ELLE Digital Cover Star: Prakhar Gupta, The Podcaster We Can’t Pause

Listening to Prakhar Gupta is like being pulled into a current you didn’t see coming. He speaks fast, almost breathlessly, yet each thought lands with precision. The words stack against one another until you realise you’ve been leaning on them, unable to step back. For someone who has built a career on conversations that outlast most people’s attention spans, the effect is strangely, delightfully addictive.

“Anybody who’s met me in real life will tell you it’s the same guy on camera,” he says. “There is no force of personality, no force of character, no energetic pull if you’re not acting from your authentic source.”

Gupta’s first lessons in discipline came from his accountancy days: “I learned how to work hard from my CA years — 14 hours in front of a book, tackling insanely complex accounting problems. That taught me endurance.” At Columbia, a different skill set emerged: “The city taught me how to think clearly — how to stay true to an idea and strip it to its most honest form.”

That conviction later shaped his book Don’t Shut Up. “I hope people learn how to talk to others better. Indians can be stunted in their social education — partly because we’re a fear-based culture, partly because hierarchy runs deep. My attempt was to solve communication for 20- and 30-year-olds. I think the book did exactly that.”

His real stage, however, is the podcast. The Prakhar Gupta Xperience (PGX) has welcomed ministers, rappers, entrepreneurs and philosophers with equal candour. “These conversations are books in my library,” he says. “If you ask me which is my favourite, I’ll always say the most recent one.”

“If the guest is so lost they don’t realise how much time has passed… if they can’t break eye contact… if they’re moved when they talk about themselves — that’s when I know I’ve truly engaged them.”

Now PGX is headed to the United States — a first for an Indian podcaster. “The world will listen to India, not just the other way around. India will have a seat at the table of global discourse. Podcasters will make that happen — that’s my dream.”

For all his ambition, Gupta remains grounded: “My small rituals after work — time with childhood friends, family, books, shows that intrigue me — that’s what resets me for the next day.”

“Nobody wants cognitive load. All intellectual material has to be delivered like a spoon disguised as an aeroplane. You find the entertaining entry point, and when the subject finally cares — that’s when you slip in an idea that sticks for life.”

That is the paradox of Prakhar Gupta: in a culture of distraction, he demands attention. In an age addicted to soundbites, he builds space for long talks — and makes us listen anyway.

Editorial Director: Ainee Nizami Ahmedi; Photographer: Dhruvin Shah; Stylist: Idris Nidham; Sr. Graphic Designer: Sakshi Badani; Makeup: Nandini Arora; Hair: Junaid Ahmad; Bookings Editor: Rishith Shetty; Assisted by: Sanjana Dhawan (styling); Production: Pal Studio; Model’s agency: Purple Thoughts