Art Orchestrators: Creating Future Leaders in the Arts

Since the last decade, Amita Malkani has been the administrator of the Inlaks Shivdasani Foundation, primarily a scholarship granting body for graduate students intending to study overseas. A graduate in Economics from St Xavier’s College, Mumbai, Amita coordinates the selection of outstanding young Indians for scholarships, grants and awards, both abroad and in India. In addition to academics, the Foundation supports individuals in the fine arts, dance, theatre, film studies and music. Amita started her working career in Marketing Research. She went on to conduct Social Research for the National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad. She has also conducted research for international publishing companies looking at developing the Indian market. Amita has a part-time interest in ceramics and counselling.

Asad Lalljee is SVP Essar Group and CEO of Avid Learning, a public programming initiative and creative platform under the Essar Group. Asad brings several years of advertising, publishing, marketing and business development experience, both in international and domestic markets. Prior to relocating to India, Asad worked for 14 years as one of the ‘Mad Men’ advertising executives on New York's Madison Avenue. He was with McCann-Erickson, and earlier with Hill Holiday, a subsidiary of advertising giant IPG. Under Asad’s leadership AVID has distinguished itself with a wide variety of arts and cultural programming and is currently at the forefront of India’s cultural hub. AVID has grown its curatorial practice by leveraging international cultural collaborations through the diplomatic core and partnering with the existing ecosystem by creating opportunities at some of the country’s and region’s largest cultural platforms including JLF, The Serendipity Arts Festival and The Kala Ghoda Arts Festival. Asad co-curated the Literature Section at Kala Ghoda for two years. Asad’s career also demonstrates his passion for technology and new media. Under his leadership AVID has a robust social media presence and uses social media as an integral channel for learning. In 2016, Asad was appointed curator of the newly restored Royal Opera House, Mumbai for which he has successfully designed a robust program. Under Asad’s guidance the Royal Opera House, Mumbai has re-established itself as a performance space of international quality, a cultural venue par excellence and a prime example of restored and renewed city heritage. In 2018 Asad was inducted into the prestigious FICCI Art and Culture Committee as a distinguished member. FICCI is the largest and oldest apex business organization of Indian business with a glorious history of nine decades. FICCI cuts across 72 different sectors and has started working for the cause of the Indian Art and Culture Industry since 2015. Asad holds a B.A. in Economics from St. Xavier's College (Mumbai) and an M.A. in Global Marketing Communications from Emerson College (Boston).

Deepika Sorabjee received her M.B.B.S. degree from Grant Medical College and the Sir J.J. Group of Hospitals before pursuing her passion for the arts. An independent writer on contemporary art and the city since 2009 she has been published in print publications and online sites. She obtained a post graduate diploma in Indian Aesthetics from Jnanapravaha, Mumbai in 2011, was a selector for the International Competition section for the Mumbai Film Fest (MAMI) between 2012-2014. Currently, heading the Arts &Culture portfolio at Tata Trusts she brings together her various interests towards working on community and sector impact in conservation, art education and the performing arts.

Eve Lemesle lives in Mumbai since 2009. She is a graduate of La Sorbonne, Paris in arts management and of INALCO, Paris in South-Asian studies. She started the the arts management agency called ‘What about art?’ in 2010. Among major projects are production of the India-Pakistan pavilion at the 56th Venice Biennale, Dhaka Art Summit in Bangladesh, William Kentridge’ solo exhibition in Mumbai, collateral exhibitions at the Kochi Biennale. Eve is a Consultant for Qatar Museum Authority, and she is a researcher at the Institute of Public Art at the University of Shanghai. She also runs a not-for- profit artists’ residency in Mumbai, and the curatorial lab Mumbai Art Room.

Tasneem Zakaria Mehta is Managing Trustee and Honorary Director, Dr. Bhau Daji Lad Museum, Mumbai, Former Vice Chairman and Mumbai Convenor, Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage. She is an art historian, writer, curator, designer and cultural activist who has successfully pioneered the revival and restoration of several cultural sites in Mumbai. She conceptualized, curated, designed and implemented the restoration and revitalization of the Museum and the ongoing exhibitions and outreach programmes. The Museum won UNESCO’s 2005 Asia Pacific ‘Award of Excellence’. The Museum was nominated for the prestigious Prudential Eye Awards for Asian Contemporary Art in 2014 and the International Quality Crown Award (IQC), Gold category, 2016. Ms Mehta prepared the Vision Document for the proposed Railway Museum to be set up at the CSMT. Mrs. Mehta is a member of International Council of the Museum of Modern Art, New York and has served on several Museum boards and high level government committees. She was among 2 senior experts sent by the PMO to advise the Bangladesh government on the refurbishment of their museums and cultural sites. She is a former chair of the Task Force on Culture for CII.

Hena Kapadia is founder and gallery director of TARQ, a contemporary art gallery in Mumbai. After majoring in Art History and Economics at Tufts University in Massachusetts, she completed her Master’s Degree in Modern and Contemporary Art World Practice at Christie's Education, University of Glasgow in London. At TARQ, she is focused on exhibiting and engaging with art that is both process driven and thought provoking. A key interest of her practice is to maintain close relationships with both, artists and patrons, and to encourage thoughtful acquisitions of art. Apart from TARQ’s regular shows, the gallery is also committed to building an educational structure that enables the art community to grow through discussion, debate and dialogue across a spectrum of fields.

Karan Talwar is a film maker and co-founder/curator at Harkat Studios, a multi-disciplinary boutique arts studio based in Mumbai and Berlin. He directs experimental and live action films, works as a visual artist and curates exhibitions and performative shows. Karan is interested in material memory, experiential storytelling, sustainable neighbourhood models for art spaces, politics as candy and accessible art interventions. Harkat, founded in 2014 with his partner Michaela forms the umbrella for his and the collectives’ work. Together, they have mounted more than 300 shows and exhibits in various formats over three years at the Harkat space in Versova and in many cities and spaces in India, and internationally.

