Shanthi's Hot Takes: Gentle Parenting, Ice Baths & Air Fryers

5:29Romesh Ranganathan:you enjoyed it alright of course you would Ben undid his flies and started fanning the smell of his ball bag across the room you think it was charming okay

5:38Shanthi Ranganathan:you said the video you said things to your mother What a rude bugger you are

5:43Romesh Ranganathan:Mum Yeah People respect you and they love hearing your hot takes And everything from instant coffee to men So we're going to get your hot takes on some everyday items And recent phenomena You can tell us whether you think they've changed your life Or you think they're absolute rubbish You ready?

5:56Shanthi Ranganathan:Yeah Okay

5:57Romesh Ranganathan:WhatsApp groups

5:59Shanthi Ranganathan:I'm good at it

6:00Romesh Ranganathan:Do you like them?

6:01Shanthi Ranganathan:I like them

6:02Romesh Ranganathan:What groups are you in?

6:03Shanthi Ranganathan:I only text my friends in WhatsApp groups What sort of names of groups do you have? No, I can't tell you that Why? They are my friends. Why would I...

6:11Romesh Ranganathan:Yeah, but they're not going to like... No, no. It's not going to be a rude name, is it? They're not called the Lamb Dagger Chasers or something, eh?

6:22Romesh Ranganathan:What's the name of the group?

6:26Shanthi Ranganathan:I don't have a group.

6:27Romesh Ranganathan:I only talk to my friends. I can tell you some of my groups, if you like. Okay. The December Beings. That's the play group that I'm in because it's called December Bee. J. Cole chat that chat group changes based on what we're all discussing because recently we've been discussing the J. Cole album J. Cole chat lads lads lads it's a bit fucking tragic

6:50Shanthi Ranganathan:I don't have any group chat like that no

6:53Romesh Ranganathan:the Panani Dondadas

7:00Romesh Ranganathan:Badman Tings

7:05Romesh Ranganathan:Pum Pum Smashers

7:08Shanthi Ranganathan:no way no he's just pretending the windmillers Romy stop that you are a liar

7:17Romesh Ranganathan:dick swing low

7:19Shanthi Ranganathan:yeah

7:23Romesh Ranganathan:fuck monsters that's another one

7:25Shanthi Ranganathan:that's our group yeah

7:28Romesh Ranganathan:here's a group this is genuine name this one me and a few friends want to climb the three peaks and the group's called three peak

7:39Romesh Ranganathan:who are you doing that with pardon who are you doing three peaks with just for some of my closest friends okay so that's whatsapp groups I love I quite like okay

7:52Romesh Ranganathan:I like this game now here's the next one self checkout machines at supermarkets

8:00Shanthi Ranganathan:I can't do that

8:01Romesh Ranganathan:you can't do it I can't do it why

8:03Shanthi Ranganathan:I think I haven't got to trust in myself. I don't get something goes wrong. Yeah. People will be watching.

8:10Romesh Ranganathan:Can I just give a general message to supermarkets? Yeah. Why don't you fucking do something for us? Yeah. You put all the stuff. You have to wander around. There's no fucking stuff. And now we have to put it through ourselves.

8:20Shanthi Ranganathan:Yeah.

8:21Romesh Ranganathan:Do something.

8:22Shanthi Ranganathan:Please do something. Tell you where it is good.

8:24Romesh Ranganathan:Lidl.

8:25Shanthi Ranganathan:Yeah. Lidl. I haven't been. Once I've been. Once. Yeah.

8:30Romesh Ranganathan:You've been once. Yeah. The way you talked about it, you go there every fucking Sunday to pray.

8:37Shanthi Ranganathan:That's not nice, is it?

8:39Romesh Ranganathan:But guys, she was evangelising, right? I know. I don't know why I throw to this fucking... I would have thought you'd been there more than once from how you were talking about it. Oh, my God. That's the most diplomatic way you could have expressed that. But also, you go as many times as you want. There's no...

8:53Shanthi Ranganathan:Yeah, that's right. But I'll be going because I'm a pensioner. Yeah. So I will go on Thursdays. Why? Because they'll reduce the price.

9:06Romesh Ranganathan:So they reduce on Thursdays?

