When I first opened the link of 18 MINUTES WITH SATYAL AND SILWAL on YouTube, I was taken back by the length of the video. 18 minutes? At a time when we’re used to watching 15 seconds to very short few minute long clips as we scroll through Facebook, Instagram and Twitter; I was pretty shocked to see 18 minutes on the bottom right corner. However, I gave myself few minutes and I was pleasantly surprised with how well Satyal and Silwal manage to draw listeners in. I must say that that the pair seem a perfect fit for each other and have a warm chemistry which instantly makes the podcast from the Himalayas a joyful listening experience. There’s also no music or “song requests and dedication” which I definitely dig! Just 18 minutes of discussion, opinions, recommendations and interviews/stories from different people. The most recent Ep 3 features an interview with Prithu Baskota! It made for a great listen.
I also ended up listening to the first and the second episodes. From menstruation to life in Australia; Satyal and Silwal manage to cover quite a range of topics and have people over to talk with them.
After doing a bit of digging I also stumbled across “18 Quick facts about 18 Minutes with Satyal and Silwal”, here’s a few I liked and want to share here.
- It basically started after a brief talk about life and childhood dreams- both Satyal and Silwal wanted to become commentators and RJS and didn’t want to give up on their dreams just yet.
- The recordings are done from Satyal’s Mac (he wants to derive maximum value from the 110K he has invested) and not from a proper studio.
- Satyal and Silwal wanted to launch the podcast when enthusiasm was high although they were well aware of the rawness of the first episode.
- Satyal always wanted people to call him by his surname and now he feels he is positioning himself just the way he likes it!
Love the fact that they wanted to be RJ’s and rather than complain about other RJ’s doing their thing, they went ahead and created this and got to be their own RJ’s. I’m stating this generally as everyday we come across people who say, I want to do this because I believe I can do it better than he or she; but they don’t do anything apart from just talk.
Looking forward to hearing more.
A big thanks from both Satyal and Silwal! Cheers!