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Nikhil Taneja sits down with amazing Nayandeep Rakshit and Renil Abraham on Be A Man, Yaar! for an honest conversation about identity, family, friendship, and masculinity. They share their coming out journeys, the fears and joys that came with them, and the role their loved ones played along the way. The episode explores topics like femininity, representation, online hate, allyship, and why real change begins at home. From childhood memories and pop culture influences to discussions on humanity, acceptance, and self-expression, the conversation is both insightful and heartwarming. Packed with humor, vulnerability, and powerful takeaways, this episode celebrates authenticity and being unapologetically yourself.

Presented by: Rohini Nilekani Philanthropies
In association with: Dove Men+ Care
​@DoveMenCareIN




CREDITS
CREATED & HOSTED BY: Nikhil Taneja
DIRECTED BY: Gajendra Yadav
PRODUCED BY: Yuvaa Originals (Nikhil Taneja, Amritpal Bindra, Anand Tiwari)
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: Nirbhay Kumar
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: Aneesh Ajay
EDITOR: Hemant Jena
CREATIVE PRODUCER: Nikhil Taneja


ASSOCIATE PRODUCER: Shantanu Anand
ASSOCIATE CREATIVE PRODUCER: Sahil Likhar
CHIEF CREATIVE OFFICER: Anusha GS Shetty
DESIGNERS: Srishti Choudhary, Khushi Verma, Rhea Iyer
PRODUCTION MANAGER: Aditya Gaikwad
PRODUCTION DESIGN: Saugata Mandal (Colour Palette)
DI & ADDITIONAL EDITOR: Harshal Rathore
CAMERA ASSISTANT: Neha Kandalgaonkar
LIGHTS: SJB Lights (Babu Seikh, Afroz, Soukat, Appu)
ART ASSISTANT: Sunny Sinha
HAIR & MAKE UP: Yasmin (Mahi)
STUDIO: XL Studios, Mumbai
CAMERA: Video Plus
BTS: Hemant Jena
STILL PHOTOGRAPHER: Divya Jain
SOUND RECORDIST: SS Sound, Roshan
DIT: Hemant Jena
SPOT TEAM: Narad Shah, Ritesh Mishra
Sound Engineering: Shashwato Mukherjee


TEAM YUVAA:
CEO: Kevin Lee
COO: Shachi Lapasia
BUSINESS PARTNERSHIPS LEAD: Neha Mathews
ACCOUNTS & FINANCE: Hiral Barot and Aditya Gaikwad


TEAM:
Ajeeta, Akshay Waghela, Bhavya Mathur, Janki Godariya, Khushi Verma, Lucky Jain, Mahek Jain, Navneet Arora, Neha Khana, Pranshi Jain, Rajat Desai, Shafeen Shikalgar, Varun Sawant


0:00 Precap
0:32 – Introduction
1:49 – Nayandeep's Love for Be A Man, Yaar!
3:38 – First Impressions of Each Other
3:58 – Moving to Mumbai & Starting Fresh
5:50 – The Juicy Stories Begin
6:42 – How Their Friendship Started
7:28 – Renil on Being Comfortable in His Identity
8:41 – Nayandeep's Coming Out Story
10:06 – A Special Promise Between Nayandeep & His Mom
10:31 – Renil's Journey of Coming Out
13:27 – Why Financial Independence Matters Before Coming Out
16:10 – "Don't Make It About Yourself"
17:26 – The Fear of Losing Your Parents
18:26 – Home Is People, Not a Place
19:13 – Understanding Parents as Human Beings
21:08 – Navigating the Parent–Queer Child Relationship
23:19 – Unboxing Boyhood
24:14 – How Shah Rukh Khan Inspired a Journalism Career
25:20 – Childhood Through Old Photographs
25:45 – When Renil Began Understanding His Identity
28:11 – Growing Up Being Judged for Femininity
31:47 – Renil on Embracing Femininity with Confidence
34:15 – Is Sexuality a Choice, Conditioning, or a Spectrum?
36:21 – Women Are More Emotionally Expressive
37:07 – Why Some Men Feel Threatened by Being Perceived as Gay
38:26 – Secure Masculinity & Why It Isn't Homophobic
40:39 – At the End of the Day, It's About Humanity
41:23 – Why History Keeps Repeating Itself
43:37 – Was Indian Culture Always Inclusive?
44:29 – Why Representation Matters
48:26 – Real Change Begins at Home
50:40 – Rani Mukerji's Powerful Take on Rights in Mardaani 2
51:34 – Love The New Generation
51:48 – Using Privilege to Amplify Marginalized Voices
52:32 – When Slurs Become "Just Jokes"
55:40 – What Future Generations Can Do Better
56:31 – Dealing with Online Hate
1:00:53 – Man Enough to Care
1:04:06 – Makeup Has No Gender
1:06:00 – Flirting with Sidharth Malhotra
1:07:39 – Why SRK Defines Goodness
1:10:40 – The Salman Khan Trump Card
1:12:26 – Rapid Fire: Kind Shoutouts
1:14:23 – Which Man Makes You Blush?
1:14:30 – Blushing for Modi Ji
1:18:54 – Why Men Should Compliment Men More Often
1:22:53 – Closing Note