234 : Understanding Caste in the 21st Century

Bharatvaarta

Dr. R. Vaidyanathan is retired Professor of Finance at IIM- Bangalore. A graduate of the Loyola College, Madras and a Masters from the Indian Statistical Institute, Calcutta he obtained his Doctorate from the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta where he also taught for four years. He has also authored several books including India Uninc, Black Money and Tax Havens and most recently Caste as Social Capital.

His book Caste as Social Capital examines the workings of caste through the lens of business, economics and entrepreneurship. It interrogates the role caste plays in the economic sphere in terms of facilitating the nuts and bolts of business and entrepreneurship: finance, markets and workforce. Through this qualitative view of caste, an entirely new picture emerges of caste which forces one to view this age-old institution in new light.

This episode is made in collaboration with @Swarajyamag and is hosted by Sharan Setty.