9:07Shanthi Ranganathan:Thursdays for all beaches.

9:12Romesh Ranganathan:Calorie counts on menus?

9:14Shanthi Ranganathan:I do take care of what I eat.

9:18Romesh Ranganathan:When you go to a restaurant and they've got the calories, do you like that?

9:21Shanthi Ranganathan:I like that, but I only eat little, so I don't count the calories. I will eat what I like.

9:26Romesh Ranganathan:I've got mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, it's quite good if you're trying to have a balanced day. On the other hand, if you go to a restaurant and you're having a treat, I sometimes think just eat what you want.

9:35Shanthi Ranganathan:That's true.

9:36Romesh Ranganathan:You know, sometimes you can be put off. Sometimes you're ordering something you're going to enjoy less. You're paying money to go to a restaurant, and then you buy something you're going to enjoy less because they've got a calorie count on it. That's not good, is it?

9:46Shanthi Ranganathan:Very true. Thank you.

9:48Romesh Ranganathan:All right. Gentle parenting.

9:51Shanthi Ranganathan:Gentle parenting. I like that. Do you? I like that. Yes.

9:54Romesh Ranganathan:How can you possibly know? Have you ever done gentle parenting?

9:58Shanthi Ranganathan:Yeah, with you.

10:04Romesh Ranganathan:What was your gentle, like what, give me an example. Yeah, give me an example of you being gentle with me. Fuck you, Romesh.

10:15Shanthi Ranganathan:I'm talking about under 10 years old. Okay, under 10 she was quite gentle, and then 11, that's when. 11, 12, and when you started having girlfriends and things, I didn't.

10:25Romesh Ranganathan:No.

10:25Shanthi Ranganathan:Okay?

10:26Romesh Ranganathan:I didn't have a girlfriend at 11. Bloody wish I did.

10:29Shanthi Ranganathan:That girl came on the show.

10:31Romesh Ranganathan:I was 16 then?

10:33Shanthi Ranganathan:Yeah, you tried. Not for... I didn't try for five years. It didn't work out. That's all.

10:38Romesh Ranganathan:Okay. All right. What do you think of air fryers? Mum, air fryers. What do you think of air fryers?

10:43Shanthi Ranganathan:I don't have air fryers.

10:44Romesh Ranganathan:I know. What do you think of them? You can think of stuff you don't have, don't you?

10:47Shanthi Ranganathan:It dries a damn fool, doesn't it? No, it doesn't. No, I never tried that. I don't have one.

10:53Romesh Ranganathan:I'm a fan.

10:54Shanthi Ranganathan:Shall I buy one?

10:57Romesh Ranganathan:Yeah, I don't know. Why don't you just send me how much the one is that you want? Okay. You have to put air fry. Lisa's now saying we've got to use air fryer liners though. So you put a little Johnny in it and then the food actually never makes...

11:09Shanthi Ranganathan:You call it... You are dealing with food and you are calling it Johnny, is it? What does Johnny mean? Like a condom.

11:16Romesh Ranganathan:Like something you put on your dick before sex.

11:18Shanthi Ranganathan:Listen, respect the food. Don't call it Johnny.

11:21Romesh Ranganathan:Okay? Okay.

11:23Shanthi Ranganathan:You play with the Johnny and you eat that food, yeah? You get the johnny and you put it around the shit and it doesn't touch the, it doesn't

11:31Romesh Ranganathan:actually touch the basket, so you don't have to do as much clean up.

11:35Shanthi Ranganathan:Lazy bugger.

11:37Romesh Ranganathan:I've not just invented this.

11:38Shanthi Ranganathan:I've never tried one. I never cooked it.

11:40Romesh Ranganathan:Yeah.

11:40Shanthi Ranganathan:But I'm going to get one and you don't have to buy me. I'll buy it myself.

11:45Romesh Ranganathan:Ice baths.

11:47Shanthi Ranganathan:Ice baths. I haven't tried, but I like to try.

11:50Romesh Ranganathan:Yeah.

11:51Shanthi Ranganathan:One day. Yeah.

11:52Romesh Ranganathan:Ice baths.

11:52Shanthi Ranganathan:Who is going to give me an ice bath? That's the question.

11:57Romesh Ranganathan:What do you mean? Who's going to give you an ice bath?

