Miss Conduct Ep 07 - Durga Bhabhi

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Researching for this episode was sheer and unadulterated joy. In fact, the only thing that would have made the process any better is if we could have physically been present in Delhi, with access to all the expansive memorial museums that the city has to offer. There’s nothing quite like a museum dedicated to the Indian freedom movement to give you that immediate boost of patriotism (although Ragavi still maintains that the India v. Australia hockey match from Chak De India would also do the job). 

HOWEVER, we have come across some interesting news as we wrote this blog entry. It appears we are getting a spanking new gallery at the Allahabad Museum dedicated to Indian revolutionaries. And Dr. Sunil Gupta, the director of the museum, has committed to dedicating a section of the Azad Gallery to Durga Bhabhi ! In his words: 

“She was no less than Bhagat Singh. A day after Bhagat Singh and his associates were sentenced to death, she fired at a British police officer and his wife from a moving car in Bombay [...] She almost remained incognito till she died in 1999. She ran a small school in Lucknow and we are in the process of acquiring documents related to her.”

Isn’t that exciting?! Here’s hoping the gallery comes through, and soon! In the meantime, do listen to our episode covering Durga Bhabhi’s exploits, from Lahore to Delhi to Calcutta. 

Do follow us on our Instagram handles (@ragi.dosai and @just.nishful.thinking).

Love (platonically),  

Ragavi & Nisha

Sources: 

Miss Conduct Ep 06 - Madhuri Gupta

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Here is something relatable -- have you ever hated your workplace so much, felt so disillusioned and unappreciated by your peers and bosses, wanted to so desperately rise in your career… that you sold your country’s secrets to a foreign agent? That you may also be in love with? 

Yeah, me either. 

Madhuri Gupta did though. And we welcome you to listen to the latest episode of ‘Miss Conduct’ to find out how it all went down. 

Do follow us on our Instagram handles (@ragi.dosai and @just.nishful.thinking).

Love (platonically),  

Ragavi & Nisha

Sources: 

Miss Conduct Ep 05 - Troilokya

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For some of the stories that we work on, the sheer abundance of sources almost overwhelms us (well, it overwhelms Nisha, and it makes Ragavi dry-heave with anxiety). But for our lovely lady Troilokya, we had a grand total of one (1) primary source -- the writings of Inspector Priyonath Mukhopadhyay. We also spoke with Dr. Tathagata Neogi, an archeologist based out of Calcutta and co-founder of Immersive Trails. Dr. Neogi has extensively gone through old police reports and information from private collections, making him essentially an authority on Troilokya. And he did it all primarily for the crime tour conducted by his company! 

If you take anything away from this episode, please let it be that historical records are really important to preserve and maintain. And folks like Dr. Neogi that aim to preserve them are the true heroes. Also, his Twitter handle is @ArchaeoNomad. Please go follow. 

(We also have social media. Follow us on @ragi.dosai and @just.nishful.thinking.) 

Love (platonically),

Ragavi & Nisha

Sources: 

Miss Conduct E04 - Baby “Meow Meow” Patankar

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This episode is about recreational drugs. Not the kind of drugs that are facing a powerful legalisation push of late, both by the public and certain state governments as well. But the kind where adulteration and lack of awareness on safe use has effectively lead to an epidemic. And this episode is about one woman who was almost single-handedly responsible for the rise in dependencies on the highly-addictive drug mephedrone.

Mephedrone is not the kind of drug you casually mess around with. On the podcast we talk about its side effects, how addictive it is, and how many people (especially in Maharashtra) ended up in rehab programs. Several news reports in the 2000s attribute this to Shashikala Patankar, also known as Baby, who allegedly distributed several tons of the stuff across Maharashtra and neighbouring states. Now why do we say “alleged”? Tune in to find out! 

Do follow us on our Instagram handles (@ragi.dosai and @just.nishful.thinking). 

