About
A TEDx event is a local gathering where live TED-like talks and videos previously recorded at TED conferences are shared with the community. TEDx events are fully planned and coordinated independently (x=independently organised TED EVENT ), on a community-by-community basis. The content and design of each TEDx event is unique and developed independently, but all of them have features in common.
​
Our Lady Of the Missions School, Saltlake, is the pioneer among schools in Kolkata, in hosting the internationally acknowledged event, TEDx. The concept of different people from the diverse fields of life coming together and sharing their ideas and expiriences made us believe that innovation is the to motivation. Living up to the very tagline of TED "Ideas worth spreading", our school aims at spurring ypung minds of a journey of innovation.
Our mission is to make TEDxYouth@QMSSaltLake one of the premiere TEDx events in the city through the content, networking and dialogue sparked at our events. We believe that we have all essential pieces to make it happen, but we are looking for like-minded entities who share a passion for excellence.
ORGANISERS
Licensee Ria Somani
SPEAKERS
SAIRA SHAH HALIM
In a world of “machine men with machine minds and machine hearts”, very few feel. But, for those who do, those who dare to look beyond the absolute appearance for a glimpse of beauty are the ones who truly live. And, when they surpass their own expectations to teach and preach the beauty they have observed, they become conquerors. Conquerors of poetry, of life. Conquerors of love and of beauty.
A writer, educator, theatre personality, corporate trainer, poet and a mother, our first speaker, Mrs. Saira Shah Halim, is one such conqueror.
A social and political activist, Saira Shah Halim is actively involved with causes such as gender equality, safeguarding secularism, democracy and women’s issue. She has been invited nationally and internationally at leadership and global programs as a thought leader and speaker. She is seen daily on national television on prime time debates as a social and political commentator.
She has had fifteen years of experience in the corporate sector in leading multinational companies.
She has been part of poetry collectives that has done pioneering work in the revival of poetry. Saira Shah Halim has also been the recipient of the Agha Hashar Kashmiri Award, in 2014, for her contribution to theatre. As a popular culturist she regularly hosts events and launches books and authors across the country.
SOUMENDRA BHATTACHARYA
Our esteemed speaker, Soumendra Bhattacharya is an artist-entrepreneur which makes his life fairly bi-polar. He is the President of performing arts organisation “Mad About Drama” which he co-founded with his school friends in 2011, through which he strives to create quality content and which he wants to be a platform for young people who are crazy enough to pursue performing arts seriously in India.
He is a professional actor who has been acting and producing plays for nearly six years now and has performed in venues all across India including Prithvi Theatre, Mumbai. He made his screen debut with the film “LUDO” which was released on Netflix in 2016. He later went to act in films like “Byomkesh o Agnibaan” where he was directed by Anjan Dutt, which was a dream come true for him. His last release was a web series called “Dupur Thakurpo” where he acted with Swastika Mukherjee, another dream come true, which released on the Hoichoi app by Sree Venkatesh Films. He is currently working as the Creative Producer of Mad About Drama's upcoming webseries on Hoichoi produced by SVF.
He believes that we live only once, hence, we have only one lifetime to dream, dream big, and give it all to make our dreams a reality.
One fun fact which very few people know, a big turning point for him in terms of belief was when as a school boy in class 12 he won the Best Actor award at CQ, the cultural fest of QMS.
PUSHAN MAJUMDAR
Mr. Pushan Majumdar has been an Associate Professor in the Department of Theoretical Physics at the Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science, since October 2012. He has also been an Assistant Professor, Department of Theoretical Physics at the Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science from October 2007 to September 2012.
A Bosconian, he was always a meritorious student during his school days. After finishing High school he decided to do his Bachelors majoring in Physics. After completing his Masters from Anna University, Chennai, he submitted his thesis to University of Madras in April 2000. He has had 24 papers in international Journals and 18 Conference Proceedings.
He had been awarded Lise Meitner Fellowship from FWF (Austrian national funding agency), Austria for his stay at the Karl-Franzens-Universit ̈at, Graz. He has been a Reviewer for Physical Review D, Reviewer for Physics Letters B, Reviewer for Nuclear Physics B, and Reviewer for Mathematical Reviews. His areas of interest include non-perturbative aspects of Gauge theories, Lattice Gauge Theory, Mathematical Physics.
VIHA KEDIA
‘Age is just a number’ holds true for our fourth speaker of the day, Viha Kedia. Being a twelve year old doesn’t stop her from doing what she believes in or exploiting her capabilities to the fullest.
Miss Kedia has been an achiever in her school life till date. She was the leader of Formula 1 team representing her school, Dubai College. She acted and displayed proficiency with violin in the play ‘ Miracle Worker; which was nominated by ‘ Time Out Dubai’ as the drama play of the year on the life and times of ‘ Annie’ . Miss Kedia started to learn violin from the age of 5. A persistent learner and a hard worker, she has completed Grade III Trinity College London. Currently with ABRSM London and completed Grade V, she is now a part of her school’s senior orchestra. She is a prolific debater and an esteemed orator.
Being part of poetry competition organised by India Consulate titled ‘ Postcards of India’ , Miss Kedia won the best poetry award from the Indian Consul General out of 550 entries.
She believes that “A child is not a vase to be filled but a fire to be lit”.
Be there to be inspired. Be there to learn because learning has no age. Its About Time.
AYUSHMAN MITRA
Our fifth and final speaker, Ayushman Mitra, better known as Bobo, is one such courageous soul. An actor, artist and entrepreneur, in both his films and his paintings, Mr.Mitra has acquired a distinct aesthetic, preferring to show brief moments over longer narratives and collage-like juxtapositions rather than uniform visual scapes.
At his boarding school, Mr.Mitra was enrolled in art classes, but, it was studying film making in college, that gave him a clearer sense of the possibilities still and motion pictures allow. After graduating from Conde Nast College, London, the young Ayushman Mitra was flooded with internships and jobs in Europe. Yet, the love for his city drew him back, and he is now the mastermind and entrepreneur of ‘BOBO’, a flagship store and a store house of unconventional art. His art work is of such intricate brilliance that they were covered by Vogue, Platform, Rolling Stones and so on. His work which draws from twentieth century artistic movements such as Cubism and Expressionism has been displayed at various galleries and venues.
So, let your artistic sensibilities awaken because Its About Time.