11:59Shanthi Ranganathan:Somebody has to pour the water and then it on you.

12:01Romesh Ranganathan:No, they don't have to pour it on you. You just fill the thing with ice and water, then you jump in it.

12:06Shanthi Ranganathan:I'm not going to do that. Then who is going to clean the damn thing? You are.

12:10Romesh Ranganathan:You are. Sorry, Mum. All of these questions can be answered, but do it. You do it.

12:15Shanthi Ranganathan:Okay, I'll do it. Okay. Why are you trying to kill me? I might have a heart attack.

12:19Romesh Ranganathan:Mum, it's a game. We come up with different topics and we discuss whether we like it. You're not going to be forced to do these things. I know that. Right.

12:29Shanthi Ranganathan:So good, so good, so good.

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12:58Shanthi Ranganathan:K-pop Demon Hunter's Saja Boys Breakfast Meal and Huntrix Meal have just dropped at McDonald's. They're calling this a battle for the fans. What do you say to that, Rumi? It's not a battle. So glad the Saja Boys could take breakfast and give our meal the rest of the day. It is an honor to share. No, it's our honor. It is our larger honor. No, really. Stop. You can really feel the respect in this battle. Pick a meal to pick a side.

13:26Romesh Ranganathan:And participate in McDonald's while supplies last. This Easter, skip the ordinary and whip up something golden with melty, creamy Velveeta cheese. From scalloped potatoes to rich mac and cheese, Velveeta turns every bite into a crowd-pleasing celebration, bringing the extra to the ordinary, transforming simple sides into lip-smacking, satisfying moments. So go on, make it melt, make it craveable, make it indulgent. Velveeta, respect the drip. Visit Velveeta.com slash Easter for some recipe inspiration.

13:59Shanthi Ranganathan:Why do you do that anyway?

14:01Romesh Ranganathan:Because it's supposed to, I think it's good for your health.

14:03Shanthi Ranganathan:Good for your health. I have seen you doing it. You and Rob once.

14:08Romesh Ranganathan:That was for that ballet show, yeah. That was to do muscle recovery. It's difficult. We did a cryogenic chamber as well. That was quite good. but those are really expensive. So I think ice baths are probably easier. Tom Davis does them all the time. Why? Because it's good for your health. John, you've got an ice bath vibe about you. Do you ice bath? I have done it, yeah. It's really horrible. Ice bath? No. Ice bath? No, okay. Tom bought me one, but I've not used it once. But you've actually got a whole ice bath? Well, it's an inflatable-like little thing, but I've not even blown it up.

14:44Shanthi Ranganathan:So you had to collect lots of ice. You buy it in the shop or you make it in the freezer? What is it?

14:50Romesh Ranganathan:That's a good question. You fill it up with water and then add some ice. You can buy ice cubes in bags.

14:55Shanthi Ranganathan:Why would I waste my time like that? Just imagine. Oh, God. Yeah, sorry.

15:01Romesh Ranganathan:I'm sorry. Don't hit me again. Okay. That was a fun game. Kept it light. Let's hear from some of our listeners. As always, WhatsApp messages and voice notes are encouraged. Let us know if you want to remain anonymous. But remember, a problem shared is a problem halved. What are you waiting for? The number is 077-316-23355. That's 077-316-23355. Or you can email podcast at rhangabi.com. This week, we're answering more of your questions. Mum, are you ready? I'm ready. Okay, this is a WhatsApp message from Cinderella. I'm going to read it out. Hi, Ramesh and Auntie Shanti. Hope you've had a good week.

15:38Romesh Ranganathan:I absolutely love listening to your show. I'm a British Indian, Tamil, and my husband is English. We have a 20-month-old who keeps us on our toes. My husband and I both like to cook and try various cuisines. I recently noticed that while our son is great with Indian food, absolutely loves Italy and puttu, he refuses to eat English food. What are you laughing at?

16:00Shanthi Ranganathan:No, I'm just listening.

16:03Romesh Ranganathan:What are you snickering at?

16:06Shanthi Ranganathan:I wonder why he hates Indian food.

