For Executive Chef Akshay Bhardwaj, becoming a chef was not always the plan. It took perseverance and a little bit of defiance for him to rise in the ranks and become the Executive Chef of Junoon, which at one time was the only Michelin Star restaurant in New York City serving Indian food.

In this episode, you will hear about Akshay’s path to cooking, how he approaches collaborations with other chefs, and where he finds inspiration for dishes when traveling.

Grey Interviewer: Samantha Geller, Senior Project Manager and Podcast Producer

For A Year of Positive Thinking author Cyndie Spiegel, writing her second book came after a year of personal struggle and loss in 2020. Yet, she still found moments of joy and documented them in her second book, Microjoys: Finding Hope (Especially) When Life Is Not Okay, a collection of personal essays designed to help us find joy wherever we can.

In this episode, you will hear about Cyndie’s journey to writing the book, the lessons she learned from the people closest to her, and a recent micro joy in her life.

Grey Interviewer: Sara Worthington, Executive Creative Director, Grey New York

Arielle Assouline-Lichten’s dream was to create a furniture design studio that creates social change - that’s what led her to start Slash Objects, an award-winning, sustainable design studio. Arielle is a Best of NYC x Design winner, and she was a finalist contestant on the HBO Max show Ellen’s Next Great Designer.

In this episode, you will hear Arielle’s story of how she brought together her interests, architecture background, and entrepreneurial spirit to create Slash Objects. She discusses how the work she creates has a journey and a life of its own.

Grey Interviewer: Thiago Cruz, Grey New York’s Chief Creative Officer