HT Smartcast – celebrating pride the podcasting way

The month of June, also known as the Pride Month, is a time to celebrate inclusivity and acceptance. It is a time when some differences are kept aside while others are embraced. Contributing to this global movement, HT Smartcast, one of the fastest-growing podcast platforms of India, takes inclusivity to the corners of the country with podcasts like Gender Question, Five to Thrive and Trend Spotting.

HT Smartcast has listenership from all kinds of economic, social, cultural, and religious backgrounds. With the right combination of distribution channels and social media strategies, it bagged 5.5 mn. + listens across the country in a mere eight months with 110+ podcasts on genres ranging from mythology to fashion to business to politics, with more launching each month.

Deepti Ahuja, Podcast Producer at HT Smartcast, said, “Being a part of a media house, it is our responsibility to be inclusive and amplify the voices of different communities. We take a keen interest in the content that resonates with each community to genuinely celebrate diversity.” And hence, without any delay, podcasters at HT Smartcast took to the medium to contribute to the cause. On one hand, Gender Question is a weekly podcast exploring sensitive but critical topics of gender and sexuality, and on the other, Five to Thrive, and Trend Spotting talk about the importance of lifestyle and fashion.

Dhamini Ratnam, Associate Editor at Hindustan Times and the host of Gender Question, said, “Through Gender Question, I wanted to talk about issues that are in the news, and provide a completely different angle to it. Gender and sexuality are not just a question of rights. It is who we identify as. The history of the queer movement in India is a tremendous one. It changed the social, cultural, and legal fabric of the country. So, this June, I wished to bring out some of this history for my listeners.”

Apart from a month-long series on Gender Question, Trend Spotting host Manish Mishra and Five to Thrive host Shraddha Bhalla released crossover episodes discussing empowerment, self-expression through fashion, and the importance of being an ally to the community. Apart from having special features in existing podcasts, HT Smartcast is planning to release podcasts solely dedicated to the LGBTQIA+ cause in the near future.

HT Smartcast used its reach in the tier-2 and tier-3 cities like Pune, Patna, Indore and Jaipur to get these conversations going in a country where only a handful of the population lives in urban settlements and are aware of international trends and practices. HT Smartcast hosts podcasts in over five languages, including Tamil, Bangla, and Marathi along with English and Hindi.

Gender Question, Trend Spotting, and Five to Thrive are available on HT Smartcast’s website, and other platforms like Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Gaana, JioSaavn, Kuku FM and more.