Sheetal Sheth is an Indian American actress, author and activist based in New York City. You may remember her breakout role as “Maya” co-starring with Albert Brooks in “Looking For Comedy in the Muslim World”  (2005). Since then, Sheetal’s star keeps rising, appearing in dozens of TV shows and films. In 2013, she got married and soon became a mother to two girls. Then, she was diagnosed with breast cancer. As Sheetal struggled to recover, she was determined to raise her children with a deep sense of pride and love for India. Why? Also, what inspired her to write children’s books for Indian Americans while she was pregnant in New York City?

Click here for more about Sheetal Sheth.

Music used:

What Is Love (Piano) by Zight
Sad Ambient Piano by Lite Saturation
Free Hopping Piano by Lobo Loco
Sonata No. 1 in F Minor, Op. 2 No. 1 - II. Adagio by Daniel Veesey

Brand New World by Kai Engel

One in a Billion Theme Song by Brad McCarthy

Photo Credit: David Goddard

Neil Mody is a media entrepreneur, tech enthusiast and philosopher at heart.

In this open-hearted conversation, Neil shares snippets of his phone conversations with his father that would forever be seared into his mind. What did his father say? Why did Neil tell his mother not to wear a “sari” to his eighth grade graduation?  Why did he feel embarrassed by his “Indianness” growing up in New Jersey,  and how does he feel now?

Find Your Roots is a history and culture project centering on Asian American voices, perspectives, and experiences. It is a one-on-one, in-depth podcast interview show with Asian “Roots-Finders” seeking to remember the diverse and profound influences of their parents and grandparents. This educational podcast project is designed to promote and preserve the legacy of the countless contributions—as well as forgotten struggles and sacrifices—of our ancestors who paved the way for us today.

We want to include you in this conversation. Share your thoughts. Pitch us a story. To send us your comments or stories, email us at info@oneinabillionvoices.org

or go to our Facebook page or website under “Pitch a Story.”

One in a Billion connects Asians and Americans through storytelling, one person at a time.

Season 7: Find Your Roots series is produced by One in a Billion Productions, a non-profit educational media company (501c3), with generous funding from PLUS Charitable Trust.

Martial Arts, Kung Fu Master (師傅) , Yoga Instructor, Political Activist
Mai Du was just eight years old when she aspired to learn Kung Fu. Then she became a refugee after the Vietnam war fleeing with her family through Thailand and the Philippines before arriving in America.

Today, Mai du is a martial arts instructor, kung fu master and political activist.  What formed her fighting spirit? How did her parents’ survival skills mold her mindset? 

Check out our conversation!

Music used:
Vienna Beat by Blue Dot Sessions
Adventure by The Ghost in Your Piano
Trophy Endorphins by Andy G Cohen
Mountain Monk C by Lobo Loco
Sonata No. 1 in F Minor, Op. 2 No. 1 - II. Adagio by Daniel Veesey 
Stormy Blues by Arne Bang Huseby
A Yankees Southern Blues by HoliznaCC0 
Only Our Footsteps in the Sand by Mid-Air Machine 
One in a Billion Theme Song by Brad McCarthy

Photo Credit: 
Dat Nguyen 

More than a decade after she was labeled as “Tiger Mom” for her 2011 memoir “The Battle Hymn of a Tiger Mother,” Amy Chua reflects on her strict parenting style as she traces the roots of her culture to Fuzhou, China. Why did Amy feel right about raising her daughters the same way she was raised by her immigrant parents? What lessons has she learned from her critics in the West? What prompted her to pursue a career in corporate law before teaching law at Yale? And now, what motivated her to write  her first novel “The Golden Gate?”

Amy Chua is a Yale law school professor with expertise in international business transactions, ethnicity and conflict, and globalization. She is an author of five non-fiction titles including Political Tribes: Group Instinct and Fate of Nation, and The Triple Package: How Three Unlikely Traits Explain the Rise and Fall of Cultural Groups in America.

Have you ever felt abandoned by your parents? What would you do to reconcile with them?

24-year-old Angela Li was born in New York City but sent back to Fuzhou, China while an infant to be raised by her grandparents until she turned five. When she entered the U.S, she felt she’d closed the door on her childhood in China. Now, she is just beginning to reconcile with that as an adult. 

In this podcast conversation, Angela describes her process of self-healing by starting an oral project of interviewing her parents. “For the first time, I see my mom as a human being.”  Angela says. 

What did she mean? What did she find?