16:10Romesh Ranganathan:I've tried offering roasts and pies, but the only thing he'll even try is fish and chips. Do you have any advice or tips on how to encourage my 20-month-old to be more adventurous with this food? Thank you, Cinderella.

16:21Shanthi Ranganathan:If they like Sri Lankan food, when they grow up, when they start mixing with friends, they will learn to eat English food. At school, they serve English food. So why is she worried? Nothing to worry about. Let them eat what they like. Italy and Dosa, it's all good for you. It's made of uridal. Is it puttu or pittu? Some people call it puttu. Some people call it pittu. People who came to the UK, they started calling it pittu. It's a trend, isn't it? Pittu. It's a trend of puttu.

16:58Romesh Ranganathan:I've really enjoyed that a little bit, haven't you? Quite a niche bit of comedy, I'd say.

17:05Shanthi Ranganathan:No, you know how you make puttu? Yeah. You mix the rice flour, put coconut and everything salt and you put it in a it's a steamer it looks like a dick push the put the flour once this gets steamed you push it

17:28Romesh Ranganathan:and then it ejaculates

17:31Shanthi Ranganathan:oh my god

17:32Romesh Ranganathan:you're the one that said dick

17:34Shanthi Ranganathan:you told me not to say it so sorry it's like

17:40Romesh Ranganathan:What's the best way to describe it? It's like a... It's like a sort of...

17:43Shanthi Ranganathan:Granule rice flour. Yeah, like a crumb.

17:45Romesh Ranganathan:It's like a really...

17:46Shanthi Ranganathan:Like a semolina.

17:47Romesh Ranganathan:Yeah, but a larger crumb. But it's a bit slightly...

17:49Shanthi Ranganathan:And it's softer. Yeah.

17:51Romesh Ranganathan:And it's like a rice equivalent, basically. Yeah.

17:53Shanthi Ranganathan:But it's so lovely when you eat with coconut sambal and things like that. It's lovely.

17:58Romesh Ranganathan:Really nice. And it's like a dick, the thing. It's like a dick, the steamer. You don't have to use a dick steamer, though, do you?

18:04Shanthi Ranganathan:No, you can steam it in a normal pan. Normal steamer, yeah. But Sri Lankans love to do that and it looks lovely. Now they have brought out, they put carrots in it and so many other things and vegetables. Then they make it.

18:20Romesh Ranganathan:Wonderful, wonderful. Yeah, I love Pudu. Cinderella, I think you're worrying about something that doesn't really need worrying about. Your child's 20 months old. So just enjoy the fact they're eating what they eat. When they get older, they're going to want to eat all that sort of stuff. I feel like when kids get older, they love all that stuff. You're actually blessed with a kid who, your kid is being very adventurous. Because, you know, those kind of, I say different, I mean like non-British kind of spicy food.

18:49Shanthi Ranganathan:You love Italy, dosa and things like that. What about Dinesh? He hates it.

18:53Romesh Ranganathan:He hates it.

18:54Shanthi Ranganathan:He hates the damn thing.

18:56Romesh Ranganathan:He hates the fucking thing. I'm joining you. I agree. He hates it, doesn't he? Yeah. He doesn't like flake of food. He does now eat a bit of mutton curry. Mutton curry. Growing up. Once when we were in Sri Lanka, do you remember when we were in your village? Yeah. And then he wouldn't eat any food. We had to send somebody on a bike like three hours to Colombo to get some sausages.

19:17Shanthi Ranganathan:Colombo to get sausages.

19:18Romesh Ranganathan:And then came back and he said, these are shit. Yeah. Bad.

19:22Shanthi Ranganathan:He won't eat anything.

19:23Romesh Ranganathan:No. That's it. Okay. Next question is a voice note from Henry.

19:31Shanthi Ranganathan:Mm-hmm.

19:31Romesh Ranganathan:Is it Henry or is it Henri's texting? that'd be fucking amazing hi romesh hi shanti my name is henry i've got a slight issue which i'm hoping um you could give some sort of advice for um i currently have a i've currently just graduated uni uh maybe like two years ago and i've got a uh a job which is slightly which has a salary slightly under the uk's national average um but i get to work from home at least three times a week or three days a week so that's the part i mostly enjoy however my parents are starting to get involved and wanting me to uh get another job which either is higher paying or has a higher status um so i would just like some advice maybe from romesh um yeah because he knows what mom's gonna how would you tell your mom in a in a nice way to sort of back off a little bit and allow me to sort of do my own research and maybe do my own experiences, my own mistakes in life.

