Stories of Transformation
Storytelling Podcasts
Stories of Transformation is a collection of intimate conversations with some of the most inspiring and courageous minds in art, entertainment, service, business, spirituality, and wellness. Every Tuesday, creator and host Baktash Ahadi, speaks with individuals from around the world who share their unique stories about how they overcame hardships, learned their craft, and found their purpose. These conversations are meant to inform, entertain, and inspire. Learn more by visiting www.baktashahadi.com.
Location:
United States
Genres:
Storytelling Podcasts
Description:
Stories of Transformation is a collection of intimate conversations with some of the most inspiring and courageous minds in art, entertainment, service, business, spirituality, and wellness. Every Tuesday, creator and host Baktash Ahadi, speaks with individuals from around the world who share their unique stories about how they overcame hardships, learned their craft, and found their purpose. These conversations are meant to inform, entertain, and inspire. Learn more by visiting www.baktashahadi.com.
Language:
English
Episodes
Emmy-Award Winning Director of The Social Dilemma, Jeff Orlowski, on the Invisible Dangers of Social Media
7/27/2021
In one of Netflix’s most highly watched documentaries of all time, The Social Dilemma, Director Jeff Orlowski exposed the disturbing extent to which all of us are being manipulated and controlled through the use of social media.
The film was a huge wake-up call for everyone in realizing the insidious implications of social media on our democracy, our culture, and our mental health.
In this episode of Stories of Transformation, we discuss why Jeff wanted to make this film, how exactly...
Duration:00:35:38
What Almost Dying Can Teach Us About Living, with Emmy-Award Winning Journalist and Cancer Survivor Suleika Jaouad
7/13/2021
Suleika Jaouad’s career aspirations as a war correspondent were cut short when, at age 22, she was diagnosed with leukemia.
Faced with slim survival odds, she knew she wanted to find a way to still participate in the world and give back more than she had taken. It started with a daily journal and eventually became “Life, Interrupted,” the Emmy award-winning New York Times column and video series she wrote from her hospital bed.
In this episode of Stories of Transformation, Suleika recounts...
Duration:00:41:22
Connecting, Humanizing and Healing Through Music with Esteemed Violinist Vijay Gupta
6/29/2021
Vijay Gupta believes that the work of the artist and citizen is one: to make a daily practice of the connected, creative, and courageous world we long to live in. Hailed by The New Yorker as “a visionary violinist...one of the most radical thinkers in the unradical world of American classical music” Vijay is an esteemed musician, speaker and thought leader, serving to create spaces of belonging, healing and wholeness through music. He is the Founder of Street Symphony, a non-profit...
Duration:00:47:21
Finding Home Within Yourself: A Journey to Self Love with Najwa Zebian, Author of Welcome Home: A Guide for Building a Home for Your Soul
6/15/2021
Baktash and Najwa Zebian discuss what it means to build a home within yourself, rather than building your home in other people. As someone who spent most of her life aching to be loved and validated by others, Najwa is now able to teach people through her book Welcome Home how to build a strong foundation of self love, self acceptance and self awareness.
Also discussed is how Najwa's Lebanese-Canadian upbringing shaped how she makes meaning in the world, her decision to no longer wear a...
Duration:00:32:27
Overcoming Obesity and Anxiety with Mark Metry
6/1/2021
It was another late, sleepless night in his dorm room, and Mark Metry's phone buzzed. It was the campus police, warning students through text message of yet another violent altercation that had occurred blocks away. In what he describes as a trance-like state - one precipitated by a lifelong battle with untreated mental illness - Mark deliberately walked headlong into the dangerous area that the authorities had just told him to avoid. As he tells it, Mark was hoping that something would...
Duration:00:30:44
Living and Dying on the Migrant Trail with Anthropologist and Author Jason De León
5/11/2021
Jason De León is an anthropologist, author, and activist with a meaningful mission. His work focuses on the global community of migrants who flee their homelands in search of a better life. His latest book, "Land of Open Graves: Life and Death On The Migrant Trail" focuses on the growing rate of migrants fleeing Mexico through the Sonoran Desert - a territory shared by the United States territories of Arizona and California. Particularly, the book tackles the troubling statute called...
Duration:00:33:54
Learning the Art of Conversation with Communications Expert Misha Glouberman
4/27/2021
Misha Glouberman is a communications expert, educator, author, and public speaker with a knack for helping people to get the most out of their conversations. He discovered his talent at a young age, as early as grade school, where he would intuitively identify misunderstandings between teacher and student. Though he couldn't have known it at the time, Misha would later take his gift and turn it into a profession, and become an educator himself. Today, Misha uses his expertise to help...
Duration:00:34:21
The Art of Preservation with Filmmaker Mariam Ghani
4/20/2021
Mariam Ghani is an artist, filmmaker, writer, and educator, and through this combination of work, she is on a mission to preserve the past, enlighten the present, and provide hope for the future. Born into exile to Afghan and Lebanese parents, Mariam was born and raised in New York City. After her parents tried and failed to return to either of their respective homelands when she was young, Mariam spent the majority of her life in the United States. Mariam describes her experience of being...
Duration:00:31:53
Epidemiologist and Author of “Medicare For All: A Citizen’s Guide“ Abdul El-Sayed on Identity, Capacity, and Opportunity
4/6/2021
Abdul El-Sayed has been a valedictorian, earned a PhD in public health, run for governorship, and worked as an epidemiologist during the tumultuous year of 2020. He has studied abroad, traveled far and wide, and been on the frontlines of educating the global public on how to handle a pandemic. He has spoken with former President Bill Clinton, who commended his public speaking abilities and recommended he consider a career in politics. He has been featured on countless media outlets speaking...
