Stories of Community Resilience

Palestine Cultural Festival & Jafra Dabke - Amin Abbas

Mon, 02 Nov 2026 01:57:34 +0000

Director at Jafra Dabke & President of Palestine Cultural Festival, Amin Abbas joins Rebecca on Stories of Community Resilience. The origins of Dabke folk dancing, trace back to the levant region originally as a group dance performed on land. Still performed at many celebratory occasions across the world and with varying styles across countries, you can expect to see (and participate) in Dabke at the Palestine Cultural Festival on November 7th 2026 at Federation Square, Melbourne. For the full event line up including artists and stall holders, visit palestineculturalfestival.org.au

Note - audio transcriptions provided on streaming services are automatically generated and may contain errors. This podcast project is supported by 3MDR and, a Content Grant from Community Broadcasting Foundation. Music Arabic Pray by Anthony Vega used under creative commons licensing. Photo Credit @jeriahlau

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Music & Resilience - Ahmad Atwawneh AKA DJ Matab

Tue, 10 Feb 2026 02:47:31 +0000

With a contagious and distinctive laughter, Ahmad has been illuminating the air waves of Melbourne, with Arab beats, deep cuts, and music that samples familiar beats in new ways! These beats have reached around the world - with collaborations like Radio Al-Hara based in Bethlehem, Palestine. Joining us today for Stories of Community Resilience is Ahmad in the studio !

Follow Ahmad @djmatab and Listen to radio Dounya show here

Rebecca's latest projects are on Linkedin

0:00 - 9:00 - Music memories across life, working at Radio Jordan.

9:00 - 12:00 - Dounya Radio Program, how we fill in the cultural expression gaps.

12:00 - 15:00 - Radio as a means of self-expression.

15:00 - 20:00 - Collaborating with Radio Al-Hara in Bethlehem, Palestine.

21:00 - 31:50 - Radio connecting is in real life, community music events.

32:00 - 38:00 - Why we feel it is important to include Palestinian voices and artists, returning to our 'roots'.

38:00 - End - Proud moments, upcoming events.

Note - audio transcriptions provided on streaming services are automatically generated and may contain errors. Stories of Community Resilience is supported by a Content Grant from Community Broadcasting Foundation. Purple Planet Music - Track ‘Sunbeam’ Used under creative commons license. Arabic Melody Dance - Melodies of the Orient and Voice of the East by TimTaj is licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0. Recorded at SYN Media studios in Narrm, Melbourne February 2026.

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The Salt Choir - Veronica Greene

Mon, 15 Dec 2025 00:37:11 +0000

Amy Wooller and Veronica Greene from SYN discuss a choir that is inclusive and welcoming.

The Salt Choir is aiming to be an all-disability choir and a way for people with disabilities or equivalent to experience music. Information about upcoming sessions can found @the_salt_foundation contact Choir Master veronica@thesaltfoundation.org.au to get in touch.

Interviewer Amy's links can be found here.

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Pursuing an Acting Career and Living with Disability - Ethan Symon

Mon, 10 Nov 2025 23:51:14 +0000

SYN media maker Darcy, interviews Ethan Symon. Ethan is a young disabled person who has been an aspiring actor for some time now he is is most well known for his work as a participant at Bus Stop Films, an all abilities filmmaking program. Ethan has starred in two films most notably - Ratbag (2023).

Ethan and Darcy the challenges of being a young disabled person trying to get into the film industry.

Note - audio transcriptions provided on streaming services are automatically generated and may contain errors.

Stories of Community Resilience is produced by SYN Media and is supported by a Content Grant from Community Broadcasting Foundation. Purple Planet Music - Track ‘Sunbeam’ Used under creative commons license.

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Public Speaking About Mental Health: Hadeel Alshuraymi

Mon, 27 Oct 2025 21:33:48 +0000

Hadeel wears many hats - motivational speaker, coach, advocate and Mum are some of her many roles. Today Hadeel speaks about her role as a speaker and advocate - bringing attention to mental health and breaking down stigmas in the community.

Follow Hadeel: Website | Instagram | LinkedIn

Interview by Rebecca Maakasa, follow Rebecca on LinkedIn.

Content Warning: There is discussion of mental health and depression in the context of seeking mental health support. If this episode raises any concerns for you, reach out to a support hotline such as Lifeline on 13 11 14 in Australia.

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Spoken Word Poetry: Awale Ahmed

Mon, 20 Oct 2025 00:40:40 +0000

Awale is a multilingual storyteller born in Somalia and raised in Saudi Arabia after having to leave Somalia due to the Civil War. Well known for his spoken word poetry, Awale has performed on stages all over the world. Awale also has a strong passion for advocating for the rights of refugees, and social justice. Awale is interviewed by SYN volunteer Amira Mahmoud who is an emerging media maker. They discuss his personal journey, how Awale started writing, his involvement in refugee and migrant communities and childhood memories. Stay tuned at the end of the episode for a moving poetry reading in Arabic and English, as a dedication to Gaza.

Content Warning - Confronting discussion of death in the context of war.

A translation for Awale's poem in Arabic about Hargeisa:

"You are the princess of my dreams ... Oo no .. you are the bride of my fantasy
Here I am sailing towards you... while I am lost in my imagination
I am captured by the army of your love … and My foreignness deepened my wounds
I crossed the sea carried by...the ship of longing and love
I have lost my words.. My poems...can you listen to my excuses? Can you forgive me?
Here are some of my melodies… and some of my love formed as verses
Soon soon I will come…and I will jump of joy between your alleys
Hargeisa you are my history ... and you are my most beautiful stories
In you I have witnessed the light in my beginnings .. and surely I will witness my end".

Awale's Links: مدونة عواليات | Instagram | Surviving the Somali Civil War - Barefaced Stories Performance

Connect with Amira on LinkedIn.

Note - audio transcriptions provided on streaming services are automatically generated and may contain errors.

Stories of Community Resilience is produced by SYN Media and is supported by a Content Grant from Community Broadcasting Foundation. Purple Planet Music - Track ‘Sunbeam’ Used under creative commons license. 'Alf Leila wa Leila / A Thousand and One Nights' Performed by Umm Kulthum (1969) - أم كلثوم licenced in the free public domain.

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Stories of Community Resilience - Trailer

Mon, 01 Sep 2025 03:04:52 +0000

Stories of Community Resilience podcast is produced at youth broadcaster 3MDR (from 2026), by emerging media makers. Supported by a project coordinator, the series highlights topics and issues impacting Culturally & Linguistically Diverse communities and celebrates the achievements of culturally diverse people. The program has previously been hosted at fellow community broadcasters 3ZZZ and SYN.

To share your story, or if you are a 3MDR volunteer that would like to produce an episode - email Rebecca at SOCR.podcast@gmail.com to get involved.

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Navigating Expression of Culture From The Other Side of The World: Maggie Zhou - Content Creator & Speaker MC

Mon, 21 Oct 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Louis Harrison chats with Maggie Zhou about her experience connecting with culture from the other side of the world, the way she communicates with others and her experience developing resilience despite microaggressions and prejudice in society.

Maggie Zhou wears many hats. She’s a writer, editor, podcaster, content creator, speaker, emcee... and more that we couldn’t possibly fit into a list here.

The topics Maggie Zhou covers in her work range from sustainability, internet and pop culture to fashion. You might have read her pieces in some of the country’s top culture publications, perhaps you follow her for (slow) fashion tips or maybe this is the first time her name has come across your orbit.

Maggie Zhou has a unique and authentic presence you’ve got to keep an eye on.

Transcript available here.

Follow Maggie on Instagram

Follow Louis on Instagram

Note - audio transcriptions provided on streaming services are automatically generated and may contain errors.

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

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Politics, people, & polyglots: Jamal Hakim

Sun, 15 Sep 2024 01:00:00 +0000

Ruhee Meghani, founder of Allied Collective - Australia's first inclusive facilitation and wellbeing agency, interviews Jamal Hakim - City of Melbourne Councillor and Lord Mayor Candidate. Together they discuss Jamal's professional background, the importance of community values, and principle based politics.

Transcript available - click here.

Follow Jamal: Bio Instagram Website

Follow Ruhee: Allied Collective LinkedIn Instagram

Ruhee Meghani is an inclusive facilitator and public speaker with over 12 years of teaching and facilitating experience. To support others in their learning journey, Allied Collective was founded to solve the need for impactful, inclusive, and accessible training. Today, Ruhee combines these insights with years of experience in teaching to provide clients with engaging workshops, training, and facilitation.

