Builders of the Broken Bazaar

Dr. Tabish Zaman
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  • Entrepreneurship
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Builders of the Broken Bazaar When systems collapse, people still build. In a world obsessed with billion-dollar startups and tech-driven progress, Builders of the Broken Bazaar turns the microphone towards those who build from the ashes — refugees, migrants, and everyday innovators creating meaning, work, and dignity in the ruins of broken systems. Hosted by Dr. Tabish Zaman, this series dives deep into the informal, the invisible, and the overlooked where entrepreneurship isn’t a choice, but a lifeline. From camps and conflict zones to Britain’s forgotten high streets, we uncover the moral and human frontlines of enterprise: where survival fuels innovation and community becomes the last safety net. Through unflinching conversations with founders, reformers, and thinkers, we challenge the economisation of human effort — moving far beyond Silicon Valley myths to reframe entrepreneurship around social value, solidarity, and repair. When profit stops being the purpose, building becomes an act of defiance, not accumulation. 🎙 “This podcast is for those who rebuild what the world broke not for profit, but for purpose.” 🎧 Listen and subscribe to the voices of those proving that hope doesn’t come from systems, it comes from people.

  1. 1d ago

    The Starvation is no Accident; It has an author!

    Starvation is rarely just about food. Famine is rarely just about hunger. In a world watching catastrophe unfold in real-time on our screens, the most disturbing reality is that some suffering is treated as urgent while other lives are deemed negotiable. In this powerful Season 1 Finale of Builders of the Broken Bazaar, Dr. Tabish Zaman sits down with Omama Marzuq (Board Member) and Hani AlMadhoun (Co-Founder) of the Gaza Soup Kitchen. Speaking in their personal capacities, they share the raw reality of operating on the ground in one of the most densely populated places on earth under active siege. Together, they dismantle the mainstream "natural disaster" narrative of the famine, highlighting how starvation is a politically engineered policy with a direct author. They explain how the Gaza Soup Kitchen grew to 20 community-led locations, bypassing aid blockades through a self-sustaining economic model that buys directly from local merchants. This is a profound conversation about moving from charity to solidarity, humanizing the statistics, and remembering that Gaza is not a story of suffering, but of people who continue to feed one another when there isn't enough for everyone. 🎙 “Please remember Gaza is not a story about suffering, it's about people... people who continue feeding one another when there isn't enough for everyone. Please don't allow repetition to make suffering feel ordinary. Because the moment another person's pain becomes background noise, we lose something—our own humanity too.” 👉 Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@buildersofthebrokenbazaar Host: Dr. Tabish Zaman Guests: Omama Marzuq & Hani AlMadhoun (Gaza Soup Kitchen) Editor: Liam Gadsby Research & Impact Officer: Mohammad Alauthman

    The Starvation is no Accident; It has an author!

  2. Aug 26

    Stop pretending everything is fine!

    We are living in a world where the data is screaming at us, but our systems are only whispering. What happens when the very institutions designed to protect stability begin to feel like they are managing that very same decline, and our leaders expect us to go along with the charade? In this episode of Builders of the Broken Bazaar, Dr. Tabish Zaman is joined by Zoe Cohen—a concerned citizen, coach, mum, and former Assistant Chief Executive in the NHS. Having spent nearly a decade sitting at board level in a billion-pound public organization, Zoe chose to step outside the corporate hamster wheel to speak the truths that our political and business elites actively avoid. Together, they explore what it means to be "collapse aware", the necessity of moving beyond pacifying "hopium" to face the reality of our ecological and social systems, and the heavy personal cost of dissent. From representing herself in Crown Court for breaking windows at Barclays to facing a terrorism charge for standing in solidarity with Palestine Action, Zoe’s story is a profound look at what it costs to align your actions with your values. This is a conversation about courage over comfort, the vital need for a non-anthropocentric connection to our world, and why the most radical act within a dying system is to simply stop pretending that everything is fine. 🎙 “Tipping points are tipped, there ain't no such thing as a solution... In an adaptive system, you've got no solutions, you can only have interventions with consequences.” 👉 Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@buildersofthebrokenbazaar Host: Dr. Tabish Zaman Guest: Zoe Cohen (Concerned Citizen, Coach and Mum) Editor: Liam Gadsby Research & Impact Officer: Mohammad Alauthman

    Stop pretending everything is fine!

  3. Aug 12

    The man & the method behind that suit!

