A Pioneering Indian Space Odyssey and Mister Rogers...
To the uninitiated, a knit cardigan would hold no import. But for those who knew of the phenomenon that was ‘Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood’, it was symbolic of a quiet ritual carried out by the eponymous host of a famed American children’s TV programme.
Each episode of the programme documented a visit by Fred Rogers, or as he was known to his five to eight-year-old viewers: Mister Rogers. The half hour “television visit” (as it was called), began with Mister Rogers removing his work jacket and donning a knit cardigan, removing his formal shoes to slip into a comfortable pair of sneakers.
As a writer on the show once noted,
“A young viewer watching Mister Rogers change into his [cardigan and] playtime sneakers cannot help sensing that here is a man who’s willing to meet the child halfway. That one action tells him that Rogers has a grown-up life of his own somewhere else, but that he has set aside this time to pay full attention to the child’s concerns.”
In 1969, when appearing before the US’ Senate Subcommittee on Communications to argue against proposed cuts to federal funding for children’s programming, Mister Rogers described his Neighborhood as such:
“We deal with such things as the inner drama of childhood. And we speak to it constructively. This is what I give. I give an expression of care every day to each child, to help him realize that he is unique. And I feel that if we in public television can only make it clear that feelings are mentionable and manageable, we will have done a great service for mental health.”
After beginning as a Pittsburgh-specific broadcast in 1968, the programme was broadcast nationally across the US from 1969 onward.
The cult status of the programme was bolstered by the evidently thoughtful and dignifying approach with which he addressed his viewership, running for a total of 33 years, with Mister Rogers being responsible for writing or co-writing all the programme’s scripts, and composing the melodies and lyrics of any featured songs (his bachelors degree in music composition was of help here).
In consultation with American child psychologist and associate professor at the University of Pittsburgh, Margaret McFarland (who he met during his graduate studies in theology), each week’s programming focused on a singular theme ranging from topics as far ranging as war to divorce, with a small set of hand puppet characters and real world guests joining each episode to further demonstrate a given week’s theme.
In 1968, the year the show was launched, it earned a Peabody Award for youth and children’s programming, with Mister Rogers himself winning a personal Peabody in 1992, the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 24th Daytime Emmy in 1997 and in 2002, months before his passing, the Presidential Medal of Freedom for his work in children’s education initiatives.
Much as Mister Rogers’ show was a pioneering effort in children’s programming, Shubhanshu Shukla’s participation in Axiom Mission-4 can be touted as a pioneering effort for human spaceflight and India’s ambitions for space exploration, argues Takshashila High-Tech Geopolitics Research Analyst, Ashwin Prasad.
But, beyond the groundswell of domestic pride his spaceflight may have garnered, it also bodes well for further investment in India’s space-related ventures as well as domestic innovation, argues Ashwin in his recent Op-Ed in the Indian Express.
For a full read of the impassioned case he makes for why this development “marks the beginning of the era of Indian human spaceflight” and the potential precedent setting India could leverage in this context, follow this link.
P.S.: To watch Mister Rogers’ acceptance speech at the 1997 Emmy’s, follow this link.
A Strategic Dilemma in the Israel-Iran Conflict: Nitin’s View…
“It is unclear if anyone reminded US President Donald Trump of former secretary of state Colin Powell’s Pottery Barn Rule—“You break it, you own it"—before he decided to bomb Iran. The US is almost at that point. If Tehran retaliates by targeting US troops in the region, Washington will have to increase its commitment to the war, taking it again to the question of boots on the ground”
Writes Takshashila Co-Founder and Director, Nitin Pai, in his latest column in The Mint, as he examines the lay of the land when it comes to the US’ engagement in Israel’s war against Iran.
His commentary gives due consideration to the US’ historical engagement in the Middle East, the dynamism of Iran’s middle class and why it would be a “job half done” if the US and Israel do not engage in a ground war.
To read his commentary on the evolving geopolitical considerations on this issue, including the “strategic dilemma” the US is currently confronted with in this context, follow this link.
Tale of an Israeli-Indian Arms Affair…
“For a country that has spent decades carefully crafting neutral positions on various conflicts, [India’s] lean towards Israel can only be explained by how important Delhi perceives its defence partnership with Tel Aviv to be. In a juncture in history that is characterised by many regional pressures and conflicts, it is understandable that countries want to secure reliable defence partnerships. However, are the tradeoffs worth it?”
Adya Madhavan, Research Analyst with Takshashila’s High-Tech Geopolitics Programme pens the above in her recent Op-Ed in Moneycontrol.
But fear not, dear reader, Adya won’t leave you on that cliffhanger, but instead will carefully parse out the many considerations including historical context of the “arms affair” between India-Israel, the changing nature of Russia-India relationship, and the role Iran plays in the midst of this all.
Adya’s detailed analysis can be found in its full context here.
Great Power Show: Tech Tussle Edition
As China and the US jostle to gain the upper hand in technology rivalry, where do other countries find themselves? How has this arm wrestling between Washington and Beijing left its mark on factors as broad as globalisation, alliances and innovation?
These are some big questions, but don’t ruminate on them alone when we have our Great Power Show (GPS) host and Chairperson of Takshashila’s Indo-Pacific Studies Programme, Manoj Kewalramani to be your guide.
In his latest GPS episode, Manoj has a candid conversation with Ryan Fedasiuk (former Advisor for Bilateral Affairs at the U.S. Department of State’s China House and adjunct professor at Georgetown University) where they examine the knotty “technological tussle” the US and China are locked in.
Follow this link to hear the full episode.
India’s Hopes Dashed Amidst the China+1 Strategy? All Things Policy Episode of the Week!
This week’s All Things Policy episode in the spotlight is a conversation between Takshashila High-Tech Geopolitics Research Analyst, Shobhankita Reddy and Rahul Jacob (former South China Correspondent, Financial Times & current columnist for the Mint) as they help you understand why India has not seen the benefits of the China+1 strategy.
But hope may not yet be lost, dear reader. Shobhankita and Rahul together demystify “why India waits as global supply chains are on the move and how India can take advantage of this geopolitical opportunity.”
To eavesdrop on their conversation, follow the provided link.
Takshashila Tabletop Trove!
For our regular readers, you know of course that this section of Dispatch is intended to be a digital repository of the books that sit in Takshashila’s physical office space in Bengaluru, Karnataka.
This week’s theme is: ‘Ground Zero: Disasters and their Making’, as curated by Takshashila Indo-Pacific Studies Programme Staff Research Analyst, Anushka Saxena.
Genocide, The Holocaust and Israel-Palestine (Omer Bartov)
The Meaning of Nuclear Revolution (Robert Jervis)
There is No Planet B (Mike Berners-Lee)
Partition (Barney White-Spunner)
But, Wait! There’s More!
What could possibly be learned about India’s justice system in six-weeks? A fair bit, if you're learning from DAKSH, one of India’s leading think tanks focused on the promotion of accountability and better governance in India.
Their new course offering on OpenTakshashila will teach you how judicial policies are influenced by (and in turn influence) broader societal dynamics, governance structures, and economic outcomes.
They’ll combine conceptual frameworks (we love those!) with real-world insights from key stakeholders, leaving you with a fairly comprehensive understanding of India’s judicial landscape.
Apply to the course today by following this link (P.S.: The course runs from 2nd Aug 2025 to 13 Sep 2025).
This edition of the Dispatch was written by Kripa Koshy, Programme Manager for Takshashila’s Post Graduate Programme in Public Policy.