Podcasts by Dispatches from Kolkata
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Call Your Mother from 2023-12-13T04:40
Sandip Roy tries to call his mother, but it proves to be more challenging than one would expect.
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Ain't no Mountain High Enough (A Marriage in Nepal) from 2023-12-06T04:40
For 16 years Maya Gurung and Surendra Pandey could not get married, but now they have the most important piece of paper in Nepal.
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Just Looking Like a Wow! from 2023-11-29T04:40
“Looking like a wow" is the hot new viral craze in India. Sandip brings us the story and what it means for a boutique owner from New Delhi to suddenly become a star.
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Turkey for Dinner.... in Kolkata? from 2023-11-22T04:40
It was admittedly a moment of sheer American holiday nostalgia. Cooking a turkey in India. I thought it could be a fun adventure. I just didn’t realize that finding a turkey was the least of it.
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Kali and Diwali from 2023-11-15T04:40
While the festival of Diwali is well known across the world as the festival of light another festival at the same time, the festival of the Goddess Kali will probably never be celebrated in the Whi...
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The Art of Durga from 2023-11-08T04:40
Kolkata's biggest festival Durga Puja has earned a UNESCO tag for intangible cultural heritage. This has led to a lot of interest among art fans in what is a religious and cultural festival in Kolk...
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I'll Be There for You from 2023-11-01T04:40
Friends might have been about a group of close-knit white New Yorkers but somehow it resonated in many corners of the world including India. Sandip talks about why many in India are mourning the de...
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Durga Puja Cashes In from 2023-10-18T04:40
Like all big festivals, Kolkata's biggest festival Durga Puja is big big business. Now a Durga Puja organizer wants the actual art installation to reflect the economy of DUrga Puja so visitors unde...
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Sugar Poison from 2023-10-11T04:40
Wes Anderson's new adaptations of Roald Dahl short stories have won a lot of critical praise. Sandip notices that two of them neatly sum up two colonial attitudes towards India - one sugary and one...
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Americans in Gandhi's India from 2023-10-04T04:40
Mahatma Gandhi's birth anniversary was celebrated on October 2. While he is revered in India, his charisma drew some Americans to him, Americans who gave up their lives in the West to follow his id...
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Khalistan Returns from 2023-09-27T04:40
Khalistan - a word that used to be on the front pages of Indian newspapers in the 1980s has resurfaced in headlines thanks to the diplomatic row between India and Canada. As Indian and Canadian rel...
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The Toilet Man from 2023-09-19T22:40
India’s famous “toilet man,” Dr. Bindeswar Pathak, died last month at the age of 80. But he was far more than just an inventor and business man. Sandip Roy explains.
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Delhi Goes G20 from 2023-09-13T04:40
Joe Biden and other world leaders landed in Delhi to a grand multicolored G-20 welcome. But the beautification of the city left some of its residents seeing red.
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(Not So) Happy Teacher's Day from 2023-09-06T04:40
This week's 'Teacher's Day' celebration in India was marred by reports of a teacher telling her class to beat a student for not knowing his multiplication tables.
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Moonstruck from 2023-08-30T16:40
On August 23, 2023 India became the first nation in the world to pull off a soft landing on the moon's south pole.
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Independence from 2023-08-16T04:40
India celebrated its 77th Independence Day this week. Sandip talks with Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni about the turbulent and traumatic years of Independence.
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Barbie Land from 2023-07-26T04:40
The release of Barbie the movie seems the perfect excuse to look for the origins of patriarchy with science writer Angela D Saini.
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Threadbare from 2023-07-19T04:40
With social media app Threads trying to trip up Twitter, Sandip Roy wonders about why we have the itch to be on these platforms at all.
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Nilgiri Mountain Railway from 2023-07-12T10:11:53
Sandip takes a ride back in time on the Nilgiri Mountain Railway, an UNESCO World Heritage train.