Love (platonically),

Ragavi & Nisha

Sources: 

Miss Conduct E03 - Zoya Khan

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We at Miss Conduct love a good conwoman. Our favourite right now is Anna Delvey, a German woman who pretended to be an heiress and defrauded several banks, hotels, and rich people. Women like Anna Delvey are people we love to hate. We hate them because they ooze equal parts charisma and arrogance. We love them because, hey, it’s a great story, and it’s usually wealthy folks that bear the brunt of their antics. Women like Anna Delvey get movies and TV shows, developed by HBO and Netflix… because we needed two retellings of the same story, both releasing at the same time. 

Zoya Khan, however, never got a Netflix deal. We think that’s fair. She did commit some crimes where she impersonated an Indian civil services officer (allegedly). And while we don’t have a conviction just yet, we still believe it was important to tell her story. A story that is fun, hilarious, and no one dies at the end. 

So here’s to Zoya -- let us immortalise her on this little podcast. Hope you have a great time with this episode! 

Do follow us on our Instagram handles (@ragi.dosai and @just.nishful.thinking). 


Love (platonically),

Ragavi & Nisha

Sources: 

Fake woman IFS officer flashing UN link for police escort arrested with husband | Indian Express | 5 April 2019 | https://www.newindianexpress.com/nation/2019/apr/05/fake-ifs-officer-flashing-un-link-for-police-escort-arrested-with-husband-1960309.html?utm_campaign=fullarticle&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=inshorts

Miss Conduct E02 - Rukhsana Sultana

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If you’re from Bangalore (or have spent any real time in the city) you would have heard the phrase “area boys”. To put it really simply, your area boys are friends that you have made, mostly in the close vicinity of your place of residence. To be an RT Nagar area boy, for instance, would mean you likely grew up in RT Nagar. And the friends you made there would probably go to your school or your tuition classes, jam with you, watch cartoons with you on Saturdays, whose parents would feed you, and whose cricket balls would cause mild-to-severe head trauma. The idea of an area boy is rooted in the carefree adolescence of Bangalore youngins -- it signifies a sense of friendship, family, belonging, and even purpose. 

To say that Rukhsana was an ‘area boy’ would really trivialise everything she did. She was a member of Delhi’s elite, at the peak of Indira Gandhi’s reign, making merry with her son Sanjay Gandhi, and using her position of influence and power to terrorise tens of thousands of Delhi’s poor and destitute. And yet, her close friendship with Sanjay Gandhi (and his inner circle) evokes the lightheartedness of your average area boy -- you are thick as thieves, loyal to a fault, and essentially bound by blood. The only difference is that while your RT Nagar area boy will happily smuggle cigarettes into your parents’ house, Rukhsana would instead line up unsuspecting men to have their reproductive rights taken away from them. 

Woah, that took a dark turn, eh? In any case, we hope you enjoy this episode! 

Do follow us on our Instagram handles (@ragi.dosai and @just.nishful.thinking). 

Love (platonically),

Ragavi & Nisha

Sources: 

Miss Conduct E01 - Cyanide Mallika

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Our first episode is out! You can find it at IVM Podcast Networks and wherever you get your podcasts.

To be honest, Cyanide Mallika was not our first option. We found her a bit overdone. There are movies about her. She crops up in the papers at least once every couple of years. Google “Indian serial killer” and she’s right up there on the list. So, why did we go with her?

Well, as we mentioned in the episode, a major reason we picked Mallika was the RTI filed by Mr. Sreenath (of Ernakulam District). Mr. Sreenath just really wanted to know what was happening with Mallika’s case. If you take a quick look at the questions he threw to the Bangalore court in his RTI, one would wager that he was a Mallika Mega-Fan. And navigating the Indian criminal justice system and its multitude of procedures has never been easy to begin with. Even Ragavi, who is a lawyer, finds it incredibly difficult to pull out case files sometimes. One, because she’s not a criminal lawyer. And two, an intern did it for her the last couple of years, so it’s a skill that she has phased out of her life.

