A melange of thought provoking conversations at TEDxGIM

Leading B-school, Goa Institute of Management (GIM) will be hosting the TEDxGIM 2020-21 conference which promises to have a diverse mix of speakers and performers from the field of science, business and the arts. The virtual event which is being held on 24 January aims to create thought provoking conversations for the student community at large.

Some of the speakers include Samarth Kholkar, CEO & Co- founder, B:Live; Rafina (Siya) Shaikh, Founder of Gowomania Goa; Ratneshwaran Maheshwaran, computer scientist and entrepreneur; Annushka Hardikar, illustrator and visual artist and performer Ankur Dinge.

24-year-old Pune based visual artists Annushka Hardikar's initiative called A Fresh Coat saw the roads of Bohri Ali, one of Pune’s oldest wholesale markets transformed into an art space. A friend’s Instagram posts on the shutter art she’d come across in Spain gave Annushka and her friend Alefiya Kachwalla the idea to give their hometown’s old stores located near the historic Shaniwar Wada Fort, which was once a seat of the Peshwas of the Maratha Empire, a complete makeover. Annushka got together a team of artists who spoke to shop owners, recorded their stories and converted it into art which was then painted onto the shutters of their store. The initiative saw locals and tourists head to the streets to view the beautiful street art created by the team.

Founded in 2018 by Samarth Kholkar and his partner Sandeep Mukherjee, BLive offers unique, experiential, guided tours on smart electric bikes thus promoting zero carbon tourism in India. The company works closely with the government bodies and hospitality chains to encourage early adoption of electric vehicles across all tourist destinations in India. The company envisions bringing an eco-tourism revolution in the country through curated experiences powered by electric vehicles. Samarth will share his journey on TEDxGIM platform.

Civil engineer Rafina (Siya) Shaikh founded Gowomania's Goa chapter which is a community for women which encourages the gender to support and grow along with each other. The community works together on community based initiatives.

High school student, Ratneshwaran Maheswaran has been a tech wizard ever since he was a child. While still studying he is presently working on an artificial Intelligence (AI) project which aims to aid in the quick and efficient analysis of healthcare data within the sector.

The event will also feature a performance by Goan mouth harp artists Ankur Dinge. Ponda based Dinge was introduced to the mouth harp when he saw an elderly person play the harp on the banks of the Tungabhadra river in 2012. Since then Ankur has worked on perfecting his art.

The TEDxGIM 2020-21 event will be held virtually from 7.00pm onwards on January 24.