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Malcolm is back! from 2022-04-19T21:38
Author and former award winning San Francisco radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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Snub or Flub from 2022-04-13T03:32
Author and former award winning San Francisco radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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Putting the'Book'back in Book Fair from 2022-04-06T03:40
Author and former award winning San Francisco radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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Normalizing the Not Normal from 2022-03-30T03:40
Author and former award winning San Francisco radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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The Heaven Beneath Us from 2022-03-23T03:40
Author and former award winning San Francisco radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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The Journey of Vinayakram from 2022-03-16T03:40
Author and former award winning San Francisco radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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Ukrainian Tales from 2022-03-09T03:30
Author and former award winning San Francisco radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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Future Food from 2022-03-02T03:40
Author and former award winning San Francisco radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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I Am a Disco Dancer from 2022-02-23T03:40
Author and former award winning San Francisco radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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Ode to Lata from 2022-02-16T03:40
Author and former award winning San Francisco radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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Remembering Lata Mangeshkar from 2022-02-09T03:40
Author and former award winning San Francisco radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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Year of the Tiger from 2022-02-02T03:40
Author and former award winning San Francisco radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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Zooming the Lit Fests from 2022-01-26T03:40
Author and former award winning San Francisco radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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Remembering Tutu from 2022-01-18T17:28:28
Author and former award winning San Francisco radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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Sorry, that's not a Sari from 2022-01-12T03:40
Author and former award winning San Francisco radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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Celluloid Politics from 2022-01-05T03:41
Author and former award winning San Francisco radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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Christmas in Kolkata from 2021-12-22T15:45
Author and award winning radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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The Nutmeg Curse from 2021-12-17T10:28:18
Author and award winning radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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One Time Password from 2021-12-08T03:40
Author and award winning radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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Shillong Cherry Blossoms from 2021-12-01T03:40
Ex-pat author and award winning radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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Remembering Thanksgiving from 2021-11-24T03:44
Author and award winning radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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Buzzing at the Bee from 2021-11-17T03:40
Author and award winning radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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A booster shot of vitamin ABBA from 2021-11-10T03:40
Author and award winning radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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Bhoot Chaturdashi from 2021-11-03T03:40
Author and award winning radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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An Old Ghost Story from 2021-10-27T03:40
Author and award winning radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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The Masked Puja from 2021-10-20T03:40
Author and award winning radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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Lil Nas'Joy of Being from 2021-10-13T03:41
Author and award winning radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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All Creatures Great and Small from 2021-10-06T03:45
On World Animal Day I think about Anjali Gopalan and her marvelous sanctuary All Creatures Great and Small.
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Memories Not Yet Seen from 2021-09-29T03:41
Author and award winning radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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An Ode for Saleem from 2021-09-22T03:40
Sandip Roy remembers the life and influence of Salem Kidwai.
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A Plant By Any Other Name from 2021-09-15T03:40
Author and award winning radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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20 Years Falling from 2021-09-08T03:40
After 20 years in Afghanistan Sandip is left with the tragic ghosts of memory.
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Same As It Ever was from 2021-09-01T03:40
Author and award winning radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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Women of Afghanistan from 2021-08-25T03:40
Author and award winning radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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Kabuliwallas from 2021-08-18T03:42
Author and award winning radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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Cancel Curry from 2021-08-11T03:37:04
Author and award winning radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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Olympic Refugee Team from 2021-08-04T03:40:07
Author and award winning radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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Manga Olympics from 2021-07-28T03:40:18
Author and award winning radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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Remembering Danish from 2021-07-21T03:40:18
Author and award winning radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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Rush to Kinship from 2021-07-14T03:45:52
Author and award winning radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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Judging Enid from 2021-07-07T03:40:52
Author and award winning radio personality Sandip Roy comments on life from his home in Kolkata, India.
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Pandemic Monsoon from 2021-06-30T03:41:25
Suffering from pandemic blur, Sandip takes solace in the familiar sounds of the seasons… and frogs.
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The Flavor Equation from 2021-06-23T03:11:41
When Nik Sharma started his popular food blog A Brown Table two things were a given on the menu - his ethnicity and his sexuality.
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A Song of Democracy from 2021-06-15T11:29:22
Election season in India brings a cacophony of election songs.
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Vax Fest India! from 2021-06-15T11:28:31
Apparently Indians pay attention to nothing unless it’s turned into a festival, even elections here are routinely called festivals of democracy. Sandip Roy wonders if that may help stop COVID-19.
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A Stream in Search of It's Course from 2021-06-15T11:27:52
India is quickly becoming the next great market for streaming services.
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COVID Twitter Wave in India from 2021-06-15T11:26:25
As India’s second wave of COVID-19 batters India, Twitter is becoming the go to for communication.
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Happy 100th Satyajit Ray from 2021-06-15T11:25:11
India’s most famous filmmaker would have turned 100 this Sunday.
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A Month of Ray (The Apu Trilogy) from 2021-06-15T11:22:40
This May is the centenary of Satyajit Ray’s birth, a good excuse to revisit his films. We start with the Apu Trilogy.
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A Month of Ray (Film on Paper) from 2021-06-15T11:21:07
While we know all directors through their films, the remarkable Indian director Satyajit Ray left so much more… on paper.
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The Kingdom of Diamonds from 2021-06-15T11:20:21
Satyajit Ray could hide political satire inside a children's movie.
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Ginsberg's Karma from 2021-06-15T11:19:34
A new documentary explores Allen Ginsberg’s time in India.