Note - audio transcriptions provided on streaming services are automatically generated and may contain errors.

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dealing and Healing With Emotional Generosity, Across Generations: Romayne Perera

Sun, 14 Jul 2024 01:00:00 +0000

Advertising and marketing thought leader, Romayne Perera, speaks with Ruhee Meghani. Reflecting on Romayne's life experiences - of migration, self-care, and community healing Ruhee & Romayne discuss the impacts of community on collective healing and intergenerational trauma.

Episode Transcript Available - Click here.

Romayne read somewhere that emotional generosity is the key ingredient to all human relationships and this has been her obsession since. The practice of emotional generosity is particularly important for Romayne, who understands that those in the communications industry are responsible for how messages are distributed, received and acted upon, as well as how they are amplified, managed or quashed. In her work and in her community, Romayne strives to make people feel seen, safe, understood and appreciated; because that's how we can contribute to protecting others' resilience.

Follow Romayne's Work: LinkedIn

Follow Ruhee's work: Allied Collective LinkedIn Instagram

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

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Note - audio transcriptions provided on streaming services are automatically generated and may contain errors.

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Creating Systemic Change to Address Family & Gendered Violence: Hala Abdelnour

Mon, 08 Jul 2024 01:00:00 +0000

This Story of Community Resilience is produced by Ruhee Meghani. Ruhee speaks with Hala, CEO of the Institute of Non Violence. Ruhee and Hala reflect on ideas about resilience, through the lens of gender, their respective lived experiences of migration, and notions about spirituality and how we can build resilience in ourselves, and respective communities.

Episode Transcript Available - Click here.

Follow Ruhee's work: Allied Collective LinkedIn Instagram

Follow Hala's work: Institute of Non-Violence | LinkedIn

Hala is the CEO and Founder of the Institute of Non-Violence, a service that was established to support family violence response across Australia. The Institute offers advanced family violence training programs, clinical supervision and therapeutic services to clients who are using or experiencing violence. It also works to eradicate systemic racism and misogyny.

To share your story, contact Rebecca stories@SYN.org.au

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Poets For Palestine: Hawraa Kash

Wed, 19 Jun 2024 00:49:23 +0000

This episode is hosted by Shy Ganglani - a poet and stand-up comedian working professionally as a copywriter, and Hawraa Kash - a spoken word poet, MC and HR professional.

Hawraa and Shy preview their upcoming event presented by Vibe Union - Poets for Palestine a fundraising event for PARA Foundation. They speak about poetry as a form of resistance, and resilience.

Transcript Available Here:

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

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The Burden of Low Expectations; Challenging Disability Stigma Across Cultures: Esther Simbi

Mon, 03 Jun 2024 01:00:00 +0000

This audio-story featuring Esther Simbi was produced by Carey Scheer, for the Purple Orange Podcast and is re-shared with permission. Purple Orange is an organisation whose mission is to create a fair world for people with disability.

Esther Simbi speaks to Carey Scheer. Esther contracted polio as a young child, and then went on to live 19 years in a Ugandan refugee camp before being resettled in Australia. She thought coming to Australia meant she was finally free, but then she discovered that her culture's negative you of disability followed her across the ocean. She had to stand up to stigma and shame to find her true freedom. Now she helps other migrants with disability do the same.

A content warning that this episode discusses discrimination and bullying of a person with a disability.

Transcript available here.

Find The Purple Orange Podcast on Spotify, Apple podcasts or on their website. www.purpleorange.org.au

To learn more about Esther's organisation, head to https://www.ziondisabilityservices.org.au

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Why I Hate The Word 'Resilience': Shy Ganglani

Mon, 20 May 2024 01:00:00 +0000

Multi hyphenate creative talent, Shy Ganglani speaks with Ruhee Meghani.

Shy is a professional copy-writer, a comedian and poet - just a few of her talents!

Together they discuss, trying to 'blend in' to culture, and then finding connection and friendships through authentic interests and community spaces.

Shy and Ruhee also critique the concept of "resilience" and how it is often applied to migrants and cultural groups as an expectation.

About Ruhee: Ruhee Meghani is an inclusive facilitator and public speaker with over 12 years of teaching and facilitating experience. To support others in their learning journey, Allied Collective was founded to solve the need for impactful, inclusive, and accessible training. Today, Ruhee combines these insights with years of experience in teaching to provide clients with engaging workshops, training, and facilitation.

Episode Transcript Available Here:

You can follow all of Ruhee's latest work here:

LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/company/allied-collective/

About Shy:

Follow Shy on Instagram @shyreesays and her website https://www.shyaireganglani.com/

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Lifelong Friendships: Marina Maese Provencio, Laura Valles-Salas, Martha Cota

Mon, 06 May 2024 01:00:00 +0000

Mental health & wellness is often associated with having strong relationships. On this heart warming episode, Renu Tiwary from 3ZZZ radio interviews Marina Maese Provencio, Laura Valles-Salas and Martha Cota about their friendship spanning decades. Here is a story of three 'amigos' who have been friends since kindergarten and still going strong. They are aiming to enjoy the later years of their life travelling and being together. What is it that makes this friendship keep going like new? Marina, Laura and Martha reminisce about the good times and wish more of the same.

Transcript available here.

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Overcoming Self-Limiting Beliefs: Kabinga Mazaba

Mon, 08 Apr 2024 01:00:00 +0000

Award winning authors Daisy and Kabinga, discuss the book "C.O.N.F.R.O.N.T" Recently authored by Kabinga, the book is intended as a guide to help those to reclaim their life after experiencing trauma. Daisy and Kabinga share their experiences from the perspective of navigating this challenge as migrants, and share empowering methods to work through trauma.

Content Warning: Discussion of family abuse, emotional abuse, assault. Help is available at 1800 RESPECT and for crisis support, Lifeline phone 13 11 14.

Transcript available here.

Follow Daisy Wu LinkedIn

Follow Kabinga LinkedIn

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Maintaining Language Across Generations: Nancy Caceres & Hernan Moreno

Mon, 18 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0000

This episode is presented in the Spanish language, by 3ZZZ Broadcasters Nancy, and Hernan.

Nancy and Hernan discuss the importance of maintaining language through generations. A transcript in Spanish is available here, with English translation.

To share your story, contact Rebecca at podcasts@3ZZZ.com.au

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

3ZZZ Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

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Challenging Perceptions of Disabilty: Imi

Mon, 12 Feb 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Imi speaks with Rebecca about the intersections of culture, and perceptions of disability.

Imi shares the message of moving away from a "cure based" approach to disability and speaks about their experiences of navigating work and study.

Imi has proudly graduated with two university degrees, and has extensive experience in media, the arts and a keen interest in marketing.

Listen with transcript available here.

Follow Imi on LinkedIn.

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mastering Communication, Beyond Learning A Language: Daisy Wu

Sun, 04 Feb 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Multi-creative, Imi from SYN media interviews Daisy Wu about her award-winning book, and mentoring program to assist with mastering communication, beyond mastering learning a language.

Transcript Available here:

Follow Daisy Wu LinkedIn

Follow Imi on LinkedIn

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

To share your story, contact Rebecca at stories@syn.org.au

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Overcoming Stigmas of Divorce: Monica Kalra

Sun, 28 Jan 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Relationships and Divorce Coach, Monica Kalra speaks with Ruhee about the 'D Word' no one wants to talk about and address some of the stigmas surrounding divorce in multicultural communities.

Content Advisory: Discussion of abuse in relationships. Contact 1800 RESPECT for help and support.

Transcript Available Here:

Monica's Socials:

LinkedIn Facebook Instagram Website

Books by Monica:
How Do You Know He's The One? and How To Heal From A Toxic Relationship?

Interviewer: Ruhee Meghani is an inclusive facilitator and public speaker with over 12 years of teaching and facilitating experience. Forever curious, straight-talking, and driven by the conversation around inclusion and equity, Ruhee holds an academic background in psychology and a bachelor’s degree in business management. Having worked across industries including advertising, sport, retail, hospitality, tech, digital marketing, community services and wellbeing, Ruhee brings a wealth of diverse experience and problem-solving perspectives across the board. To support others in their learning journey, Allied Collective was founded to solve the need for impactful, inclusive, and accessible training. Today, Ruhee combines these insights with years of experience in teaching to provide clients with engaging workshops, training, and facilitation.

