Merit is a Privilege | Nope w/ Kunal Kamra ft Amit Thorat | 055

Amit Thorat is a development economist and faculty member at Jawaharlal Nehru University. His research focuses on poverty, inequality, and the political economy of exclusion and discrimination. He is widely known for his empirical work on caste-based inequalities, discrimination in society and markets and access to aervices. He brings rigorous data analysis to questions of social justice in India. Timestamps: 0:00 – Opening 0:31 – Is reservation the only path to social justice? 0:47 – The idea of reparations: where the debate began 1:25 – Origins of caste: from scripture to social order 2:54 – Varna as theory vs caste as lived reality 3:37 – Untouchability and the forgotten history of caste slavery 4:46 – Medieval rule and continuity of caste hierarchy 6:01 – British law, surveys, and institutionalising caste 8:14 – Abolition of slavery without compensation 12:23 – Independence, citizenship, and Ambedkar’s warning 13:52 – Reservation is not reparations 15:42 – “Merit” versus inherited privilege 18:36 – What reparations could look like: land, education, wealth 23:33 – Private sector, wealth taxes, and accountability 30:38 – Telangana’s Dalit Bandhu experiment 34:00 – Caste travels abroad: diaspora and the Cisco case 36:13 – Caste census, sub-castes, and the 50% cap 40:06 – Creamy layer, discrimination, and circular logic of merit 44:22 – Equal opportunity as a responsibility of the state Credits • Research Head: Anirban Bhattacharya • Camera Operator / Mixing and Mastering / Intro Music — @Mahansangeet : https://www.instagram.com/hi_mahan/ • Camera Operator / Video Editor / Intro Animation — @RevantTalekar : https://www.instagram.com/revanttalekar • Camera Operator / Guest Logistics Coordinator — @VybhavSharma https://www.instagram.com/vybhavsharma/ • Production Assistant — Haran Shetty