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Happy Holi from 2021-04-03T17:06:44
Sandip ponders a holiday that is about anything BUT social distancing.
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Sandip Roy #377: Namaste Alabama from 2021-03-24T06:40
The Alabama house of representatives recently voted to let school officials decide if they want yoga to be allowed in public schools. But there’s a catch…..
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Sandip Roy #376: Coming Out as Dalit from 2021-03-17T06:40
It was after reading the suicide note of Dalit student Rohith Vemula, that Yashica Dutt a journalist living in New York, decided that she was going to stop living a lie.It was in that moment that s...
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Sandip Roy #375: Implicitly Explicit from 2021-03-10T14:32
The casual racism of starchy royals was never particularly secret, but in all the debates about whether the Royals are racist or whether Harry and Meghan are whiners who want to have their cake and...
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Sandip Roy #374 - An Ode for Lawrence Ferlinghetti from 2021-03-03T06:40
Over a decade ago Sandip Roy was called to service…. By Lawrence Ferlinghetti.
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Sandip Roy #373 - India's COVID Mystery from 2021-02-24T06:40
India’s COVID-19 numbers of late have shown great promise, what’s going on?
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Sandip Roy #372 - Saraswati's Wisdom from 2021-02-17T06:40
A childhood goddess that was once asked for help with math takes on a new significance in adulthood.
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Sandip Roy #371: Celebs and Farmer Protests from 2021-02-10T06:40
More and more celebrities are tweeting about the farmer protest in India, and while this is about the backbone of India but it’s not the farmers who should be worried about the state of their spines.
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Sandip Roy #370: Something Funny's Going On from 2021-02-03T06:40
Something funny happened on the way to the comedy club, but no-one is laughing.
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Sandip Roy #369 - Priya's Mask from 2021-01-27T06:40
Priya’s Shakti is a comic and animated film about India’s first female superhero Priya and her flying tiger Sahas. Priya has taken on issues like rape and the trafficking of women. But this time sh...
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Sandip Roy #368 - Alternate Social Universe from 2021-01-20T06:40
Social media has become our tool for validation. And we go to further and further extremes to get that validation rush.
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Sandip Roy #367: What Rough Beast from 2021-01-13T06:40
What happened in the United States might feel shocking. But we gloat at our own peril.
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Sandip Roy #366 - New NOT normal from 2021-01-06T06:40
The pandemic has exhausted all of us, but just as we’re letting our guard down it will come to town, just like Santa Claus.
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Sandip Roy #365: Word Cloud of the Year from 2020-12-30T06:40
In a big shift from tradition the Oxford English Dictionary said 2020 is a “year which cannot be neatly accommodated in one word,” so maybe this year we need a word cloud.
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Sandip Roy # 364: Feluda from 2020-12-16T06:40
The new paper strip test for COVID-19 in India is called “Feluda.” Why such a name? Sandip Roy sleuths out the answer.
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Sandip Roy #363: The Power of a Poem from 2020-12-09T06:40
Never underestimate the power of a poem.
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Sandip Roy #362 - The Emperor's Clothes from 2020-12-02T06:40
India struggles with its image in the larger world, but so should America reconsider hers.
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Sandip Roy #361 - Giving Thanks from 2020-11-25T06:40
Thanksgiving has always been my favorite American holiday, and this has been a year where we learned to be thankful for all the things we once took for granted.
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Sandip Roy #360: Goodbye Soumitra from 2020-11-18T06:40
Even though the pandemic put a damper on Diwali, last Sunday tens of thousands of people still poured out onto the streets.
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Sandip Roy #359: Six Degrees of Kamala from 2020-11-11T06:40
Everybody wants a piece of the first female vice president of the United States; Or at least a few degrees of separation from her.
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Sandip Roy #358: Festival of Democracy from 2020-11-04T07:40
Indians now look at the 2020 American elections and understand that there’s chaos that’s colorful and then there’s chaos thats toxic.
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Sandip Roy #357 - Digital Durga from 2020-10-28T14:40
More than anything else the pandemic has forced us to reckon with what really lies at the heart and soul of Durga Puja. And it’s not necessarily big budgets grand feasts and corporate sponsorships.
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Sandip Roy #356: Little Durga from 2020-10-21T15:40
Durga Puja, the festival of the ten armed Goddess Durga, has always been a time of excess in Kolkata. But this is the story of the “Little Durga.” For more information visit Meghdutam Foundation ( )
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Sandip Roy #355: Saint Rupert from 2020-10-14T15:40
Writer and actor Rupert Everett spoke recently with Sandip Roy for the Jaipur Lit. Fest. about comparing pandemics and sainthood.
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