at the Royal Albert Hall and arts festivals at Almeida Theatre and London Bubble, focusing on outreach. She is a trustee of the Roundhouse and WEST Youth Zone and has contributed to several other organisations including Old Vic Theatre and A New Direction through youth advisory.

To Listen to Ra'eesah's story CLICK HERE. 

To subscribe to Patreon and become a Patron/ supporter of Chai with Rai. 

Social:

Myself: https://www.instagram.com/chaiwithrai_/ & https://twitter.com/chaiwithrai_ & https://www.tiktok.com/@chaiwithrai

Guest: https://www.instagram.com/ra.eesahh/ , https://twitter.com/Ra_eesahh & https://app.spotlight.com/3812-7862-7993

Links:

Myself: https://www.raimuitfum.com/chaiwithraihomepage &

https://linktr.ee/chaiwithrai_ 

Hope you all enjoyed it and Thank you for tuning in. To Subscribe, share, follow my work and everything else is listed above.

Chai with Rai (Ep.23). In conversation with Mavin Khoo where we sat and discussed stories from his career, life lessons and the world of Classical Dancing. It was beautiful to dive into his rich career and discuss how there isn't still a lot of representation when it comes to the world of Contemporary and Classical Ballet.

A conversation that really stood out in the episode was our discussion on sexuality and gender. How Mavin discusses the word androgynous, a word he has been called often. Mavin also fondly spoke of his training and his relationship to his Guru and his teachers. He also spoke where he fits in today's world of giving back that knowledge as a coach, artist and a choreographer. 

At the end of the episode we had a lot of laughter, as we discussed switching off and diving into some reality tv. Real Housewives and Wendy Williams were amongst the top shows of our banter. 

To watch the full episode: https://youtu.be/PT_xpWfINRM 

Social: Myself: https://www.instagram.com/chaiwithrai_/  Guest: https://www.instagram.com/mavin_khoo/ 

Links: Myself: https://linktr.ee/raimuitfum 

Guest: https://www.akramkhancompany.net/company-profiles/mavin-khoo/ 

Hope you all enjoyed it and Thank you for tuning in.

To Subscribe, share, follow my work and everything else is listed above.

Chai with Rai (Ep.22). In conversation with author Shweta Aggarwal where we sat and discussed her other accolades from writing, such as owning a Bollywood Company- Threebee. Which ran successfully for 10 years and they were the first Bollywood Dance Company to feature and make it to Semi-Finals of Britains Got Talent.

Shweta also has received Asian woman of achievement award for Arts and Culture in 2016 and was invited By her Majesty the Queen at Buckingham Palace For an event in 2017.  Also, being an author to the popular kids books Dev and Ollie and we discussed her new novel The Black Rose Book, which focuses her experiences on colourism within the south asian community. We heavily discussed Colourism in South Asian Community. The complexities of being working/ labour class, how its unjust to women vs men and of course beauty standards all around the world.

We had such a good chat talking about UK Dance politics, the Bollywood scene in the UK, how you set up a company and the logistics of it. How it is to be a self published author, her experience with her successful accomplishments. As well how she dealt with the low times in her life and what lessons she learnt from them.  

To watch the full episode: https://youtu.be/Uk_xs5R6nwE 

Social: Myself: https://www.instagram.com/chaiwithrai_/  Guest: https://www.instagram.com/theblackroseway/ 

Links: Myself: https://linktr.ee/raimuitfum 

Guest: https://linktr.ee/theblackrosewriter & http://devandollie.com  

Hope you all enjoyed it and Thank you for tuning in.

To Subscribe, share, follow my work and everything else is listed above.

Chai with Rai (Ep.21). In Conversation with Saloni Saraf where we sat and discussed her journey with Kathak, the dance industry in the UK. The South Asian Classical Indian Dance Space vs Experimental work vs Bollywood. The survival toll that one can have whilst being a freelancer and gaining opportunities.

Having a brother that also works in the entertainment industry and creating connections with others in there industry.  Her work for productions such as Kattam Katti, Swan Lake and Glastonbury. We also got into discussing politics through her Documentary ‘The Saffron Republic”. Which dives into the caste, media and political space in India. How that was received and why it was created. Then at the end as usual we played some fun games and you have to check out the full video for the Improv dancing alone!

To watch the full episode: https://youtu.be/2MLo9ocVEAc 

Social: Myself: https://www.instagram.com/chaiwithrai_/  Guest: https://www.instagram.com/salonis/ 

Links: Myself: https://linktr.ee/raimuitfum 

Hope you all enjoyed it and Thank you for tuning in.

To Subscribe, share, follow my work and everything else is listed above.

Chai with Rai (Ep. 20)- In conversation with the Nikkita Chadha where we sat and discussed the entire industry basically. From Nikkita's evolution as a dancer into modelling and acting. To discussing what it means to have credits such as: Rimmel London, Asos, Selfridges, Voxi, Tok Tok, Schuh, Master Card, Halifax, Bohoo, River Island, Adidas, Wowcher, Charlotte Tilbury, Google, Cartier & Reebok to name a few. But also acting credits with projects such as Mubarakan, The Long Goodbye, Cornershops, Turn up Charlie, Bring on the Bollywood, The Eternals, Cinderella and Never Kiss your best friend. 

Nikkita has such a rich career and a great support circle and we discussed how it feels to have that encouragement as a South Asian woman. How the narrative and opportunities need to change in the industry to being more inclusive. Such as not just having Brown dancers together in a project that is just brown based. Or stereotyping POC to ethnic roles and to progress the narrative. 

