Sinica Podcast · 2026-08-18 · 80 min · 15,003 words

Talking Past Each Other: Pallavi Aiyar on India, China, and the Case for Cognitive Empathy

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Welcome. Cynica Podcast, a weekly discussion of current affairs in China. In this program, we will get books, ideas, new research, intellectual currents, and cultural trends that can help us better understand what's happening in China's politics. Foreign relations, economics, and society. Join me each week for in-depth conversations that shed more light and bring less heat.

to how we think and talk about China. I'm Kaiser Gua, coming to you this week from Beijing, though not for once from my home. but from the home of my guest at a dining table where in recent months I have enjoyed wonderful meals and delicious in great company, all due to the hospitality of the guest I'll introduce to you momentarily. Listeners.

Please support my work by becoming a pay subscriber at cynicapodcast.com. I know there are tons of subsacks out there, including one a beautiful one I I subscribe to written by my guest. They start to add up. I know they do. This one really though does deliver value for money. with uh great content from wonderful partners like Trivium and the China Global South Project. So please do subscribe so I can continue to bring you these conversations and lots more. Today on Seneca, I am delighted to welcome the writer Poly Iyer.

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