A righteous non-Christian goes to hell simply for not accepting baptism — and that single doctrine reveals the exclusivist violence at the heart of evangelical Christianity. This Q&A session with Esther Dhanraj and scholar Sankrant Sanu deepens the inquiry into conversion mechanisms and what a genuine Hindu counter-strategy must look like.
Sankrant Sanu frames Christian exclusivism as a literal constriction of consciousness — shrinking the expansive Hindu worldview into a bounded, fearful one. The discussion examines why “rice bag conversions” persist even after vulnerability passes, how every lay Christian carries the evangelical burden as a missionary, and why the right to “propagate” does not include the right to demonise. The session ends with a powerful inversion: if Hindus provided the same community-level social support that makes evangelical conversion possible at moments of vulnerability, the entire conversion enterprise would lose its leverage.
About the Speaker:
Esther Dhanraj spent over two decades in evangelical Christianity after converting from her Hindu Brahmin roots as a teenager. While pursuing her Master of Divinity in the U.S., academic inquiry and lived experience began to unravel her faith, leading to a profound personal reckoning. Esther mentors families facing conversion pressures and serves as Director of Advancement at the Hindu University of America, helping cultivate scholars who bring an authentic dharmic voice to global academia and media. Her memoir, Unbaptized, chronicles her three-decade journey from devout Christian to unapologetic Hindu—a personal testimony and a wake-up call for her community.
Sankrant Sanu is an author, technologist, and entrepreneur. He was a senior development manager at Microsoft where he co-founded Microsoft SharePoint. He has been involved in startups in Seattle, Bay Area, Ottawa, and Gurgaon. Sankrant Ji is the writer of the critically acclaimed book “The English Medium Myth”. He has written for several well-known print media. He holds six technology patents.