You can follow all of Ruhee's latest work here:

LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/company/allied-collective/
Website:
alliedcollective.com.au
Instagram:
@alliedcollective
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/people/Allied-Collective/100069307755227/

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Changing the Landscape of Sickle Cell Advocacy: Agnes Nsofwa

Mon, 22 Jan 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Global Health Advocate & Advocacy Consultant, Agnes Nsofwa speaks with Ruhee Meghani about a rare blood condition. Agnes was motivated to establish an organisation to advocate for Sickle Cell, after her youngest daughter was diagnosed.

Transcript Available Here.

More information:

https://agesnsofwa.com.au/
https://aussicklecelladvocacy.org/

Support & Donate to Sickle Cell Advocacy organisation: https://aussicklecelladvocacy.org/donate/

Tickets for upcoming women's events in Perth.Sydney

Books by Agnes can be purchased here:

You can follow all of Ruhee's latest work here:

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

ADHD Diagnosis as an Adult: Yusra Metwally

Mon, 08 Jan 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Yusra Metwally, shares her experience of being diagnosed with ADHD as an adult.

Content Advisory: Discussion of Eating Disorder / Disoredered Eating from 16 minutes.

For help and support contact Butterfly Foundation Australia 1800 33 46 73

Transcript Available Here.

Produced by Aamon Sayed: Aamon has worked within the Social Work sector since 2012. His work experience adds sensitivity to interviews within a culturally safe setting. As a podcast producer, Aamon explores the human condition, and how to make the world a more positive place through his podcast series AddLOVE.

Aamon's latest creative project is Untold Stories - a photography series. To get involved follow Untold Stories on Instagram.

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

'Could You Repeat That Again?' Language Barriers and Communication: Arian Eskandarinejad

Mon, 18 Dec 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Arian and Moh discuss communication styles, and recall anecdotes and accounts of miscommunication that due to various barriers in language.

Arian Eskandarinejad

Arian works as a volunteer at 3ZZZ for the Iranian program, presenting a movie review show. He arrived in Australia in 2017 and after studying at high-school and then University, he earned his bachelor's degree in IT. Aside from studying, he's been working in various sectors including restaurant, tutoring and retail and business assisting.

Produced by Moh Javin. Moh first arrived to Australia as an Asylum Seeker in 2012, previously working in Iran in the film industry as a set designer, actor and dubber. Moh is also a member of the 3ZZZ radio broadcasters, and enjoys radio presenting, theatre, acting and dubbing.

Transcript available here:

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Overcoming Barriers to Becoming a Teacher: Thomas Le

Wed, 06 Dec 2023 05:10:35 +0000

Content Advisory: This episode discusses mental health, suicidal ideation, & isolation.

For help & support contact:

Lifeline Australia 13 11 14
Kids Helpline (for under 25s) 1800 55 1800
Headspace Australia (non-crisis support) 1800 650 890.

Thomas discusses with Christopher several barriers he faced on his educational journey, from learning difficulties to unfortunately experiencing social isolation amongst friendship groups. Thomas reflects on his experience, shares methods of building resilience and the importance of his faith, that lead him to successfully studying to become a teacher at university.

Produced by Christopher who adds the following note: "I'm Christopher Vasilevski, 19 years old. Growing up in a Macedonian family, I was sheltered with love and amazing culture. Taking my faith seriously later in my teenage years I have, and continue to see the impact God has over my life, specifically in the media industry through podcasting, filming, etc..."

You can follow Christopher on LinkedIn

Transcript Available Here:

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

To share a story of resilience, contact Rebecca at podcasts@3zzz.com.au

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Pursuing Art as a Career & Capturing Conflict in Photography: Ahmed Sabra

Mon, 16 Oct 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Ahmed Sabra, artist and art-teacher, talks about his experiences of capturing images in regions of conflict and crises. Ahmed also discuss the challenges of pursuing of art as a career and as a means to make a living.

About Ahmed

Ahmad Sabra is a Lebanese Australian Muslim artist and an art teacher based in Naarm. His current art practice challenges the complex terrain of nationality, loyalty and faith. Ahmad offers his unique perspective on the world around him and the challenges he encounters daily in understanding a sense of place and belonging. He explores the life of Australian Muslims, tackling stereotypes and biased views that isolates this community as outsiders and highlighting trends in societal and political influences that is fueled through fear and panic. www.ahmadsabra.com.au

Produced by Aamon Sayed

Aamon has worked within the Social Work sector since 2012. His work experience adds sensitivity to interviews to create them in a culturally safe setting. As a podcast producer, Aamon explores the human condition, and how to make the world a more positive place through his podcast series AddLOVE.

Aamon's latest creative project is Untold Stories a photography series. To get involved follow Untold Stories on Instagram.

For insightful conversation follow @aamon_basha and subscribe to the AddLove podcast here.

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Digital Art & Self-Expression: Fadilah Mahmud

Mon, 02 Oct 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Fadilah reflects on her experiences navigating life, study, and the industry of design & art as a woman of colour, and establishing herself as a digital artist over the past decade.

About Fadilah:

Fadilah is a Digital Artist based in Sydney, Australia and has been practicing her craft for over 10 years. Her work is a window into her experience as a female, muslim first-generation migrant living in suburban Australia. First and foremost, she is inspired by community.

Her work explores the intersectionality of faith, culture and gender through a predominantly western lens. The emergence of the "third culture" is a recurring theme in her art as it explores the dichotomy of the East and West and how it has influenced her upbringing and her art.

She strives to use her work to give a voice to people in marginalised communities such as herself and many of her generation who share her experiences.

Website: fadilah.art
IG handle: @fadilahmah

Produced by Aamon Sayed

Aamon's latest creative project is Untold Stories a photography series. To get involved follow Untold Stories on Instagram.

For insightful conversation follow @aamon_basha and subscribe to the AddLove podcast here.

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Navigating A Business Start-Up & Entrepreneurship: Peter Gould

Sun, 17 Sep 2023 13:00:00 +0000

Peter and Aamon discuss the challenging and rewarding process of establishing a start-up business. Peter talks about the value of having mentors along the business journey, and how his strategic design consulting firm used a reframing approach to overcome business challenges during the pandemic.

Transcript available here.

Mentioned in the episode:

reframing a problem into a design solution
The Hard Thing About Hard Things

How I Built This

About Peter:

Peter Gould leads a strategic design consulting firm based in Sydney, Dubai & Jakarta. Gould Studio advocates for Heart-Centered Design to create meaningful brands, cross-cultural understanding and transformative change.
‍
Over 20 years his engagements have included Apple, Google, United Nations, Greenpeace, Dubai Culture and a diverse portfolio from senior government projects to $300m start-ups.

He is a recipient of the Stanford Certificate of Innovation & Entrepreneurship and has lectured Design Thinking at the University of Technology, Sydney.

Peter’s personal journey has been a major influence on his creative vision for a globally-connected, like-hearted community.
‍
His contributions to design have resulted in international acclaim, including a major award from the UAE Vice-President.
‍
In 2020, Peter was appointed as an Australia for UNHCR Ambassador in recognition of his efforts supporting refugees.

At the intersection of design, spirituality & entrepreneurship, Peter aims to inspire a global heart-centered design movement for a bright, shared future.

You can follow Peter's projects

Instagram

Produced by Aamon Sayed

Aamon's latest creative project is Untold Stories a photography series. To get involved follow Untold Stories on Instagram.

For insightful conversation follow @aamon_basha and subscribe to the AddLove podcast here.

To share your story, contact Rebecca at rebecca.maakasa@syn.org.au

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Finding Your Voice and Self in the Online World: Sereen Omran

Mon, 04 Sep 2023 06:15:30 +0000

Musician, creative producer and film-enthusiast Sereen Omran also known as Sereen Sounds amassed a great following online for her talented musician skills with guitar and production work. On this episode, Sereen speaks with Aamon about navigating creative expression and the sometimes unpleasant interactions that can occur in online spaces, as well as the positive experiences that can help artistry.

Transcript Available Here:

Sereen's latest release is Honeybee ft. Moe Omran and you can follow all her creative projects here.

Produced by Aamon Sayed. Aamon has worked within the Social Work sector since 2012. His work experience adds sensitivity to interviews to create them in a culturally safe setting. As a podcast producer, Aamon explores the human condition, and how to make the world a more positive place through his podcast series AddLOVE.

For insightful conversation follow @aamon_basha and subscribe to the AddLove podcast here:

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Navigating Study and Business Changes: Mahdi Gholami

Sun, 20 Aug 2023 23:43:09 +0000

Mahdi Gholami works as a volunteer at 3ZZZ 92.3fm for the Iranian Radio Program. Arriving to Australia in 2015, Mahdi studied IT whilst helping with his family business - first a restaurant, and then transforming into a transport company.

