Theme: Breaking Barriers

All of us have some insecurities or limitations which stop us from realising our potential. All we need is a small step in the right direction which can help us overcome the obstacles on our path. The speakers at TEDxJadavpurUniversity will encourage fresh ideas to inspire and motivate the audience, celebrate the freedom of expression and showcase what it takes to break barriers.

In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized (subject to certain rules and regulations).

Gandhi Bhavan
Jadavpur University
Raja S C Mullick Road
Kolkata, West Bengal, 700032
India

Chandril Bhattacharya

Satirical Columnist and Lyricist of Bengali rock band Chandrabindoo

Chandril Bhattacharya is one of the main lyricists of the renowned Bengali band “Chandrabindoo”, composing countless songs of idiomatic lyrics laced with satire and critique of modern society. He also won the National Award for the song “Ferari Mon” from the film “Antoheen” in 2009. He is a regular columnist of popular Bengali dailies like Anandabazar Patrika and Sangbad Pratidin, coining peculiar idioms, playful jargon, spoonerisms, reconstructing colloquial Bengali phrases and expressions to formulate absurdist, humorous puns. His short film “Talent”, released in 2017, too received huge acceptance from the netizens.

Joy Bhattacharjya

Project Director, FIFA U-17 World Cup 2017 and Team Director, Kolkata Knight Riders

Joy Bhattacharjya is an experienced applied mathematician and a computer engineer who has been changing the face of sports industry in the country with his exemplary skills. Bhattacharjya was a team director for the Kolkata Knight Riders, till 2014, and the Head of Productions of ESPN Star Sports from 2000 to 2006. He also served as the Project Director for the U-17 FIFA World Cup, 2017. An esteemed Jadavpur University alumnus, he is also a renowned orator, writer, quizzer and a sports producer.

Joyashree Roy

Professor, Jadavpur University and Member of the Nobel Peace Prize winning committee in 2007

Currently a distinguished Professor of Economics at Jadavpur University, Dr. Joyashree Roy initiated and coordinates the Global Change Programme at Jadavpur University which focuses on selected aspects of Climate Change research and beyond. She also directs the Ryoichi Sasakawa Young Leaders Fellowship Fund (SYLFF) project on “Tradition, Social Change, and Sustainable Development: A Holistic Approach”. She was a Ford Foundation Post Doctoral Fellow in Environmental Economics at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, California , USA. She is among the network of scientists who shared in the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize awarded to the IPCC (Intergovernmental panel on climate change). In her independent research capacity she has authored a number of books and written around 75 articles in peer-reviewed leading professional journals and books. She has travelled widely for research collaborations and research capacity building.

Kieran Drake

Member and Minister Counsellor of the British High Commission

Kieran Drake is Minister Counsellor, Political and Press at the British High Commission in New Delhi. He took up this role in late May 2017.Kieran joined the UK Civil Service in 2005 and has previously worked at HM Treasury, the Cabinet Office, the Prime Minister's Strategy Unit and at the Department for Exiting the European Union. Kieran has an MA (Hons) in Geography from Cambridge University. Before joining the Civil Service he worked as a speech writer and researcher for an MP, and as a consultant. He has also held board level posts in the voluntary sector, including as Chair of the Board of Trustees of Thrive, a leading UK horticultural charity.

Leena Kejriwal

Founder of the MISSING Campaign which fights against human trafficking using public art installations

Leena Kejriwal is a photographer and an installation artist with her exhibitions spread worldwide. With her significant association with various NGOs, she discusses human trafficking and prostitution. She is the founder of The MISSING Public Art campaign, which aims to sensitise the populace to the plight of the millions of girls who are trafficked every year for sexual exploitation. She is also a Licentiate Member of the British Institute of Professional Photographers, and a Professional Member of the Photographers Guild of India.

Parambrata Chattopadhyay

Renowned Bengali and Hindi Cinema Actor and Director

A deadly combination of Bengali charm and insane acting skills, Parambrata Chattopadhyay is a fine example of an actor who became a household name in India overnight. His role of a cop breaking protocols to save a distressed pregnant woman in search of her spouse in the 2012 thriller 'Kahaani', is considered nothing short of a classic in 21st century Hindi cinema. An alumnus of Jadavpur University, Parambrata has acted in more than 60 Tollywood films including Bhooter Bhabishyat, Chotushkone, Hemlock Society and has also directed the first season of the web series Feluda.

Satyajit Chakroborty

Video game Developer, Designer and Researcher

Satyajit Chakraborty established Flying Robot studios back in 2012, and has been making unique games and keeping the indie game magic alive. His games have been showcased in a number of international gaming conferences. His video game Missing won the NASSCOM Game Developers Conference Indie Game of the Year in 2016. Another one of his games, Warfront Defenders: Westerplatte, was green-lit by Steam in less than two weeks, and was a finalist at the NASSCOM Gaming Forum Awards in 2017. He is also one of the organisers of the Global Game Jam in Kolkata and the most active member of Kolkata Game Dev community.

Sauvik Banerjjee

Chief Technological Officer, TATACLiQ and Vice President, Digital Initiatives- Tata Industries

Sauvik Banerjjee is a Tech Evangelist and is the man who helped build and develop the E-commerce architecture of Reliance JIO, TataCLiQ, Shoppers Stop, Asian Paints, Big Bazaar and many other conglomerates in the India subcontinent as the Global CTA on Digital Transformation at SAP. He is presently the Vice-President of Digital Initiatives Tata Industries, CTO of TataCLiQ and advisory to group CO's. He is currently focused on Omni Channel commerce solutions, having previously been the Head of the same at Accenture UK, Infosys, and Towergate. He did his Ph.D. in NLP and later developed PHYDOS, the UK's first back catalogue online music e-commerce engine. He also represented Bengal in Ranji Trophy and India in the Under-19 Cricket Team in his youth and credits sports for his Management Skills entirely. He has over 20+ years of experience evangelising digital innovation across Europe, UK, US and other countries.

Usha Uthup

Eminent Indian, Jazz and Playback singer

Beginning her career at a Chennai nightclub called Nine Gems in 1969, Usha Uthup has become a modern-day legend of the music industry. In her illustrious career as a playback singer, she has recorded over 100 albums in more than 20 Indian and foreign languages and has become a role-model for generations of men and women all over the country. She has worked with music composers like RD Burman and AR Rahman in her decorated career, and has been a pioneer of bringing different genres of music like jazz into the mainstream. But it’s her activities which she has done away from the limelight which have made her a true ambassador of humanity and values. She has worked for innumerable NGOs and has toiled extensively to uplift the underprivileged members of society. From the Red Cross to empowerment of women and concerts to mobilize the victims of natural disasters, Usha Uthup has spread a message of love and harmony through her music.