It was the first sun I’d seen in ten (but what felt like twenty) days of Chicago winter grey when I walked into a familiar sunlit apartment to hang out with lovely Chicago comedians, Meg Indurti and Sonal Aggarwal. After a deep dive into the sinister resemblance between a mutual friend of ours’ and Joe Goldberg from Netflix’s ‘You,’ we got to talking about their podcast, Rani Rage Radio.

I must say, I’ve always been rather stubborn about podcasts and prefer to keep it old school with music- aka Justin Bieber’s ‘Yummy’ on repeat- but Rani Rage is too goddamn relatable- actually, relatable isn’t the right word- too chillingly candid to not challenge my initial judgments. Rani Rage Radio keeps you entranced with genuine and impactful content for hours, until your suddenly jolted back to reality to the unfortunate realization that you’re not actually chilling in the room with two girls who get it better than your therapist, aunt, and roommates combined. Rather, you’re sitting on your bed and your arm’s asleep and your cinnamon toast crunch has completely melted into your lukewarm almond milk. And you’re not even mad about it.

Meg’s witty, dry humor collides with Sonal’s zany, empathic stories, and that’s just the beginning of their complementary personalities. They’re both Indian but have totally different backgrounds; Sonal was born and raised in Illinois and Meg grew up in India for eight years before moving to the US.  There’s a solid 10-year age gap that warrants the funniest disparities and a playful dynamic when talking about issues like “ghost culture” because Meg somewhat understands and Sonal’s just OVER IT. The two of them pair together like biscuits and gravy, bacon and eggs, or two hilarious, brilliant women who not only challenge, but bring light, humor, and realness to all things young adults experience on the daily (but don’t like to talk about because we don’t like to feel uncomfortable). Sonal and Meg invite the fuck out of those uncomfortable feelings and laugh through them, call them by their name, and question them. Like: the weird things our moms do when they’re in our apartments and their inability to treat us as like adults; emotionally unavailable people who date but are constantly overwhelmed by their own preconceived notions, judgments, and opinions that block them from being vulnerable and living in the moment; period stigmatization and how different it is in India compared to the US. In one episode alone, I feel validated in the things that make me uncomfortable, weird, and existential and I learn about my own privilege and things that make other cultures feel a different way. I reflect, I laugh, I nod in deep, intellectual understanding. And It’s not always that serious either. Sometimes, one episode is more like this: Meg’s low voice gives me somewhat of a calming ASMR experience (maybe that’s just a me thing?) as she tells me about her skin care routine, in which I just inherently trust, and then I’m awoken by the cartoonistic Sonal beginning a story about her juggling convention in Turkey. I write down a quick list of products, I lay back, I crack the fuck up, I really should travel more.

The future for Rani Rage Radio looks like a continuation of weekly podcast episodes, and down the line, a live show with a US and India tour. Even though Sonal and Meg were raised to be quiet, overprotected, and inconspicuous, they knew their voices and stories needed to be known. “Indian people can be something other than doctors and engineers. You can be brown and be good at school, and have sex, and smoke weed,” Meg says in her fuzzy robe as we wrap up the interview. Show them love and let their material spark your own uncomfortable, celebratory, and unwavering emotions on Spotify, Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. And if you fux with them on the heavy and want to get in on their hilarious banter, consider INTERNING for them. Inquire through any of the listed links!!!