Mahdi now works as an IT technician, and enjoys helping people, not only with technology but also with navigating migration to Australia. This episode discusses changing careers, and field of study and how this was influenced by migration and the pandemic and the challenges of visas and migration processes.

Produced by Moh Javin. Moh first arrived to Australia as an Asylum Seeker in 2012, previously working in Iran in the film industry as a set designer, actor and dubber.

Moh is also a member of the 3ZZZ broadcasters, and enjoys radio presenting, theatre, acting and dubbing.

Transcript available here:

To share your story, email Rebecca at podcasts@3zzz.com.au

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

3ZZZ Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Capturing The Karbala Pilgrimage: Tom Toby

Mon, 14 Aug 2023 01:00:00 +0000

Professional photographer Tom Toby recounts his story of creating a documentary photography project that evolved into capturing 114,000 portraits of the religious pilgrimage Karbala in Iraq.

You can follow Tom's stunning array of photography work on Facebook and his via his portfolio Website.

Transcript Available Here:

For insightful conversation follow @aamon_basha and subscribe to the AddLove podcast here:

To share your story, contact Rebecca at stories@SYN.org.au

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Community Volunteering & Advocacy: Angeline Karvinkop

Sun, 30 Jul 2023 01:00:00 +0000

Angeline is a young person with a big heart, and strong passion for helping others in many different communities. Angeline currently studies Youth Work at RMIT, and spends her time volunteering with many community focused programs covering multicultural youth, homelessness and support for newly arrived people to Australia.

In 2020, deep into lockdown, Angeline was inspired by listening to a podcast series The Authentic Me podcast by Mel Yu that prompted self-reflection and prompted her to volunteer for a variety of causes.

Angeline says "I honestly feel truly blessed to live the life I do and my journey is just beginning. I have had the opportunity to meet the most amazing people through all the work I get to do and am really excited for the future."

Episode Transcript available here.

The Authentic Me: Hosted by Mel Yu: Living a life of service, finding your purpose & tackling homelessness | Roseanne Rofaeel | Ep 3

Christmas on Streets is a non-profit organization in Melbourne that works to help break the stigma of homelessness, with the phrase: 'Homeless,not hopeless'.

UCan2 a partnership between the Centre for Multicultural Youth are looking for volunteers for their upcoming semester program. Register your interest here.

Produced by Rebecca Maakasa.

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Reflecting on Self-Growth Through Grief: Heba Shaheed

Sun, 09 Jul 2023 01:00:00 +0000

Content Warning: This episode discusses grief, childhood cancer and the loss of a child. Support is available at Red Nose Grief & Loss and Hope Bereavement Care.

Our guest today is Heba Shaheed. Heba is a Pelvic Floor expert, and in her professional practice of Physiotherapy supports women living with female related pain issues and pre/post-natal care.

In 2018, Heba's young daughter was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer, and sadly passed away in May 2022. Heba's story details the surprising lessons of resilience she learned about her self, and reflects upon her self-growth while navigating this grief.

You can follow Heba's work on Instagram

This episode is produced by Egyptian-Australian Aamon Sayed. Aamon has worked within the Social Work sector since 2012. His work experience adds sensitivity to interviews to create them in a culturally safe setting. As a podcast producer, Aamon explores the human condition, and how to make the world a more positive place through his series AddLOVE.

For insightful conversation follow @aamon_basha and subscribe to the AddLove podcast here:

Transcript Available Here

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

To share your story, contact stories@SYN.org.au

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Impacts of Digital Globalisation on Musical Artistry: Jah Tung

Mon, 03 Jul 2023 05:08:48 +0000

Our guest today is well renowned reggae artist Jah Tung. Jah Tung and Aamon discuss the impacts and pressures of digital-globalisation that create a demanding social media presence for musicians and creatives. They also discuss spirituality and self-expression in music, and staying true to yourself in the music industry.

Jah Tung's latest self-produced album Digital Degeneration is a "commentary on a society moving towards an unnatural, dystopian future, ...covering creation with dem- synthetic imitation." The title-track features an accompanying animation which explores this concept.

For insightful conversation follow @aamon_basha and subscribe to the AddLove podcast here:

Transcript Available Here.

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

'Digital Degeneration' by Jah Tung purchase at Bandcamp.

To share your story, contact Rebecca at stories@SYN.org.au

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Building Connection With Conversations Around Food: Deepa Ramakrishnan

Tue, 27 Jun 2023 01:00:00 +0000

Our guest today is. Deepa shares her stories of walking away from a conventional and 'secure' job and moving to Australia, feeling the need for connection in the community. Deepa found that her sou Deepa Ramakrishnanrce of resilience was through creating connecting experiences through food - to hold spaces for others to feel seen and heard. Deepa is a HR specialist, with a strong focus on diversity and inclusion.

You can follow Deepa on LinkedIn.

Produced by Ruhee M, an inclusive facilitator and public speaker with over 12 years of teaching and facilitating experience. Forever curious, straight-talking, and driven by the conversation around inclusion and equity, Ruhee holds an academic background in psychology and a bachelor’s degree in business management. Having worked across industries including advertising, sport, retail, hospitality, tech, digital marketing, community services and wellbeing, Ruhee brings a wealth of diverse experience and problem-solving perspectives across the board. To support others in their learning journey, Allied Collective was founded to solve the need for impactful, inclusive, and accessible training. Today, Ruhee combines these insights with years of experience in teaching to provide clients with engaging workshops, training, and facilitation.

Transcript Available Here

You can follow all of Ruhee's latest work here:

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

To share your story, contact Rebecca at stories@SYN.org.au

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Migrant Women and Employment Opportunities: Monia Choudhary

Wed, 07 Jun 2023 03:00:00 +0000

What are the different issues that need to be considered by migrant women when they seek employment opportunities in the western world?

Dr. Chris Bhadra speaks with Monia Choudhary about their experiences of migrant women navigating employment opportunities.

Monia shares tips for women adapting to work in a new country, including the importance of accessing support and networks.

Monia Choudhary is a qualified risk management and insurance professional with a Bachelor’s degree in Law & Commerce and with a Master’s degree in Business Administration. Monia has lived in Melbourne for 16 years and works in the public sector. She is also a Community Leadership graduate of Leadership Victoria. In dedication to her father, who passed away as an organ donor, Monia has been volunteering with Donate Life Victoria to raise awareness about organ donation within migrant and faith-based communities.

Transcript Available Here.

Follow Monia on LinkedIn here.

Produced by Chris Mallika Bhadra. You can find more of Chris's media projects at:

Coconut Chats YouTube and Instagram
Durdeshe Bangla YouTube and Instagram
Ananda Dance Group YouTube and Instagram

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

To share your story, contact Rebecca at stories@SYN.org.au

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Road To Belonging: Ruhee Meghani

Wed, 17 May 2023 01:30:00 +0000

This episode talks about identity - specifically learning and relearning aspects of identity from Ruhee's perspective some years after settling in Australia. This episode is produced by Egyptian-Australian Aamon Sayed. Aamon has worked within the Social Work sector since 2012. Aamon's work experience adds sensitivity to interviews to create them in a culturally safe setting. As a podcast producer, Aamon explores the human condition, and how to make the world a more positive place through his series AddLOVE.

For insightful conversation follow @aamon_basha and subscribe to the AddLove podcast here:

Transcript Available Here

Today's guest, Ruhee is an inclusive facilitator and public speaker with over 12 years of teaching and facilitating experience. Forever curious, straight-talking, and driven by the conversation around inclusion and equity, Ruhee holds an academic background in psychology and a bachelor’s degree in business management. Having worked across industries including advertising, sport, retail, hospitality, tech, digital marketing, community services and wellbeing, Ruhee brings a wealth of diverse experience and problem-solving perspectives across the board. To support others in their learning journey, Allied Collective was founded to solve the need for impactful, inclusive, and accessible training. Today, Ruhee combines these insights with years of experience in teaching to provide clients with engaging workshops, training, and facilitation.

You can follow all of Ruhee's latest work at the following links:

To share your story of resilience, contact Rebecca at stories@SYN.org.au

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Undefeated: Stories of Migration by Women in Australia

Wed, 26 Apr 2023 03:55:35 +0000

Taylor Tran, and Lorena Duranthon from Professional Migrant Women's Group share their own stories of migration, as they reflect upon the Undefeated project - a collection of over 100 stories by women. This episode reflects upon the challenges of being a newly arrived person in Australia, and also celebrates the many achievements of migrant women.

Transcript available here.

You can connect with the Professional Migrant Women's Group via their website, and Linkedin page.