In any case, we found it extremely upsetting that Mr. Srinath was told “NO” in the way that he was. All he wanted was some answers. So we decided to give him some. 

You can find the RTI appeal decision here, along with other primary and secondary sources that we have referred to.

Please do subscribe to this Substack if you’d like to receive updates as and when we release episodes.

And of course, do follow us on our Instagram handles (@ragi.dosai and @just.nishful.thinking). You are also permitted to send us social media hate, as long as you keep it civil. 

Love (platonically),

Ragavi & Nisha

Sources: 

·       Woman serial-killer nabbed | Indian Express | 31 December 2007 | http://archive.indianexpress.com/news/woman-serialkiller-nabbed/256234/

·       First woman serial killer nabbed | TOI | 1 January 2008 | https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bengaluru/First-woman-serial-killer-nabbed/articleshow/2665976.cms

·       Lady killer with cyanide prasad Prayer bait for victims | Telegraph India | 1 January 2008 |             https://www.telegraphindia.com/india/lady-killer-with-cyanide-prasad-prayer-bait-for-victims/cid/627689

·       Mallika in jail, but her motive for killings eludes cops | Indian Express | 3 January 2008 | http://archive.indianexpress.com/news/mallika-in-jail-but-her-motive-for-killings/257381/

·       Serial killer Kempamma murdered 7 | TOI | 26 January 2008 | https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bengaluru/Serial-killer-Kempamma-murdered-7/articleshow/2733074.cms

·       Probe reveals Mallika killed one more woman | The Hindu | 26 January 2008 | https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-karnataka/Probe-reveals-Mallika-killed-one-more-woman/article15151906.ece

·       Woman serial killer 'Cyanide Mallika' gets death sentence | TOI | 24 March 2009 | https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Woman-serial-killer-Cyanide-Mallika-gets-death-sentence/articleshow/4311321.cms

·       ‘Cyanide’ Mallika sentenced to death | The Hindu | 25 March 2009 | https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-karnataka/lsquoCyanidersquo-Mallika-sentenced-to-death/article16648162.ece

·       Murders Most Foul | Telegraph India | 8 November 2009 | https://www.telegraphindia.com/7-days/murders-most-foul/cid/572249 (Reference to Mallika and SK Umesh’s statement)

·       Cyanide Mallika gets death | TOI | 31 March 2012 | https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bengaluru/Cyanide-Mallika-gets-death/articleshow/12476553.cms

·       Death sentence awarded to serial killer | The Hindu | 31 March 2012 | https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-karnataka/death-sentence-awarded-to-serial-killer/article3264654.ece

·       Karnataka woman ‘serial killer’ sentenced to death | Indian Express | 1 April 2012 | http://archive.indianexpress.com/news/karnataka-woman--serial-killer--sentenced-to-death/931071/

·       Death penalty: HC to hear 'Cyanide Mallika' plea from Monday | TOI | 28 July 2012 | https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bengaluru/Death-penalty-HC-to-hear-Cyanide-Mallika-plea-from-Monday/articleshow/15235459.cms

·       Serial killer Mallika's death sentence reduced to life | NDTV | 2 August 2012 | https://www.ndtv.com/south/serial-killer-mallikas-death-sentence-reduced-to-life-495237

·       Cyanide Mallika's murders do not warrant noose, says HC | Bangalore Mirror | 3 August 2012 | https://bangaloremirror.indiatimes.com/bangalore/others/cyanide-mallikas-murders-do-not-warrant-noose-says-hc/articleshow/21333160.cms

·       Mallika’s death penalty commuted to life sentence | 3 August 2012 | https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-karnataka/mallikas-death-penalty-commuted-to-life-sentence/article3720619.ece

·       Life term for serial killer Cyanide Mallika | 30 October 2013 | https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bengaluru/Life-term-for-serial-killer-Cyanide-Mallika/articleshow/24892903.cms

·       Mallika gets life term for homemaker’s murder | 30 October 2013 | https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-karnataka/mallika-gets-life-term-for-homemakers-murder/article5287291.ece

