The Hindi Urdu Flagship’s Jishnu Shankar recently sat down with well-known Hindi writer and actress Susham Bedi to discuss her journey into a life of Hindi letters. In the interview, Bedi describes her childhood and adolescence in India, her acting career, and some sources of inspiration for her most famous stories. The conversation is wonderful listening comprehension practice for intermediate Hindi students and a fascinating insight in to the life of a Hindi writer.

Bedi is the author of a number of well-known Hindi novels and short-stories. Two of these novels, Havan and Vapasi, were also translated into Urdu and published in Pakistan. Bedi has also been involved in Hindi language pedagogy for more than a decade. She teaches at Columbia University and has developed a number of widely used Hindi comprehension materials.

In addition to her work with Hindi language and literature, Bedi has had a highly successful career as a stage and screen actress. She featured in many well-known Hindi theater productions during the 1960s and 70s; more recently, she has appeared in a number of American television shows (True Crime, Third Watch, Law & Order: SVU) and movies (The Guru, ABCD).

HUF director Rupert Snell recently interviewed Rajesh Kumar, an experienced Hindi teacher who has taught in a wide variety of settings. Topics discussed include Kumar’s childhood and education, his work in India, and his experience teaching Hindi in Russia. The interview should provide excellent listening comprehension practice for intermediate Hindi students.

As part of the Hindi Urdu Flagship’s Kabir festival, renowned folk-singer Prahlad Singh Tipanya sat down with HUF Director Rupert Snell and HUF Senior Lecturer Jishnu Shankar to discuss the life of a modern-day Kabir performer. Tipanya’s rare talent, passion, and insight have caused him to be increasingly recognized as a remarkable exponent of Kabir’s music and meanings. The entire interview was conducted in Hindi with the hope that it proves useful to those looking to improve their comprehension of conversational Hindi… and Kabir of course!

As part of his visit to the Hindi Urdu Flagship, Bollywood lyricist and script writer Ali Husain Mir sat down with HUF associate director Syed Akbar Hyder and former HUF director Herman van Olphen to discuss his background in Urdu and the state of the language in modern India. The interview should provide good listening comprehension practice for intermediate Hindi-Urdu students.

Mir is the author of Anthems of Resistance, the definitive book on the All India Progressive Writers’ Movement; he is also an acclaimed lyricist and script-writer for Hindi and Urdu films (Iqbal, Dor). Mir’s oeuvre engages issues of religious minorities and secularism in South Asia.

In addition to this interview, Mir also gave a lecture to the HUF community on the evolving role of Urdu in Bollywood cinema. You can watch the Bollywood seminar here.