Listen to the Undefeated podcast here.

Interested in sharing your own Story of Community Resilience?

Email podcasts@3zzz.com.au

https://www.3zzz.com.au/shows/stories-of-community-resilience/

3ZZZ Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Importance of Sex Education: Nive Manokaran

Wed, 22 Mar 2023 01:00:00 +0000

Conversations around sexual health and education need to be had on a regular basis in the 21st century. But, are we really having these conversations?

Our guest - Dr Niveditha Manokaran is a dermatologist and a venereologist from India. She works as a clinician in sexual and reproductive health and HIV medicine in Sydney. She is a TEDx speaker, Sex educator, sex positivity advocate and domestic violence (DV) awareness advocate.

Nive is the founder and CEO of the brand 'Untaboos' which focusses mainly on women's health, youth sexual and reproductive health, contraception and DV. Nive is an influencer and a motivational speaker who diligently works for woman empowerment and be the voice of many unheard women.

More info on:

https://www.facebook.com/PoojaBharatS/
Instagram - @untaboos

Produced by Chris Mallika Bhadra. You can find more of Chris's media projects at:

Coconut Chats YouTube and Instagram
Durdeshe Bangla YouTube and Instagram
Ananda Dance Group YouTube and Instagram

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Genius In A Bottle: Nora Mohd Nor

Tue, 14 Mar 2023 23:50:59 +0000

Our guest Nora, from Malaysia unpacks an analogy for empowerment and self-esteem - that is, the genius inside one-self that is waiting to come out and share its talents!

Nora is a coach, trainer and facilitator with a focus on career transition work.

You can follow Nora's work via her website here.

Produced by Dr. Yasmin Raja. You can connect with Yasmin and follow her projects on LinkedIn.

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

To share your Stories of Community Resilience contact stories@SYN.org.au

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Intimacy in Relationships: Najiha Basheer

Mon, 06 Mar 2023 00:22:06 +0000

Nahija discusses what intimacy is, and why it is an essential element in all relationships.

A content advisory that this episode briefly discusses the topic of child abuse, at the 3:30 minute mark. Support is available at Lifeline 13 11 14, BlueKnot 1300 657 380 and 1800 RESPECT.

Produced by Dr. Yasmin Raja. You can connect with Yasmin and follow her projects on LinkedIn.

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

To share your Stories of Community Resilience contact stories@SYN.org.au

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How to Say I Love You: Grief of Losing a Partner: Faizah Bazid

Mon, 20 Feb 2023 02:48:31 +0000

In this moving episode, Faizah from Malaysia shares her deeply personal story of grief, after losing her beloved husband only a few months ago. Faizah speaks of grief and love, through her religious perspective of the Islamic faith.

A content advisory that this episode discusses: grief, sudden loss and the death of a partner. Support is available in Australia - contact GriefLine

Produced by Yasmin Raja.

Dr. Yasmin Raja, is an accredited coach, and member of the 3ZZZ Malaysian Broadcast team. Yasmin grew up in Ipoh Perak, Malaysia and migrated to Australia in 2007. Yasmin obtained her PhD in Marketing in 2011, and has taught at universities for over 25 years.

You can connect with Yasmin and follow her projects on LinkedIn

Faizah Bazid holds a law degree, and is a certified coach. Faizah started the Facebook support group Women’s Inspiring and Nurturing Dialogue (WIND), where women from various backgrounds join live online, to share both challenging and inspiring stories to empower each other. Faizah has also written a book in honour of her late mother, Hajjah Sapiah Tawil, entitled ‘Mothers are coaches in motion’

You can connect with Faizah on Facebook

Technical Assistance by Hazelman N Mahmood.

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

To share your Stories of Community Resilience contact stories@SYN.org.au

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Understanding Hypnotherapy: Pooja Sethi

Wed, 25 Jan 2023 02:00:00 +0000

Hypnotherapy is a type of mind–body intervention in which hypnosis is used to create a state of focused attention and increased suggestibility in the treatment of a medical or psychological disorder or concern.

Our guest - Pooja Sethi is a clinical hypnotherapist working with the Australian Hypnotherapy Association (AHA) and helps people get rid of stress, depression, anxiety, & any other bad vices.

She runs a Facebook group for lifting the spirits of women. All wonderful divas are welcome to join group, search - InspirationalDivas.

As part of her business coaching, Pooja also runs certification courses on SAFe and Agile technologies.

More info on:

https://www.facebook.com/PoojaBharatS/
Instagram - @poojabharatss
Website - www.poojabharat.com
Email - support@poojabharat.com

Produced by Chris Mallika Bhadra. You can find more of Chris's media projects at:

Coconut Chats YouTube and Instagram
Durdeshe Bangla YouTube and Instagram
Ananda Dance Group YouTube and Instagram

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

3ZZZ Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Addressing Domestic Violence: Kittu Randhawa

Tue, 17 Jan 2023 23:23:43 +0000

Domestic violence is one of the major societal vices plaguing the global communities.

Content warning - This episode mentions domestic abuse, domestic violence and marital rape.

Support is available - 1800 RESPECT and Lifeline 13 11 14

Our guest - Kittu Randhawa Kittu Randhawa is the founder of the Indian (Sub-Continent) Crisis and Support Agency the first NGO for this community in Australia. ICSA is the first fully CALD organisation running professional support services for the target community with a focus on client-centric support services and advocacy. Kittu is a cultural consultant; an accredited trainer, interpreter, mediator, qualified family dispute resolution practitioner. Kittu’s main are of work is as a senior case worker in domestic and family violence. She is an expert in complex and culturally driven forms of domestic and family abuse, particularly dowry abuse.

Kittu has been an advocate against dowry abuse since 2013 and is committed to seeking reform in legislation and systems to protect women who are victims of this form of abuse. She has developed a library of resources including tailored training to help build organisations capacity in recognising and dealing with dowry issues.
Kittu’s work on social justice and women’s issues involves writing submissions and briefing papers for DFV related inquiries and sits on several boards and committees. This work gained her the Edna Ryan Award in leadership in 2021.

Kittu regularly is invited to speak on the challenges faced by local CALD support services in dealing with the complexities of DFV in their communities or what is missing from the DFV support services. Kittu’s professional background and career was in procurement and governance working at all levels of government and the private sector. Kittu’s advocacy has had greater impact through her work as the CEO at the Community Resource Network; a sub-regional peak body for Western Sydney Community Organisations working to alleviate poverty and disadvantage.

If this content is upsetting you can find support at https://www.beyondblue.org.au/get-support or call Lifeline on 13 11 14 and 1800 RESPECT

You can find more of Kittu's works at: https://www.facebook.com/icsasydney

Produced by Chris Mallika Bhadra. You can find more of Chris's media projects at:

Coconut Chats YouTube and Instagram
Durdeshe Bangla YouTube and Instagram
Ananda Dance Group YouTube and Instagram

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

3ZZZ Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Arts for Well-Being and Mental Health : Rupa Parthasarathy

Fri, 13 Jan 2023 01:00:00 +0000

Mental wellness is as crucial as our physical wellness. There is no second alternative to that.

Our guest - Rupa Parthasarathy is the founder of Mindkshetra and is a bicultural storyteller. Rupa is a mum of 2 young people and is a mental health advocate on a mission to nurture life stories using creativity.

*A content warning that this episode discusses depression.

If this content is upsetting you can find support at https://www.beyondblue.org.au/get-support or call Lifeline on 13 11 14

You can find more of her works at: https://www.mindkshetra.com/

Produced by Chris Mallika Bhadra. You can find more of Chris's media projects at:

Coconut Chats YouTube and Instagram
Durdeshe Bangla YouTube and Instagram
Ananda Dance Group YouTube and Instagram

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

3ZZZ Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Journey to Motherhood at 35: Sunobha Nair- Bajaj

Mon, 09 Jan 2023 00:34:38 +0000

This episode is all about breaking the myth that a woman cannot conceive beyond a certain age.

Modern day evidence states that she certainly CAN!

A content warning that this episode discusses pregnancy loss.

Our guest - Sunobha Nair-Bajaj is a loud and proud 35yr old woman and now is a new mumma in the town. Sunobha lives in Perth with her husband and young daughter.

Produced by Chris Mallika Bhadra. You can find more of Chris's media projects at:

Coconut Chats YouTube and Instagram
Durdeshe Bangla YouTube and Instagram
Ananda Dance Group YouTube and Instagram

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

3ZZZ Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Modern Day Parenting: Mahasweta G Pal

Wed, 04 Jan 2023 01:00:00 +0000

Being a young parent in the 21st century is no easy task.

