Episode Details

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Apar Gupta is a Supreme Court lawyer and co-founder of the Internet Freedom Foundation. He was part of the legal team behind Shreya Singhal v. Union of India — the case that struck down Section 66A of the IT Act. For over a decade, Apar has litigated India's biggest digital rights cases — fighting censorship, mass surveillance, and blocking orders against every government in power, not just this one. Where most tech commentary in India stays in English op-eds, he operates inside the courtrooms actually shaping what you can post, watch, and read online. Blunt, uninterested in TV-panel theatrics, and clear that free speech in India isn't dying — it's being managed.

In this episode, Vinamre and Apar discuss:

• Data mining, dark patterns, and how apps profile you before you even sign up
• Hyderabad's surveillance, the 26/11 tapes, and "national security" as an excuse for overreach
• AI and privacy — books pulped for LLM training, and lawyers already using Claude
• Fighting every government — 6000 blocking orders, the Section 66A win, and Meta/X's deals with the state
• Self-censorship among creators, and what politicians want from podcasters.

Follow Apar Gupta on:

X: https://x.com/apar1984

Internet Freedom Foundation: https://internetfreedom.in

Timestamps:

0:00 – Coming Up

1:30 – Data Mining At Cafes

6:15 – Individualised Pricing Explained

10:34 – Dark Patterns In Apps

12:07 – How Cookies Track You

15:08 – Who Sells Your Data

18:11 – Right To Privacy India

22:43 – Indian Police Structure Problem

24:51 – Hyderabad Most Surveilled City

25:43 – National Security vs Privacy

28:45 – 26/11 & David Headley

31:50 – Running AI On Your Data

37:50 – How Apar Stays Private

38:52 – Health Tracking & Screen Time

40:19 – Books Pulped For AI

43:09 – AI-Written Manifestos

44:35 – Lawyers Using Claude AI

46:14 – Why Telegram Got Banned

51:16 – WhatsApp vs Telegram vs Signal

53:30 – How Apar Started IFF

59:07 – Fighting Every Government

1:00:38 – Free Speech In India

1:04:10 – RK Laxman & Satire

1:08:10 – Govt Deal With Meta & X

1:12:10 – Congress Era Censorship

1:17:12 – 6000 Blocking Orders

1:21:30 – Creators Self-Censoring

1:26:16 – Why X Still Runs In India

1:30:48 – Clickbait Headlines Game

1:33:48 – Rise Of New Media

1:36:48 – Politicians & Podcasters

1:42:51 – Substack & Media Prestige

1:45:38 – Future Of Internet Freedom

1:48:56 – Digital Literacy & Jobs

1:53:27 – Can We Log Off?

1:57:59 – Writing On Paper Again

2:01:34 – Dark Web Reality

2:04:01 – Nehru Place Computer Market

2:04:38 – Blue Whale Challenge

2:07:07 – Apar's Book Influences

2:13:12 – Conclusion

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Vinamre Kasanaa is a writer at heart, podcaster and entrepreneur by craft.

He spends a significant part of his time reading and researching.

With over 500 podcasts under his belt, he’s interviewed everyone—from HNIs and industry leaders to everyday superheroes.

Follow Vinamre:

LinkedIn: https://w