Duration:00:35:43
Reza Aslan & Mahyad Tousi on Identity, MENA Representation in Media, and the United States of Al
3/30/2021
Can you think of a Middle Eastern protagonist who has appeared front and center on American, cable television - past or present? If you cannot, then you are not alone, and the reason is at once obvious and deeply troubling. Since the advent of film and television, and the subsequent rise of popular culture which continues to evolve into today, the facts clearly show that there have been next to no such characters - protagonists or even supporting actors whose bloodlines stem from Greater...
Duration:00:35:46
Rolling With The Punchlines: How Comedian Maz Jobrani Took Control Of His Life by Taking The Stage
3/23/2021
Maz Jorbani is an Iranian-American comedian, actor, and performer who has been entertaining audiences for over two decades. Though he is a comedian by profession, and his talent for the craft sometimes make his performances look effortless, Maz' decision to pursue his passion on the stage was not spontaneous, and it didn’t come easy. His parents wanted him to take a more traditional route towards success, to choose a more stable career. It wasn’t until a culmination of events and...
Duration:00:37:36
Empathy and the Art of Acting with Hollywood Star, Faran Tahir
3/16/2021
Faran Tahir has acted on the stage, on TV, and on the big screen. Starring in major Hollywood blockbusters like Iron Man and Star Trek, as well as countless other acclaimed productions, Faran is as accomplished an actor as they come. But despite all of his success, Faran stills describes himself with a genuine air of humility - a “student” by his own account - always eager to learn and improve, not just in his craft but in the art of being human. Faran’s true character - off the stage, that...
Duration:00:36:58
Virtual/Augmented Reality as the Ultimate Empathy Machine with Filmmaker Gabo Arora
3/9/2021
Gabo Arora is on the frontier of a new and exciting artistic medium - one you may not even know exists. He is among the visionaries leveraging virtual and augmented reality, and artificial intelligence, as tools in the art of filmmaking, the efficacy of storytelling, and the progress of positive social change. In this episode of Stories of Transformation, hear Gabo’s story of going from a boots-on-the-ground humanitarian, working in conflict zones around the world and documenting his...
Duration:00:31:01
The Potential For Peace With Israeli-born Palestinian Forsan Hussein
3/2/2021
As a young boy growing up in the Arab village of Sha’ab in Northern Israel, Forsan Hussein had always found himself surrounded at all sides by a troubling narrative. For his entire life, everyone had told him that the Jewish Israelites living nearby were the picture of evil - a malevolent people bent on violence; the harbingers of atrocity and misfortune which had befallen Forsan’s Arab-Palestinian village in the past.
For young Forsan, it was all he knew. Everyone in his world had always...
Duration:00:38:24
In Search Of Stories Untold with Iranian Filmmaker Gelareh Kiazand
2/23/2021
Gelareh Kiazand is an Iranian filmmaker who is on a mission to revitalize the film and documentary genre. Integrity, education, and companionship are among the fundamental values she considers in her work. She is founder of SeeTô Productions, a media company which aims to "produce high quality productions by grouping talent that transcend borders.” Indeed, Kiazand and her crew serve as a collective conduit through which the stories of underrepresented people and places can be brought to...
Duration:00:41:00
Moving Forward By Facing The Past — A Conversation With "I'll Meet You There" Filmmaker Iram Parveen Bilal
2/16/2021
Iram Parveen Bilal was walking through Thomas Bradley Terminal at LAX, awaiting her mother’s arrival for treatment of a life-threatening condition. Amidst the thoughts already racing through her mind, Iram heard the commotion of a crowd growing louder as she walked - a murmur of a different energy than that normally heard at airports. She tracked the uproar until it revealed itself: a group of protestors voicing their disapproval towards the Muslim ban which had just been enacted.
Iram had...
Duration:00:33:41
From the Newsroom to the Battlefield with Journalist and Author Jessica Donati
2/9/2021
Jessica Donati never expected to write a book about her experiences in Afghanistan, but then again, she never could have predicted that her journalism career would place her in the middle of some of the fiercest conflicts of the 21st century.
In her book, Eagle Down: The Last Special Forces Fighting The Forever War, Jessica describes in powerful, personal detail the scenes on the ground from her time spent following US and Afghan special forces as they fought to stabilize...
Duration:00:32:03
Shaharzad Akbar: Leader and Visionary for Human Rights in Afghanistan
2/2/2021
Shaharzad Akbar may not appear as someone you’d expect to be leading the charge in one of the world’s harshest environments. But don't let Akbar's quiet demeanor fool you without first hearing her incredible story. Indeed, as chairperson at the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission, fighting for human rights is exactly what Akbar does everyday. Specifically, she fights on behalf of her fellow Afghan citizens' access to the full range of human rights. Her responsibility includes...
Duration:00:41:54
The Beauty of Arabic Art with Sultan Qassemi
1/26/2021
In art as in life, interpretation is unique to each and every individual. What we take from a piece of art is as important as the art itself, and ultimately defines the experience. Art historian and collector Sultan Qassemi chose to dedicate his life’s work to the appreciation of art - particularly works from the Arab region - and educating far and wide on art’s crucial role in the telling of history.
Perhaps more important than the art itself, Qassemi aims to use his influence to further...
Duration:00:31:09
Building a Better World by Uplifting Afghanistan — Lotfullah Najafizada
1/19/2021
Lotlfullah Najafizada holds a unique perspective on Afghanistan. His lifelong experience of living all around the country himself, combined with his award-winning, journalistic career, has granted Najafizada a deep connection with his homeland’s past, present, and future.
Najafizada was born in Kabul in the late ‘80s, when Afghanistan was in the midst of Russian occupation. Later, he lived through the internal conflicts resulting from Taliban-controlled government, and the subsequent US...
Duration:00:31:12