“What keeps people in the never-ending cycle of love, sex and other drugs?” asks author and wellness expert Kass Thomas about people who use these experiences as emotional crutches. It is the first episode of Beyond Love, Sex and Other Drugs, the recently-launched radio show by Voice America that Thomas co-hosts with Delhi-based publicist and LGBTQ activist, Mohnish Malhotra.

“You can break this cycle, starting now,” Thomas goes on to say. Launched on June 13, the show promises strategies and tips for people dealing with issues ranging from addiction and abuse, but in a friendly, light-hearted tone, featuring candid conversations between the two friends.

The show, which was originally supposed to be titled The Gay and the Gal, was born out of a meeting in Delhi between the two co-hosts last year. “It was love at first sight,” laughs Rome-based Thomas. Keeping in touch across time zones, they zeroed in on a theme that would draw from their own experiences — Malhotra’s former life as an “ex-drug junkie” and Thomas’ work as an inspirational speaker and life coach.

For the first episode, titled ‘I Must Be Wrong’, Thomas dialed in from Holland, while Malhotra joined the conversation from Delhi (their producer also joined in from the US). What ensues is a free-flowing, no-holds-barred conversation on topics like drugs, orgasms, ejaculation and ‘quickies’. Malhotra talks about how he discovered drugs for the first time, and how he quit ‘cold turkey’ after a near death experience two years ago. Issues like addiction — usually kept a secret because of the accompanying stigma and shame — are humanised and talked about with a level of startling honesty.

In the upcoming episodes, the hosts plan to delve deeper into issues like abuse, relationships, racism, sexual preferences and addiction. As the title, the show implies that it is possible to be addicted to love and sex in the same way that one can be drawn to drugs. Thomas confirms this. “Everything can either invite possibilities or invite limitations, even love — when you are using it to limit your life instead of inspire you and move you forward,” she says, going on to add that she and Malhotra hope to guide listeners towards a clearer understanding of why they might be addicted to love, sex, and of course, drugs.

Would a show like this find takers in India? Malhotra believes the time is right and plans to pitch it to local networks. The duo is also working on a book of the same name, slated for release later this year.

Streaming now on voiceamerica.com