A podcast by Deepak ‘Chuck’ Gopalakrishnan

 

How did a serial killer lead to one of advertising’s most iconic taglines? Why do followers of a beloved “company” have a dog to thank? How did a Scotsman give Indian engineers some of their best hostel memories? Who are the ancient Englishmen behind one of India’s biggest websites today?

 

The Origin of Things - affectionately called TOOT - is a short-format podcast, where I explore the origins of various brands. Always factual, but slightly dramatized. The fun part? I reveal the name of the brand only at the end. And sometimes the category too! This leaves audiences wondering, and guessing the company before I reveal it seems to be a fun game my listeners like to play. 

 

For this, I dig deep into the (internet) archives, going down Wiki and Google Books rabbitholes to develop a nice tight script. I’ve even done a couple of (online) live episodes. The show is produced by the good people at IVM Podcasts and has ~10,000 monthly listens.

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I am currently working on a third season, which should be out in Feb/Mar 2022. It's the same format but slightly different subject matter and if you're a listener, I hope you like it!

 

The best way to listen to the show is to search for ‘The Origin of Things’ on any podcasting app, or on music apps like Spotify. 

 

Listen to The Origin of Things on:

Spotify | Google Podcasts | Apple Podcasts | Stitcher | Headfone | Castbox | TuneIn | Gaana | JioSaavn

 

Here's the whole thing on Spotify (the Amit Varma episode is a bonus episode cross-promoting another show I run, so skip that)