    Formal politics is failing to resonate. With the lowest voter turnout in decades and a majority of citizens feeling abandoned by their representatives, the "story of Britain" is fracturing. In this episode of Builders of the Broken Bazaar, Dr. Tabish Zaman is joined by filmmaker and presenter Adam Brichto. Adam has become a viral sensation for his "man in the suit" street interviews, entering highly charged political spaces—from Brexit rallies to Reform UK heartlands—to uncover the tensions beneath the surface of political certainty. Together, they discuss the psychology of the suit as a tool for rapport, the systematic misinformation fed to the working class by billionaire-owned media, and why satire is a vital form of democratic expression. Adam challenges the "intellectual left" to leave their city bubbles and have real, empathetic conversations with those the system has left behind. This is a conversation about connection over contradiction. It’s about finding the humanity in the "other" and realizing that before we can fix our politics, we have to start listening to the people the politicians have ignored. Because when the system is broken, the most radical act is to stand on a street corner and ask: "How many people pay your wages?" 🎙 “The stars of the show are the people I’m talking to... they are not in their comfort zone. I’m always in my comfort zone on the street.” 👉 Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@buildersofthebrokenbazaar Host: Dr. Tabish Zaman Guest: Adam Brichto (Film Producer, Director & Presenter) Editor: Liam Gadsby Research & Impact Officer: Mohammad Alauthman

    The man & the method behind that suit!

  4. Jul 27

    The system locks the door, then blames you for standing outside!

    We are told that capital is more "sustainable" and "inclusive" than ever before, with tens of billions committed to social impact. Yet, the lived experience of the displaced tells a different story—one of blocked pathways, unrecognised credentials, and a system that rewards those who fit the pattern while punishing those who stand out. In this episode of Builders of the Broken Bazaar, Dr. Tabish Zaman is joined by Bradford Turner and Waseem Jawad from Jumpstart Refugee Talent. Bradford brings two decades of experience in investment strategy and a personal history of overcoming homelessness, while Waseem shares the reality of building innovation from the ground up as a newcomer to Canada. Together, they dismantle the "unconventional entrepreneur" label and introduce Refugee Lens Investing—not as a charity, but as vital market infrastructure. This is a conversation about the brave shift from providing "support" to demanding "recognition" and "investment." It’s a challenge to institutional investors to look past their "data rigid" due diligence and see the unlocked capacity of a population that refuses to be ignored. This is about building the bridge from exclusion to equity. Because when the system locks the door, the only way forward is to build a new one. 🎙 “Exclusivity does not discriminate. As soon as you no longer fit an archetype of value to the system, you are quickly disenfranchised.” 👉 Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@buildersofthebrokenbazaar Host: Dr. Tabish Zaman. Guests: Bradford Turner (Canadian Social Entrepreneur & Investment Strategist) & Waseem Jawad (Senior Manager of Entrepreneurship & Innovation, Jumpstart Refugee Talent). Editor: Liam Gadsby. Research and Impact Officer: Mohammad Alauthman

    The system locks the door, then blames you for standing outside!

  5. Jul 8

    Capitalism forgot ordinary people and called it progress!

    We treat economic growth as an automatic win for society, yet trust in our institutions is collapsing while wealth is buried in opaque offshore accounts. For too long, ordinary people have been told that their role is to work, consume, and stay out of the way. In this episode of Builders of the Broken Bazaar, Dr. Tabish Zaman is joined by Rose Marley, CEO of Co-operatives UK, to dismantle the myth that "bigger automatically means better". Rose shares her journey from the music business in Manchester to leading a movement of 7,000 cooperative businesses that prioritize people over profit margins. Together, they discuss why the cooperative model is suddenly so relevant in an age of burnout and inequality, the radical regeneration experiment happening in Middleton, and why ownership is the ultimate tool for agency. This is a conversation about economic design—refusing to be managed by tools and instead building the tools that work for us. Because when communities own the systems they depend on, they don't just survive; they thrive 🎙 “We made shiny buildings, but where was the fishing rod?” 👉 Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@buildersofthebrokenbazaar Host: Dr. Tabish Zaman Guest: Rose Marley (CEO, Co-operatives UK) Editor: Liam Gadsby. Research and Impact Officer: Mohammad Alauthman.

    Capitalism forgot ordinary people and called it progress!

  6. Jun 24

    Why Nobody Talks About Rohingya? I Lost My Country at 12!