Our guest - Mahasweta G Pal is a medical writer who assists doctors and scientists in publishing their research in high impact, peer reviewed journals. She believes in enacting a gender equal approach to parenting.

Mahasweta is a young mother to a two - year old toddler who keeps her mum busy and occupied.

Produced by Chris Mallika Bhadra. You can find more of Chris's media projects at:

Coconut Chats YouTube and Instagram
Durdeshe Bangla YouTube and Instagram
Ananda Dance Group YouTube and Instagram

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

3ZZZ Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Parenting a Child with a Disability: Maria Zarkovic

Mon, 19 Dec 2022 05:01:44 +0000

Being the parent of a child with disability is no easy task.

Our guest - Maria Zarkovic is the proud mother of two boys and is now a proud grandmother of a little girl. Maria's younger son suffers from a rare disease known as 'Agenesis of the Corpus Callosum' and he was detected when he was 3 years old.

Maria loves to cook, dance and read. She tries to give back as much to the community as she can. She likes to help everyone with a smile and is a strong advocate for rights of adult people living with disabilities and CALD parents.

Produced by Chris Mallika Bhadra. You can find more of Chris's media projects at:

Coconut Chats YouTube and Instagram
Durdeshe Bangla YouTube and Instagram
Ananda Dance Group YouTube and Instagram

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Being a female mining engineer in a male dominated industry: Dr Ritipurna Das

Wed, 14 Dec 2022 01:00:00 +0000

The mining industry is most often regarded as a 'Man's' industry.

Our guest - Dr Ritipurna Das was born and raised in Kolkata, India and moved to Melbourne a decade ago. She has lived and worked in different cities of Australia long enough to pick up the local jargon (pun intended).

Dr Das is currently working as a Project Geologist in the longest running mining operation in Tasmania. Ritipurna is a trained dancer and loves being outdoors when she is not at work.

Produced by Chris Mallika Bhadra. You can find more of Chris's media projects at:

Coconut Chats YouTube and Instagram
Durdeshe Bangla YouTube and Instagram
Ananda Dance Group YouTube and Instagram

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

3ZZZ Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Goodness Behind Foster Care: Dr Dhivya Rajasekaran

Wed, 03 Aug 2022 06:50:32 +0000

Foster Care is a very noble thing to give back to the society.

Our guest - Dr Dhivya Rajasekaran is a lecturer at a private University and has been living in Melbourne since 2010. With a PhD and qualifications in teaching, leading a well rounded life is what Dhivya is mostly focussed on. Being an empath and inspiring people around her to lead a happy and healthy life is what Dhivya cares about.

Produced by Chris Mallika Bhadra. You can find more of Chris's media projects at:

Coconut Chats YouTube and Instagram
Durdeshe Bangla YouTube and Instagram
Ananda Dance Group YouTube and Instagram

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

3ZZZ Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Relevance of Body Positivity: Charu Chopra

Mon, 11 Jul 2022 05:55:51 +0000

Body shaming is happening now, more than ever. We often get trolled for not possessing the 'perfect' body.

How to love ourselves, the way we are?

Charu is a 35 year old advertising and marketing professional. She currently works with a production setup where they are innovating crazy new stuff. She is divorced with no kids. Currently single, Charu is a dog mom and lives life on her terms. Charu has been a typical Indian girl who grew up introverted and self conscious because of her weight and what others said about it.

In a culture and society where actors are idolised, Charu grew up quite ashamed and feeling inadequate of how she looked. It took her a few major life altering moments to realise she was perfect the way she was. And no one else's opinion of her mattered. What mattered was being healthy and feeling healthy - mentally and physically. This started Charu's journey of embracing body positivity.

Produced by Chris Mallika Bhadra. You can find more of Chris's media projects at:

Coconut Chats YouTube and Instagram
Durdeshe Bangla YouTube and Instagram
Ananda Dance Group YouTube and Instagram

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

3ZZZ Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Murdering Mediocrity : Shilpa Kulshrestha

Mon, 20 Jun 2022 05:45:07 +0000

As a Game Changer Coach, founder of Scintillate Coaching and bestselling author of “Play it Full”, Shilpa Kulshrestha helps mid-career professionals step into a life of extraordinary wins.

She has been awarded with multiple awards including the Change Maker of The Year 2022, Indian Achiever's Award, 2021 & Women Entrepreneur of The Year, 2021.

Featured in Forbes, Outlook, FOX, CNN, TV, Radio and several podcasts, she has raving fans across 15 countries because of the euphoria she enables them to get in touch with in their life.

You can read more about Shilpa at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shilpa-kulshrestha

Produced by Chris Mallika Bhadra. You can find more of Chris's media projects at:

Coconut Chats YouTube and Instagram
Durdeshe Bangla YouTube and Instagram
Ananda Dance Group YouTube and Instagram

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Leadership & Communication Skills for the Workplace: Indu Kannaiyan

Fri, 10 Jun 2022 05:26:58 +0000

Soft-skills are soon becoming the must-haves for sustainability and professional growth. Workforces in the 21st century require individuals to understand the importance of leadership and communication skills in their professional lives.

On that note, Indu Kannaiyan joins us to delve deeper into relevance of soft skills. Indu migrated to Australia in 2011 and is professionally qualified in Human Resources. After 10 years of corporate employment, Indu is currently serving the community as a career coach helping in communication and leadership skills. She is also serving as a Justice of the Peace in NSW.

You can read more about Indu at: https://inucoaching.com.au/my-story/?me=Indulakshmi-K#readmore

Produced by Chris Mallika Bhadra. You can find more of Chris's media projects at:

Coconut Chats YouTube and Instagram
Durdeshe Bangla YouTube and Instagram
Ananda Dance Group YouTube and Instagram

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Victorian Department of Families, Fairness and Housing.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Can Diabetes Be Prevented?: Mubina Jamdar

Mon, 23 May 2022 05:15:33 +0000

Diabetes is one of those diseases that is slowly cropping in almost every household, irrespective of age and race.

But, can diabetes be prevented?

Mubina Jamdar is an accredited practising dietitian and a philanthropist. She is the founder of a not-for-profit organisation called 'Diabetes Hub Multicultural Australia'. The mission of the organisation is to prevent diabetes and other lifestyle related diseases in the community. Helping communities and individuals is always close to her heart. She's a much loved public speaker.

Mubina gives free health talks and volunteers for several community organisations. Her not-for-profit organisation, 'Diabetes Hub Multicultural Australia, runs several activities to promote health and fitness in the community. Currently, they are looking for volunteers to run their fitness programs. If you are a yoga teacher, dance teacher, exercise trainer or if you are a fitness enthusiast then please contact Mubina.

Produced by Chris Mallika Bhadra. You can find more of Chris's media projects at:

Coconut Chats YouTube and Instagram
Durdeshe Bangla YouTube and Instagram
Ananda Dance Group YouTube and Instagram

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

3ZZZ Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Victorian Department of Families, Fairness and Housing.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Responsible Procreation: Akshay Ahuja

Mon, 16 May 2022 01:30:00 +0000

Marriage or a partnership is an institution that requires a lot of effort for sustainability. However, married couples are often the subject of societal ridicule when they choose not to have children.

And we ask - why this mandate? Why cannot we think of responsible and sustainable procreation?

On that note, we speak with Akshay Ahuja who joined us all the way from Singapore. Akshay is an IT professional working in Singapore, married with no kids and takes keen interest in diving, mixology, traveling and gadgets.

We hope this conversation is able to put some relevant perspectives about family planning into light.

Produced by Chris Mallika Bhadra. You can find more of Chris's media projects at:

Coconut Chats YouTube and Instagram
Durdeshe Bangla YouTube and Instagram
Ananda Dance Group YouTube and Instagram

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

3ZZZ Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Victorian Department of Families, Fairness and Housing.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The strength of unity: Lebanese abroad gather for social change

Fri, 06 May 2022 00:06:48 +0000

In October 2019, shocked, saddened, and angered by economic and political demise in Lebanon, the diaspora community took to the streets in Melbourne and many cities around the world demanding radical systematic change. Initially spontaneous and born out of grief, these gatherings filled with chanting, singing, speeches and traditional dancing brought the diaspora community closer together and established stronger foundations and connections locally and abroad.

This Stories of Community Resilience episode is told through the perspectives of Rebecca and Fatima, and the lasting impact this show of solidarity had on them, and their broader community in Melbourne (Naarm), Australia.

Produced by Rebecca Maakasa and Fatima Hoblos.