Music used:
Space Full by Andy G. Cohen
Rain by Unheard Music Concepts
Inside the Moon by Stephan Siebert
Mountain Monk C by Lobo Loco 
Bells In The Wind by Daniel Birch
The Shine by Jahzzar  
One in a Billion Theme Song by Brad McCarthy

Have you ever lost your sense of purpose after your loved one suddenly died? Whom do you turn to find strength to renew your mind and spirit?

Born in Sorsogon, the Philippines, Loida N. Lewis, traces the roots of her undying faith that revives her in her darkest hour after her husband Reginald F. Lewis died of brain cancer.

Loida also talks about her new memoir,“Why Should Guys Have All the Fun?” - an Asian American story of love, marriage, faith and running a billion dollar business empire. 

Loida Lewis is a business executive, immigration lawyer, philanthropist and activist.

Music used:
Dream by Chan Wai Fat
Spiritual by HoliznaPATREON 
Space Full by Andy G Cohen
You're Right But I'm Me by Doctor Turtle
Undercover Vampire Policeman by Chris Zabriskie
One in a Billion Theme Song by Brad McCarthy

Have you ever felt the need to know your family history as a way to become whole?

What can you remember about your parents’ immigrant journey or struggle that would help you weave a cohesive narrative for their past sacrifices and your current success?

Born in Charlestown, Massachusetts, Fran Chin, tells a compelling story about his father and mother’s voyage from Guangdong, China to escape penury so he and his eight siblings could enjoy a better life here in America. 

Music used:
History by Twelvety9
Burn Me Alive by MMFFF
Even When We Fall by FPhilipp Weigl
Lullaby by The Ghost in Your Piano
Inspirational Outlook by Scott Holmes
Horses by Pictures of the Floating World
Mountain Monk B by Lobo Loco
One in a Billion Theme Song by Brad McCarthy

Find Your Roots is a history and culture project centering on Asian American voices, perspectives, and experiences. It is a one-on-one in-depth podcast interview show with Asian “Roots-Finders” seeking to remember the diverse and profound influences of their parents and grandparents. This educational podcast project is designed to promote and preserve the legacy of the countless contributions—as well as forgotten struggles and sacrifices—of our ancestors who paved the way for us today. We want to include you in this conversation. Share your thoughts. Pitch us a story. To send us your comments or stories, email us @ info@oneinabillionvoices.org or go to our Facebook page or website at OneinABillionVoices.org under “Pitch a Story.” “One in a Billion” connects Asians and Americans through storytelling, one person at a time. Season 7 Find Your Roots Series is produced by One in a Billion Productions, a non-profit educational media company (501c3), with generous funding from PLUS Charitable Trust. (https://plct.org/welcome/)

Have you stopped and considered what got you here? Who paved the way for you to learn and grow up in America? For first-generation Chinese American Paul Lee who was born in Somerville, Massachusetts, it is time for him and his siblings to remember their cultural roots, and to honor his parents’ incredible immigrant journey to America. It is also time for us to thank his father Sen Lee for his service to America. Sen Lee fought for America in WWII in the United States Armed Forces in Pacific Theatre. 

Music Used:
The Wrong Way by Jahzzar
The Family Instrumental by Chad Crouch
Prism by Xylo Ziko
Four Way by William Ross Chernoff's Nomads
Climb by The Ghost in Your Piano
Boss 1: The First Challenge by Komiku
Singing In The Rain Instrumental by David Mumford
Rosedale Daydream Back in the Room by Greg Atkinson
Youk Ra Lom Ai Oh by Les Cartes Postales Sonores
One in a Billion Theme Song by Brad McCarthy

Find Your Roots is a history and culture project centering on Asian American voices, perspectives, and experiences. It is a one-on-one in-depth podcast interview show with Asian “Roots-Finders” seeking to remember the diverse and profound influences of their parents and grandparents. This educational podcast project is designed to promote and preserve the legacy of the countless contributions—as well as forgotten struggles and sacrifices—of our ancestors who paved the way for us today.

We want to include you in this conversation. Share your thoughts. Pitch us a story. To send us your comments or stories, email us @ info@oneinabillionvoices.org or go to our Facebook page or website at OneinABillionVoices.org under “Pitch a Story.”

“One in a Billion” connects Asians and Americans through storytelling, one person at a time.

Season 7 Find Your Roots Series is produced by One in a Billion Productions, a non-profit educational media company (501c3), with generous funding from PLUS Charitable Trust.