20:43Romesh Ranganathan:And also maybe from Shanti, how would you want to be told in the nicest way to allow me to do my own things and back off so that it doesn't strain the relationship? Thank you. Oh, my God. Henry sounds so lovely, doesn't it?

21:01Shanthi Ranganathan:Oh, loving son. Such a thoughtful. He must be calling the mother all the time.

21:08Romesh Ranganathan:Thank you, Henry, for your voice note, you prick. No, I'm joking. So, Mum. Yeah. Henry, first of all, my first bit of advice is this is not your parents' business. You do the job you want to do. That's very rude. Parents, and I don't know what your background is, But parents, for some reason, seem to think higher wage and status equates happiness. And it doesn't. It's bollocks. And so there's this generational thing where they think you've got to get a job that pays this amount of money so you can have this house and this car and people respect you in the community. And that just is bullshit. You know, you've got to do what you enjoy and what you're going to be doing it so much of your life.

21:48Romesh Ranganathan:You've got to do something that you enjoy, because even if you do something you absolutely love, sometimes it's going to be hard and if you don't initially love it that becomes much much much harder so henry what i would say to you is your instincts are right your parents should not be dictating to you and they should not be exerting any pressure on you to change your job having said that in their defense the reason they're doing that is because they care about it's not coming from a bad place they're doing it because they think that you earning more money and having more status will lead to you having an easier life and you are of a different opinion unfortunately for your parents even though they've made i'm sure they've made a level of sacrifice to bring you up the whole point of parenting is to give your children the required tools in order to tackle life and then allow them to do that for themselves and by you know your parents can advise you they can make suggestions but at the end of the day it is not their business or decision for what job you

22:48Shanthi Ranganathan:do mom my darling don't worry about that but if you won't ask her to back off you can't just go and say mom don't say these things take her for lunch or dinner and have a lovely chat and said I'm happy what I'm doing and I love you so much but don't give me all these things to bullshit no you don't talk to your mother like that no it's only you do that sorry yeah so I nicely talk to her she will understand

23:21Romesh Ranganathan:back the fuck off

23:24Shanthi Ranganathan:no no and she will understand yeah mother loves you so much I think there are so much um shove it no No, Ramesh, they think, oh, my son is so-and-so. They have got that habit, talking about.

23:40Romesh Ranganathan:Here's a question for you. When I first moved into comedy, you didn't like it?

23:44Shanthi Ranganathan:No. The reason I don't like it, are you going to make money for yourself?

23:50Romesh Ranganathan:Yeah. I am worried.

23:51Shanthi Ranganathan:I don't want you. I didn't want you to suffer. You resigned the job and you've gone into that.

23:57Romesh Ranganathan:Yeah. But I would have given everything to help you if you're in trouble. Yeah.

24:03Shanthi Ranganathan:but that's the only reason yeah

24:05Romesh Ranganathan:but to be clear you were not in favour of the move to comedy were you initially

24:10Shanthi Ranganathan:I was nervous because that's the time we were coming out of a lot of trouble yeah and you resigned the job and you're jobless if the comedy doesn't work out I would have been really upset Rami yeah

24:22Romesh Ranganathan:I know you would

24:23Shanthi Ranganathan:and also part of the issue part of the issue

24:26Romesh Ranganathan:is the maths teaching has got a status hasn't it so you like the status of being a maths teacher and head of six form yeah Yeah. So then I left that to do comedy. You were concerned. And then the first time that you didn't seem concerned is when I started doing television. Because the status is back a bit, isn't it? Like if I was doing comedy and I hadn't got on TV, would you still think this is a success?

24:48Shanthi Ranganathan:Yeah. You're making enough money to look after your family. And you are teaching the A-level students. And that made me so happy. You are creating a better life for the future generation. Yeah. So I was so happy. My son is teaching them and they are going to be someone one day. But television is entertaining. And when you told me that you got that kind of money, I was jumping with laughter.