    We treat displacement as a physical act of crossing a border. But for Yasin Arafat and the one million Rohingya displaced from Myanmar, displacement is archival, psychological, and generational. It is a system that attempts to steal a people's continuity and their ability to imagine a future. In this episode of Builders of the Broken Bazaar, Dr. Tabish Zaman is joined by Yasin Arafat, a human rights advocate who spent five years in the refugee camps of Bangladesh after fleeing the 2017 crackdown in Myanmar. Yasin dismantles the "victim" label, reframing the Rohingya experience not just through the lens of suffering, but through the lens of enormous resilience and leadership. Together, they discuss the emotional weight of being defined as a "number," the profound impact of education on reclaiming human rights, and why the international community often practices a "selective empathy" that leaves millions in permanent limbo. This is a conversation about memory as resistance. Because when a system tries to erase a community, remaining visible is the most radical act of all. 🎙 “Refugees shouldn't only be seen by what they escape from, but also for what they are capable of becoming.” 👉 Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@buildersofthebrokenbazaar Host: Dr. Tabish Zaman Guest: Yasin Arafat (Human Rights Activist & NGO Expert) Editor: Liam Gadsby. Research & Impact Officer: Mohammad Alauthman

    Why Nobody Talks About Rohingya? I Lost My Country at 12!

  7. Jun 17

    Palestine bleeds for you. Why it changes everything?

    We are told that the conflict in Palestine is "complicated," a series of religious debates and territorial claims. But for Ramsey Hanhan, the reality is far more direct: it is a system engineered to make an entire people feel disposable, and forgettable In this episode of Builders of the Broken Bazaar, Dr. Tabish Zaman is joined by Ramsey Hanhan, a former physics professor who walked away from the ivory tower of science to become a witness. Written from the front lines of Ramallah, Ramsey’s work serves as an archive for a people whose future is being systemically obstructed by military checkpoints, digital algorithms, and the weaponization of faith. Together, they dismantle the fiction that the conflict began on October 7th, exploring instead the long continuity of the Nakba and the "poison pill" questions used by media to silence the Palestinian voice. This is a conversation about the moral necessity of speaking out and the endurance required to insist on life, history, and the right to remain human in a world organized around selective empathy. Because in a broken system, neutrality always belongs to those least affected by injustice. It’s time to find our voices. 🎙 “Witnessing creates responsibility... the people who are silent, who are looking away, are hurting themselves more than they know.” 👉 Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@buildersofthebrokenbazaar Host: Dr. Tabish Zaman Guest: Ramsey Hanhan (Author & Public Speaker) Editor: Liam Gadsby. Research and Impact Officer: Mohammad Alauthman

    Palestine bleeds for you. Why it changes everything?

  8. Jun 10

    Why small businesses matter? The migrant business myth.

    We are often told that the backbone of the British economy is its small businesses, yet we systematically ignore the one-fifth of those firms owned by migrants. We label them as "unconventional" or treat them as economic "peccadillos," failing to see the sophisticated networks of care and innovation that keep our neighborhoods alive. In this episode of Builders of the Broken Bazaar, Dr. Tabish Zaman is joined by Prof. Monder Ram, Founder-Director of CREME at Aston University. Drawing on over 30 years of research and his own lived experience in a family business in Wolverhampton, Monder dismantles the "migrant business myth." Together, they discuss the power of "mixed embeddedness," the strategic value of informal management, and why the "everyday economy" of our high streets is often far more resilient than the polished models of Silicon Valley. This is a conversation about respecting the lived reality of builders who don't just build for profit, but for dignity, identity, and the communities they serve. 🎙 “Entrepreneurship isn't just about high-growth startups; it’s about people building stability for their families and a foothold in an economy that didn’t always make space for them.” 👉 Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@buildersofthebrokenbazaar Host: Dr. Tabish Zaman Guest: Prof. Monder Ram, (Founder-Director of CREME at Aston University). Editor: Liam Gadsby. Research and Impact Officer: Mohammad Alauthman.

    Why small businesses matter? The migrant business myth.
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About

Builders of the Broken Bazaar When systems collapse, people still build. In a world obsessed with billion-dollar startups and tech-driven progress, Builders of the Broken Bazaar turns the microphone towards those who build from the ashes — refugees, migrants, and everyday innovators creating meaning, work, and dignity in the ruins of broken systems. Hosted by Dr. Tabish Zaman, this series dives deep into the informal, the invisible, and the overlooked where entrepreneurship isn’t a choice, but a lifeline. From camps and conflict zones to Britain’s forgotten high streets, we uncover the moral and human frontlines of enterprise: where survival fuels innovation and community becomes the last safety net. Through unflinching conversations with founders, reformers, and thinkers, we challenge the economisation of human effort — moving far beyond Silicon Valley myths to reframe entrepreneurship around social value, solidarity, and repair. When profit stops being the purpose, building becomes an act of defiance, not accumulation. 🎙 “This podcast is for those who rebuild what the world broke not for profit, but for purpose.” 🎧 Listen and subscribe to the voices of those proving that hope doesn’t come from systems, it comes from people.

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