Rebecca is an Educator and Media Specialist with a keen interest for radio & podcast storytelling. You can keep up with her latest projects and initiatives via LinkedIn.

Fatima is a Aerospace Engineer currently studying a Masters in Artificial Intelligence. She is a community activist and an editor at Al Rawiya magazine (a digital publication for the Lebanese diaspora). Fatima has a keen interest in documenting the Lebanese experience abroad. You can follow her latest work on LinkedIn and Instagram.

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Women and Hair Loss - Ishita Kumar

Tue, 12 Apr 2022 09:00:00 +0000

A woman is always judged by her external characteristics, even in the 21st century. Women who do not adhere to the societal norms of 'beautiful' are often deemed as an outcast and are judged by one and all.

On that note, we spoke with Ishita Kumar who shared her experience of dealing with hair loss and embracing baldness. Ishita was born and brought up in Delhi. An architect who turned her profession as furniture manufacturer. She is light headed and proud (took a long time to get here). Growing up, she tried every hack to better hair density, to stop the thinning and balding, struggled and eventually owned it.

We hope Ishita's journey gives everyone a strong message of hope, resilience and confidence.

Produced by Chris Mallika Bhadra. You can find more of Chris's media projects at:

Coconut Chats YouTube and Instagram
Durdeshe Bangla YouTube and Instagram
Ananda Dance Group YouTube and Instagram

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

3ZZZ Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Victorian Department of Families, Fairness and Housing.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Using Arts for Mental Health: Gurvinder Kaur

Sun, 27 Mar 2022 22:00:00 +0000

Mental health and associated therapy is an often ignored topic as it comes with a lot of stigma associated with itself.

On that note, we speak with Gurvinder Kaur who uses the medium of arts as therapy for mental health. Gurvinder is a South-Asian migrant woman working in the mental health sector for 2 years and uses her lived experience to inspire people to access mental health support.

Gurvinder started her Instagram page @artsybrownlady to combine her diverse lens using arts to talk about mental health issues with the South Asian community in Australia. Gurvinder is also a qualified youth worker!

She is a strong advocate of mental health issues and recommends everyone to seek help.

Produced by Chris Mallika Bhadra. You can find more of Chris's media projects at:

Coconut Chats YouTube and Instagram
Durdeshe Bangla YouTube and Instagram
Ananda Dance Group YouTube and Instagram

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

3ZZZ Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Victorian Department of Families, Fairness and Housing.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Coming Back from War-Torn Ukraine: Akshita Dabla

Wed, 23 Mar 2022 02:10:00 +0000

Akshita Dabla is all of 19 years and is currently a 1st year MBBS student studying in Uzhhorod National Medical University, Ukraine. In this episode of resilience, she recounts her experience of realising that Ukraine was at war and how she had to cross the borders and fly back to India (her Homeland).

This young woman has a strong message for our society - WAR is not the solution. We wish her words come true, sooner rather than later!

Produced by Chris Mallika Bhadra. You can find more of Chris's media projects at:

Coconut Chats YouTube and Instagram
Durdeshe Bangla YouTube and Instagram
Ananda Dance Group YouTube and Instagram

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

3ZZZ Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Victorian Department of Families, Fairness and Housing.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Growing up in an Inter-Faith household: Sameera Singh

Sun, 13 Mar 2022 21:00:00 +0000

Religion and faith play a big role in our lives. BUT, what happens when someone grows up in an inter-faith household ?

Our guest- Sameera Singh is 33 and works in IT. Sameera is a feminist wand is on a journey of learning more about feminism and it’s values while she actively unlearns and challenges some of patriarchal values within our society and values. Sameera enjoys travelling, audio books and trying out new restaurants (huge foodie) and in her spare time she volunteers as a mentor for south Asian women trying to enter IT.

We hope Sameera's journey inspires us to believe that Faith and Religion are all about love and unity.

Produced by Chris Mallika Bhadra. You can find more of Chris's media projects at:

Coconut Chats YouTube and Instagram
Durdeshe Bangla YouTube and Instagram
Ananda Dance Group YouTube and Instagram

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

3ZZZ Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Victorian Department of Families, Fairness and Housing.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The relevance of talking about Sexual Health : Dr Pravati Panigrahi

Sun, 06 Mar 2022 21:00:00 +0000

Dr Pravati Panigrahi is a Medical professional with special interest in creating awareness on Mental Health and Domestic violence in communities. As the Founder & Director of Pink Umbrella International,an ACNC regd public charity(Aus), and as an academics from University of Sydney in Human rights & Social justice sector, she works passionately for social justice topics,maily for primary prevention of domestic abuse and on Mental health Stigma.

Currently she is a committee members and advocate for White Ribbon Australia that focuses on Primary prevention of Domestic Violence and part of Domestic Violence subcommittee of a reputed Umbrella organization in Australia. She takes special interest in mental health stigma education and sits as an international working committee member for Suicide prevetion for United for Global Mental Health,UK) and is a meber of Suicide prevention Australia.

She has delivered many educational talk in various media platform and in conferences, and is the WIP award recipient , UNITAR ( UN research Center, Geneva, Switzerland),2019-20.

Dr Panigrahi is an Awardee of Emerging Women’s leader, Leadership Victoria,2017 and special Award for Social justice, In 2020.

We hope Pravati's journey proves to be an inspiration for initiating healthy and positive conversations around various impacts of sexual health.

Produced by Chris Mallika Bhadra. You can find more of Chris's media projects at:

Coconut Chats YouTube and Instagram
Durdeshe Bangla YouTube and Instagram
Ananda Dance Group YouTube and Instagram

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

3ZZZ Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Victorian Department of Families, Fairness and Housing.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A career in Theater/Performing Arts: Taufeeq Ahmed Sheikh

Sun, 27 Feb 2022 21:00:00 +0000

It takes a lot of grit and determination to follow your passions. And even more difficult when you are a performing artist.

On that note, we speak with Taufeeq Ahmed Sheikh from Sydney. Radio, theatre & films surround Taufeeqs’ life, fuelling his passion for storytelling. Making his TV debut as an actor at the age of 9 in India Taufeeq went on to acting, writing & directing for theatre when he was 17. In Sydney Taufeeq resumed his creative pursuit in 2018 after a sabbatical of 14 years and now works in the Australian performing and literary arts spectrum with an added focus on the South Asian Community. His vision is to bring the creative ambitions of emerging artists to life and into the mainstream Australian media.

Recently Taufeeq has acted in W. Shakespeares' Much Ado about Nothing & Hamlet; EM Forster’s, Passage to India; Mahesh Dattanis’ Where Did I Leave My Purdah. Broadway hit musicals like, The Drowsy Chaperone performed in Sydney, Australia. Amongst other works of emerging writers in Australia Taufeeq has also acted in plays by respected Australian writers like Joanna Murray Smith in Female of the Species. He has won awards in fields of acting, public speaking, literature, broadcasting, direction, and for his work towards Interfaith & Communal Harmony.

Since 2018 Taufeeq has acted in, produced, directed, and mentored local, national, and trans-continental creative projects while writing & presenting his short stories for the weekly radio show Kehte Sunte 89.3 2GLF FM. Taufeeq is passionately community driven, and voraciously seeks opportunities to build creative projects focussed on helping people find their voice. He follows and hopes to continue keeping art inclusinve and accessible to all. Taufeeq pursues his work with commitment, passion, and just about anything that challenges Taufeeq creatively drives him; while constantly learning and trying to better his craft.

We hope Taufeeq's journey proves to be an inspiration for all the creative souls who wish to pursue a bright future in the field of Arts.

Produced by Chris Mallika Bhadra. You can find more of Chris's media projects at:

Coconut Chats YouTube and Instagram
Durdeshe Bangla YouTube and Instagram
Ananda Dance Group YouTube and Instagram

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

3ZZZ Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Victorian Department of Families, Fairness and Housing.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Raising a child as a single parent : Paromita Bhattacharya

Sat, 19 Feb 2022 21:00:00 +0000

Being a parent is tough work. And being a single parent is not an easy road to walk upon.

In this episode, we talk to Paromita Bhattacharya who joined us from Sydney. Paromita moved out of India when she was all of 18 years old. She is an absolute self-made person and a single mother to her son. She is currently working for Austrac which a regulatory board of Australia. Paromita considers herself to be a friendly and fun loving person. Cooking and being on stage are her two passions.

We hope Paromita's journey, experience and words bring comfort to every single parent and hope in these very difficult and testing times.

*Please note that this episode has been recorded in English and Hindi.