·       Cyanide Mallika: Sasikala's neighbour in jail, Jayalalithaa's fan and India's first female serial killer | 17 February 2017 | https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/cyanide-mallika-sasikala-jayalalithaa-bengaluru-jail-961260-2017-02-17

·       Next Door To VK Sasikala In Jail Is Cyanide Mallika, Doing Life For 6 Murders | 17 February 2017 | https://www.ndtv.com/tamil-nadu-news/next-door-to-vk-sasikala-in-jail-is-cyanide-mallika-doing-life-for-6-murders-1660635

·       Sasikala neighbour 'Cyanide' Mallika shifted | 22 February 2017 | https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bengaluru/sasikala-neighbour-cyanide-mallika-shifted/articleshow/57283066.cms

·       https://districts.ecourts.gov.in/sites/default/files/RTI_2.pdf | 22 August 2017

HC sets aside death sentence of 'Cyanide' Mallika | 16 September 2017 | https://www.deccanherald.com/content/633352/hc-sets-aside-death-sentence.html

Miss Conduct : Introduction

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Miss Conduct is a true-crime podcast about Indian women that committed some heinous (and sometimes, hilarious) crimes.

The co-hosts of the podcast are Ragavi Ramesh and Nisha Chandrasekaran (more about them later).

We put out episodes every Wednesday from 30th June 2021.

Miss Conduct is available on the IVM Podcasts Network and wherever you get your podcasts.

Please do subscribe to this Substack if you’d like to receive updates as and when we release episodes.

Who are the hosts?

Ragavi is a Bangalore-based lawyer. She is well-versed in legal research, criminology, and the Indian justice system. She also works pro-bono with beneficial tech start-ups, and wastes a lot of time of Reddit. Ragavi has two ginger cats. Her Instagram handle is @ragi.dosai.

Nisha is a Bangalore-based PR professional (although she currently lives in Chennai with her family, till this whole global pandemic thing blows over). Nisha knows how the Indian media works and is very interested in the public perception of female criminals. She is an amazing singer and has a background in college radio. Nisha is allergic to Ragavi’s cats. Her Instagram handle is @just.nishful.thinking.

Okay… but who asked for this?

Well… Women that chose a life of crime are often painted by Indian society and media as victims. Or worse — a product of their circumstances, from which they had no other way to escape, and eventually resorting to crime. Movies and TV shows stress that women on the wrong side of the law were usually wronged themselves, or are looking for justice or revenge. While it may be true in some cases, we believe that this stereotypical portrayal of female criminals is largely unfair. Women have motives, intent and agency, even in wrongdoings. And we think that they should have their stories told and their motives investigated.

In short, no one asked for this. We just wanted to do it.

Who are you going to cover?

We will cover murderers, con-women, bandits, political corruption and, our personal favourite, white collar crime. We'll explore their actions and motives, and how law enforcement and the public responded to them. 

Each episode will focus on the acts these women have committed, media coverage of the incidents, and how law enforcement and the judiciary did (or did not) do their jobs. We will wrap up with a short musical recap, to quickly run you through the episode. Just in case you took a nap while we were speaking and missed something!

The podcast is intended to be informational, shall be thoroughly researched, and humourous where appropriate.

Sweet! But what’s this blog for?

For you! We’ll use this page to provide you with:

  • a brief on the woman and what she was up to

  • links to source material, interviews, and articles

  • the research and recording process

    • our feelings, because therapists are expensive.

Is this a feminist issue?

Of course not.

Unless you want it to be. Whatever gets us listeners honestly.

Please tell your fellow feminists about us. Please tell your fellow women-haters about us. It’s all the same to us as long as we get that sweet, sweet online traction.

Last question — who designed your lovely artwork?

Our incredibly gorgeous artwork is by Shruti Shrivastava. You can see more of her work on her Instagram! Give her some platonic love, please. :)


Love (also platonically),

Ragavi & Nisha