In this episode, Shruti speaks with Nirupama Menon Rao about the South Asian Symphony, Indian stories in opera, border tensions between India and China, the importance of Tibet, Taiwan and much more. Rao is a retired Indian diplomat, foreign secretary and ambassador. She was India’s first woman spokesperson in the Ministry of External Affairs, New Delhi, the first woman high commissioner from her country to Sri Lanka and the first Indian woman ambassador to the People’s Republic of China. She served as India’s Foreign Secretary from 2009 to 2011 and as India’s ambassador to the United States from 2011 to 2013. She is the author of “The Fractured Himalaya: India, Tibet, China 1949-62” and founder of the South Asian Symphony Foundation. Recorded December 13th, 2022 Read a full transcript enhanced with helpful links. Follow us on Twitter Follow Shruti on Twitter Follow Nirupama on Twitter Click here for the latest Ideas of India episodes sent straight to your inbox.