Produced by Chris Mallika Bhadra. You can find more of Chris's media projects at:

Coconut Chats YouTube and Instagram
Durdeshe Bangla YouTube and Instagram
Ananda Dance Group YouTube and Instagram

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

3ZZZ Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Victorian Department of Families, Fairness and Housing.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Journey of Coming Out : Prateek Gajwani

Sun, 13 Feb 2022 21:00:00 +0000

The LGBTQ+ community needs to be loved, accepted and acknowledged by the global community. On that note, our next guest provides massive hope, support and resilience through his journey of coming out as Gay.

Prateek Gajwani, was born and raised in a slightly different family structure in the capital city of India and was re-raised in the American Society in a BIG (Brown Immigrant Gay) way. He is still learning and unlearning his privileges and disadvantages. Working in Public Health and Healthcare research sector, Prateek views life as constantly evolving and believes that endpoints are changing based on new data. Prateek loves hanging out with friends, working out, listening to audiobooks, and making elaborate plans for solving the world’s unique problems.

We hope this conversation will be a beacon of hope to anyone who might be going through a similar journey and want to live their lives freely as a part of the LGBTQ+ community.

Produced by Chris Mallika Bhadra. You can find more of Chris's media projects at:

Coconut Chats YouTube and Instagram
Durdeshe Bangla YouTube and Instagram
Ananda Dance Group YouTube and Instagram

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

3ZZZ Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Victorian Department of Families, Fairness and Housing.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Wellbeing and Mental Health: Dr Beulah Joseph

Sun, 06 Feb 2022 21:00:00 +0000

Mental health and physical/emotional well-being are of utmost importance in Post-COVID times. Many of us have gone through immeasurable grief and loss during these two years and constantly live in uncertainty. In lieu of that, regular dialogues around mental health are the need of the hour.

Dr Beulah Joseph has been based in Melbourne for the past 27 years, having originally come from Singapore. She has a PhD in Psychology and has been working as a registered psychologist for the past 13 years. Her research relates to the efficacy and evaluation of workplace wellbeing services and she currently heads up the Clinical Governance and Quality area at a large national provider of workplace wellbeing and individual support services.

We hope Dr Joseph's journey, experience and her words bring you comfort and hope in these very difficult and testing times.

Produced by Chris Mallika Bhadra. You can find more of Chris's media projects at:

Coconut Chats YouTube and Instagram
Durdeshe Bangla YouTube and Instagram
Ananda Dance Group YouTube and Instagram

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

3ZZZ Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Victorian Department of Families, Fairness and Housing.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Finishing a PhD during COVID : Dr Eshan Arya

Mon, 31 Jan 2022 04:55:00 +0000

International students have been the forefront of uncertainty during the pandemic. During these times, finishing a Doctoral degree requires grit, sanity and determination.

On that note, our guest- Dr Eshan Arya was born in Mumbai and has been living in Australia since 2008, He has travelled, lived, studied, and worked across 12 countries and on merchant navy ships.

Eshan has a PhD (Pol), M. International Relations with honours & 2 LTU Gold awards, B. Econ with 2 dean’s commendation awards, a Dip. Bus Admin with 3 achievement awards, & a 6 Dan Black Belt.

On Dec 13th, 2021, he started as a full-time permanent Residential Life Manager with Little Hall and University Apartments of the University of Melbourne. Additionally, I work as Trainer and Coach with SparkMe, economics HOD with RL, Policy and Course developer, Director of a think tank he founded called Ich Ne San, an associate with Alexandria Agenda and Conversations at Crossroads, a Sessional Lecturer for La Trobe MBA (won 2018 best Lecturer award) and an Economics tutor for Ormond College, UoM.

In Australia, as an ALLY academic with over 9 relevant certifications, Eshan has taught over 12,000 students across 150 countries, won the best lecturer award, written 45 news articles, published a book on the Sea Piracy in Somalia, created 110 academic YouTube Videos, and Spotify Podcasts. Eshan has won community awards & appeared in media for volunteering and creating programs to tackle racism, domestic violence, bystander action, youth at risk, isolated int students, & issues of students of refugee backgrounds. He served as a member on LTU academic board, int strategy committee & academic quality committee. I then worked as a director at Muskaan Support Aus. aiming to fund the construction of a school for slum children in Bhopal. Eshan was a co-founder of student politics ticket & also started my own radio show and four multicultural clubs. He has won multiple annual awards as a RA and RA Coordinator, ISA president, & PG officer of LTSU. I have also served as a sports manager & karate coach at SARA, & as an invigilator-interlocutor with OET.

Please have a listen to Eshan's journey and feel inspired by his grit, mettle and positive mindset.

Produced by Chris Mallika Bhadra. You can find more of Chris's media projects at:

Coconut Chats YouTube and Instagram
Durdeshe Bangla YouTube and Instagram
Ananda Dance Group YouTube and Instagram

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

3ZZZ Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Victorian Department of Families, Fairness and Housing.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A single mother and a radiation therapist: Saheera Razeek

Mon, 24 Jan 2022 22:00:00 +0000

The pandemic has seen all of us struggling either physically, mentally or financially. But the maximum brunt has been faced by those working in the Medical Industry. Their grit, energy and relentless dedication has proven to be an inspiration for all of us.

Our guest of this episode, Saheera Razeek is a single mom to two beautiful boys as well as a full time Radiation Therapist working at a hospital in Rural Victoria. She is originally from Singapore, born to mixed ethnicity parents came to Melbourne just a little over a decade ago as an undergraduate student at Rmit University. Saheera enjoys meeting people from all walks of life and learning from their experiences, and loves that her job allows her to do that!

We hope Saheera's journey gives hope and energy to all our listeners.

Produced by Chris Mallika Bhadra. You can find more of Chris's media projects at:

Coconut Chats YouTube and Instagram
Durdeshe Bangla YouTube and Instagram
Ananda Dance Group YouTube and Instagram

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Journey of a Transwoman: Naina Menon

Thu, 20 Jan 2022 03:14:00 +0000

Naina Menon is from Kerala but stays in Himachal Pradesh and is a proud 33 year old transwoman who has achieved many milestones in her life. She is an engineer by degree and professionally a successful writer, fitness trainer and a model. She has risen recently to be an inspiration to many people from the LGBTQ+ community and is very actively involved in speaking about gender equality and issues faced by transwomen in the society. She is actively involved in modelling and is a prime time fashionista.

We hope this conversation will be a beacon of hope to anyone who might be going through a similar jounery and want to live their lives freely as a part of the LGBTQ+ community.

Produced by Chris Mallika Bhadra. You can find more of Chris's media projects at:

Coconut Chats YouTube and Instagram
Durdeshe Bangla YouTube and Instagram
Ananda Dance Group YouTube and Instagram

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Counselling Psychology & Teaching: Neha Rajagopal

Thu, 13 Jan 2022 05:41:00 +0000

Neha Rajagopal is a special needs teacher and a counselling psychologist. She moved to Melbourne in 2017 with her husband and is a proud mother of her 15-month-old son, Advaith. Her passions include dance, music, gardening and yoga.

Produced by Chris Mallika Bhadra. You can find more of Chris's media projects at:

Coconut Chats YouTube and Instagram
Durdeshe Bangla YouTube and Instagram
Ananda Dance Group YouTube and Instagram

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Victorian Department of Families, Fairness and Housing.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dr Shanthi Joseph

Wed, 05 Jan 2022 06:20:41 +0000

Dr Shanthi Joseph is a university Senior Technical Officer and Lecturer, who went through a phase of 'unlearning' after years of working in highly planned and structured environments. She realised that when the going gets tough, it's ok to take a step back and be kind to yourself.

Produced by Chris Mallika Bhadra. You can find more of Chris's media projects at:

Coconut Chats YouTube and Instagram
Durdeshe Bangla YouTube and Instagram
Ananda Dance Group YouTube and Instagram

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Victorian Department of Families, Fairness and Housing.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hithanjanee Yatawara

Mon, 20 Dec 2021 05:01:00 +0000

Hithanjanee Yatawara from Bindaas Bollywood Dance Company shares her views and experiences owning a small business and navigating a divorce during a pandemic, and how her family, friends, colleagues and students supported her and one another. Find out more about Hithanjanee and Bindaas Bollywood Dance Company at:

Produced by Chris Mallika Bhadra. You can find more of Chris's media projects at:

Coconut Chats YouTube and Instagram
Durdeshe Bangla YouTube and Instagram
Ananda Dance Group YouTube and Instagram

Intro and outro music by Gregor Quendel under a Creative Commons Attribution licence

Stories of Community Resilience is proudly supported by the Victorian Department of Families, Fairness and Housing.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.