25:17Romesh Ranganathan:All right, all right, let's move on. Let's move on. What? Shall I tell the amount? No. No. What we haven't told Henry. So is that helpful? Henry, I think you should say to your parents.

25:27Shanthi Ranganathan:Nicely tell mother. Yeah.

25:29Romesh Ranganathan:Thank you so much for your advice. I'm going to consider it, but I want to do what makes me happy. Okay. And hopefully they'll be all right. Parents often present more angry than they actually make. You know, the number of times that I pretend that I'm angry with the kids, but I think what they've done is really funny. Numerous. So, you know, it's first and foremost, your parents love you. So there you go.

25:54Shanthi Ranganathan:That's it. One more thing. Can I, can I squeeze it?

25:57Romesh Ranganathan:Yeah. I'd love you to speak. yeah sort of acting like you're not allowed to speak on this podcast

26:01Shanthi Ranganathan:the status is nothing everybody we finish our life yeah the same way we get old and whether you are you have got so much money or and we fall ill and finish our life so the status thing it's rubbish yeah

26:16Romesh Ranganathan:so there you go you we can also on this podcast give advice and opinions that aren't the things that we've lived by okay we've got one more it's a voice note from Fran this is exciting yeah

26:28Shanthi Ranganathan:Hello Ramesh and Shanti. This is Fran Fox from Newcastle. I love the podcast. It's just so hilarious. And I was wondering, what do you love about each other? It's clear that there is so much love between you two and Dinesh as well. I just wondered what is it that you love about each other? thanks so much keep up the amazing work and keep the laughs coming cheers bye

26:58Romesh Ranganathan:Fran thank you so much for your voice note and that brings us to the end of Thursday's episode of the Ramesh Ranganathan show we will see you on Monday that's horrible go on do you want to do this in this exercise

27:16Shanthi Ranganathan:no you

27:16Romesh Ranganathan:yeah oh I compliment you first I've said this before actually I don't want to say it again Okay. I'll say it. You're an incredible mother, and you've been amazing, so supportive. What are you doing? What's this? Fucking Don Corleone. You come and you tell me that I'm a great mother. You talk about my support. We don't go. What are you doing now? What the fuck was that?

27:42Shanthi Ranganathan:It just came. I just wanted to say. I've never seen fuck off from me God I've never seen anybody being so generous to their parents man I can't believe the amount of help we have I wouldn't be living in that house without you shut up feel like kicking your ass so it's true it's true nobody wants to spend their money or give the money to even their parents but you are not like that, you are very very special sometimes I think, oh my god I mean it I mean it, the advice you give me then I listen to it you are such a wonderful son but if you make any mistake, I'll kick your ass so hard

28:39Romesh Ranganathan:good, good, good, so Fran, to summarise what I love about my mum is her ongoing support as a mother and what she loves about me is that I paid for her house. Thank you so much for your voice. In one word.

28:54Shanthi Ranganathan:I paid for her house. Shut up.

28:57Romesh Ranganathan:That's all we've got time for today. Thanks for listening and sticking with us. We're going to be back on Monday with another exciting guest. Please join us. But until then, keep listening, liking and subscribing.

29:13Shanthi Ranganathan:Lick my ass. All your support I'm over the moon You're wonderful people I bless you With all my heart Have a wonderful day And I love you all Love to see you again Eat shit Thank you so much

29:30Romesh Ranganathan:For watching this episode Of the Romesh Ranganathan show I've been told That some of you Are watching this Enjoying it Wallowing in it But you still haven't subscribed That's mad behaviour You're going to miss episodes Very silly So follow and subscribe To the Romesh Ranganathan show On YouTube Spotify, Apple or wherever you get your podcasts We drop new episodes every Monday and Thursday On Monday I'm here with amazing guests talking about their career what they're up to having a laugh with them and then on Thursdays I'm joined by my mum widely regarded as the audience's favourite Ranganathan and we answer your questions your stories and your family dilemmas We'll be back on Monday with another great guest and then mum will see you again on Thursday Send your questions and stories to podcast at rangabee.com Voice note or text on 07731 623 355.

30:15Romesh Ranganathan:We genuinely love hearing from you and there's a good chance you'll hear yourself on the show. See you next time.

30:20Shanthi Ranganathan:Oh, shut up, Romesh.