159. India’s Forgotten Whistleblower: The Killing of Shanmugam Manjunath
He was young, brilliant, and fearless — an IIM grad who took a job no one wanted. One night, he vanished after a routine inspection in a small Indian town. What happened next would expose a chilling underworld no one was ready to face. Today’s episode of The Desi Crime Podcast is powered by Ryze — a nicotine gum for those looking to quit: https://weryze.comOrder our book, Desi Crime, available now on Amazon:https://amzn.in/d/0WyttKWFor extra episodes, early access, silly bloopers, subscribe at: https://www.patreon.com/thedesistudios or join our YouTube family https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnbfV0YvrxWMq3h0hmo13Jg/join
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158. The Dharmasthala Temple Murders
Order our book, Desi Crime, available now on Amazon:https://amzn.in/d/0WyttKWDharmasthala, Karnataka. For centuries, its name has meant justice. It's a place where faith feels tangible, a sanctuary where a Hindu deity is served by a Jain family in a rare show of harmony. But in July of 2025, a story would emerge that threatened to turn this sacred ground into a crime scene. A story that suggests for years, while pilgrims prayed for salvation, others were being buried in shallow graves. It began when one man decided he could no longer carry the weight of what he had done, and what he had seen. A man who claimed that he held the key to over one hundred unsolved deaths. This is the story of the skeletons of Dharmasthala.
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Cries of a 100 Mothers: Javed Iqbal [VIDEO]
Order our book, Desi Crime, available now on Amazon:https://amzn.in/d/0WyttKWThe case that I have for you guys today is one that sent Pakistani authorities on the largest manhunt for Pakistan's most notorious serial killer. This is the story of a man whose only motive in life was to hear the cries of a hundred mothers. This is the story of Javed Iqbal.
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157. The Resort Murder: Ankita Bhandari
Under the soft orange wash of a Rishikesh dusk, the air held its breath. A girl, nineteen, bright-eyed, new to the city and newer still to her first job, walked the narrow paths of Vanantra Resort, hemmed in by forest on one side and the rush of the Ganga canal on the other. It was the kind of evening where the world feels hushed, the kind where ordinary things--like a phone ringing unanswered or a light flickering on and off--begin to feel loaded with meaning. And for days after that dusk, the only thing louder than the silence surrounding her absence was the rising voice of a father searching for his daughter, denied help at every turn. No FIR. No urgency. Just a closed door at every police station he visited. The roads he walked were met with apathy, even as each hour that passed pulled Ankita further from reach. By the time the news broke, it had already been six days. Six days of unanswered questions. Six days of phone calls met with lies. Six days before the Ganga revealed what the system tried to bury. This is the story of that Rishikesh resort, that 2022 evening, and that girl. This is the story of Ankita Bhandari.
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156. The Katra Killings
A chill wind whispered through the sugarcane fields of Uttar Pradesh, carrying with it the scent of rigid traditions belonging to a bygone era. In villages where life moved with the seasons and ancient customs held strong, a new tension was starting to build. For generations, the idea of freedom for women, the freedom to choose, to be, to experience the world around them as men would, was a forbidden thought, a dangerous secret. But in 2014, as the world outside moved faster, even these quiet places began to feel a tremor of defiance. It was a time when a simple phone could open up a world of possibilities, and with it, a rush of fear and anger. In a world desperate to control, some dared to dream of freedom, and for two young girls, that dream would become a terrible nightmare. This is the story of that little village in Uttar Pradesh and its open fields. This is the story of Padma and Lalli.
Desi Killers, Desi Kidnappers, Desi Criminals - find them here. Brought to you by Aryaan Misra and Aishwarya Singh, powered by The Desi Studios. We are your one stop shop for all things Desi, and all things Crazy. Support the work we do by becoming a patron: https://www.patreon.com/thedesistudios Tooooooooo much of true crime is centered around America - New York murder this and Chicago Killer that. What about the Delhi Dons and Karachi killers and Bangladeshi Burglars?! If you are tired of the the same-old American murderer, British killer, Australian kidnapper, Canadian stalker… NO MORE! The Desi Crime Podcast brings DESI crimes. From India, Pakistan, Nepal and other brown communities, we’ll bring you cases that can only be described as Desi. Crimes that take place in the Indian subcontinent aren’t remotely similar to Western crimes— desi crimes are gory, complicated, corrupt and hardly documented. After thorough research on the most sinister cases, we’ll take you on a bumpy, jaw dropping ride around South Asia. Stay Crazy. Stay Desi.
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