We also discussed Nikkita's struggle with mental health and anxiety. How she copes with it's triggers and seeks help when needed. How she deals with being a freelancer and feeling like enough isn't enough often. We also discussed that if she didn't have all of the accolades she has, the support of her close group, her physical and mental confidence would she continue to do what she is doing today.

We also dove into being an influencer, the usage of Social platforms and transferring that into opportunities. Her strong connection to her roots as a South Asian person. What the exterior perspective of that is like either being a female or a POC. How she navigates with the politics of the industry and being on set. How the industry treats you and your community. What she would like for her future now and what projects she seeks. And lastly who is a bigger star-- her mother or Nikkita?

To watch the full episode: https://youtu.be/ZsYR-d4_DN4 

Social Media: Myself: https://www.instagram.com/chaiwithrai_/   Guest: https://www.instagram.com/nikkitachadha/ 

Links: Myself: https://linktr.ee/raimuitfum 

Guest: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm7703116/ 

Hope you all enjoyed it and Thank you for tuning in.

To Subscribe, share, follow my work and everything else is listed above.

Chai with Rai (Ep.19) - In conversation with Jess Baddie where wwe sat and discussed Jess's accolades from with Nike London, to being featured in Elle, Evening Standard UK. Being in campaigns for Puma and Tesco to choreographing 2018 World Cup video ft Will Smith Nick Jam and Era Istrafi. 

We of course discussed all things Dancehall, what it means to be in Dancehall Funk Worldwide, how Jess trains in Dancehall still and travels to Jamaica and internationally to learn from different crews. As well sponsors them to come and teach in the UK.

We also discussed body image issues, confidence, sexuality. An outlook on life, Dance culture, digital space, Being an artist, her business ventures and evolution from a dancer to working on Suns Nature and ambassador for brands such as Agora World. 

Since the episode was taped Jess has ventured into Dj'ing and recently DJ'd at a high profile gig in Turkey amongst being booked for some major festivals coming up in 2022. We also discussed Jess's confidence and the kindness she shares with the community and her friends. How she deals with the politics and the High's/ Low's of the entertainment industry. 

To watch the full episode: https://youtu.be/TM2-C6Kxc2Q 

Social: Myself: https://www.instagram.com/chaiwithrai_/   Guest: https://www.instagram.com/jessbaddiee/ 

            https://www.instagram.com/sunsnature/ 

Links: Myself: https://linktr.ee/raimuitfum 

Guest: https://linktr.ee/JessBaddie 

Hope you all enjoyed it and Thank you for tuning in.

To Subscribe, share, follow my work and everything else is listed above.

Chai with Rai (Ep.18)- In conversation with Aishwarya Raut where we sat and discussed all things dance from India to the UK basically. From working with tycoon companies such as Shiamak to now being with Rambert Dance. We also discussed the lack of South Asian representation in the Contemporary community compared to other POC. As well why there aren't a lot of choreographers or creative directors or even Movement Directors that are of South Asian decent leading some of the biggest brand campaigns.

We discussed how it feels to be in a rep company and the pro's and con's of that as a dancer and a creative artist. We discussed Aishwarya's prospective for the future, for the community, the support and love of her family & friends. Being a female POC dancer and how that is viewed by the community and industry- be it stereotyping to racism, sexism and more. 

Aishwarya is also signed to a commercial agency, to which we discussed the different pockets of the creative industry and its challenges on where to fit and how to survive. This episode was also recorded during a time where covid measures were being lifted, to which we discussed how that took a toll on your mental health and physically as a dancer. How she returned with Rambert and were creating works in which senses and movements were restricted. 

To watch the full episode: https://youtu.be/9OylW82lPCk 

Social: Myself: https://www.instagram.com/chaiwithrai_/   Guest: https://www.instagram.com/aishwarya__raut/ 

Links: Myself: https://linktr.ee/raimuitfum 

Hope you all enjoyed it and Thank you for tuning in.

To Subscribe, share, follow my work and everything else is listed above.

Chai with Rai (Ep.17) - In Conversation with Sunil Gupta where we discussed everything from LGBTQ+ rights, being an activist for the community to discussing being so vulnerable and open about himself in his work. From his HIV positive diagnosis and documenting that to his past relationships and more. 

We also discussed gay culture everything from cruising to Grindr and the digital way of meeting up. How queer culture exists in such a free form today,  how the LGBTQ+ South Asian experience is represented and the lack of voices for it in mainstream or even arts experience.

We also discussed what it means to be a photographer, is art subjective and does it belong in a gallery or an exhibition? How the culture surrounding safe spaces has also changed in the UK? His culture exposure from moving to Canada, US and UK from India. Working with charities such as GLC and what it meant to be around the activism era of the 80's onwards. I was also intrigued to ask that if you are a person of the LGBTQ+ community, do you have a responsibility to be knowledgeable about its history and have an active voice for those who don't?

We also touched up on Sunil's love stories and finding his partner now, known to us as "Husband Ji".

To watch the show

https://youtu.be/pOLWk9Ehwcs 

Social:

Myself: https://www.instagram.com/chaiwithrai_/  

Guest: https://www.instagram.com/sunilgupta7402/  

Websites

Myself: https://linktr.ee/raimuitfum

Guest: https://www.sunilgupta.net

Hope you all enjoyed it and Thank you for tuning in.

To Subscribe, share, follow my work and everything else is listed above.