Mehroo Jeejeebhoy is the Founder Trustee of the Mehli Mehta Music Foundation that is recognized as a leading institution in the city of Mumbai for promoting an awareness for western classical music. The Foundation was established in 1995 as a tribute to the late Mehli Mehta, conductor and violinist and father of Maestro Zubin Mehta. Over the years the Foundation has presented some of the world’s great solo artists, chamber and symphony orchestras in Mumbai including the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, Florence Festival Orchestra, Bavarian State Opera Orchestra and the Australian World Orchestra under the baton of Zubin Mehta. The Foundation has also pioneered several educational initiatives and is currently providing music education in various disciplines to almost 680 children in the city of Mumbai. Its outreach projects for children from underprivileged backgrounds have been an enormous success and an additional 900 students are “discovering” music which has had a huge impact on their emotional and intellectual development.

Piergiacomo Mion Dalle Carbonare is program coordinator of MAMA, the Master in Art Management, SDA Bocconi School of Management. He holds a Master of Public Management from SDA Bocconi and Bachelors in Political Science and International Relations from Fitchburg State University (MA), USA. He is pursuing his Phd from University of Valencia (Spain) and is a visiting fellow at SMU Dallas (US).

Sameera Iyengar is co-founder of Junoon, an organisation that believes that living with the arts is a fundamental right, and works to make this a possibility for people across India. She delights in designing programmes and experiences that open doors and windows into the delight and richness of the arts; she delights in working closely with artists and creative thinkers create more and more access to the worlds of the arts. In other avatars, Sameera has been the first Course Director of SMART (Strategic Management in the Art of Theatre), a unique capacity building course designed specifically for theatre groups in India; she remains a member of SMART’s core team. Sameera is also a founding member of the India Theatre Forum (ITF) in 2006, and remained a core member till 2014. As part of her ITF contribution, she co-edited Our Stage: The Pleasures and Perils of Theatre Practice in India Today (Tulika 2009). Previous to Junoon, Sameera was Director Projects at Prithvi Theatre for close to a decade, and has also worked with the Seagull Theatre Quarterly. She has a PhD on theatre from the Department of South Asian Languages & Civilisations at the University of Chicago. She was bitten by the theatre bug during her undergraduate years at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), from where she graduated with a BSc in Mathematics and a Minor in Theatre, and was inducted into the MIT chapter of the Phi Beta Kappa academic honour society, which honours the most outstanding undergraduate students in the USA for excellence in the liberal arts.

As Chairperson of the JSW Foundation, Mrs. Sangita Jindal strategizes and oversees social development projects within the JSW Group. The programs at the JSW Foundation span across a wide range of interventions and focus on the holistic development of the girl child. From providing Skill Development opportunities, to empowering woman across India, through health, education and livelihood oriented programs. JSW Foundation also works with the Government of India to devise strategies & programs to eliminate malnutrition in India. A philanthropist who believes in the transformatory powers of art, Sangita set up The Jindal Arts Centre (1992) at National Center for Performing Art, Mumbai, India which became a hub of interdisciplinary arts activity. She also publishes Art India Magazine which has been a chronicler of record of the Indian Art scene for over two decades. Her efforts to preserve heritage for future generations led to extensive restoration work at the Hampi temple complex in the southern Indian state of Karnataka & The Keneseth Eliyahoo Synagogue in Mumbai, Maharshtra. The Hampi Foundation was conferred the UNESCO-Asia Pacific Award for Merit for Cultural Heritage Conservation for the work at the Chandramauleshwar Temple. Sangita is an Eisenhower Fellow and is on the Board of Trustees of the World Monuments Fund & an Advisor on the Khoj Board. She has been inducted as a key member of Tate International Council as well as UN Women Business Sector Advisory Council (BSAC). She has recently won the Golden Peacock Award for Social and Cultural Leadership 2019.Today the work that Sangita oversees at the JSW Foundation, runs across 9 states in India, and has touched over a million lives.

Sanjoy K. Roy an entrepreneur of the arts, is the Managing Director of Teamwork Arts, which produces over 25 highly acclaimed performing arts, visual arts and literary festivals across 40 cities in countries such as Australia, Canada, Egypt, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Italy, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, UK and USA, including the world’s largest free literary gathering — the annual ZEE Jaipur Literature Festival. Roy has received the National Award for Excellence and Best Director for the film Shahjahanabad: The Twilight Years. He is a founder trustee of Salaam Baalak Trust (SBT) working to provide support services for street and working children in the inner city of Delhi where over 55,000 children have benefited from education, training and residential services. In 2011, the White House presented SBT the US President’s Committee of Arts and Humanities Award for an International Organisation. Roy works closely with various industry bodies on important policy issues within the cultural space in India and is a senior office bearer on several committees working on policy infrastructure for the creative industries - he is Co-chair of the Art and Culture Committee of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) and President of Event and Entertainment Management Association (EEMA).

Sunaina Kejriwal is the Director of the Kamalnayan Bajaj Hall & Art Gallery. She has a B.H.Sc degree from the S.N.D.T. College, Pune specializing in Textiles and has done a one year Silk Screen Printing course at Sophia College, Mumbai. She has also completed a Post Graduate Diploma Programme from the Bhau Daji Lad Museum in ‘The History of Indian Art – Modern & Contemporary & Curatorial studies.’ Her interests include Pottery, Art, Theatre and Travelling. She is from the Bajaj Family which was very closely involved with Gandhiji in India’s Freedom Struggle. The family through the Jamnalal Bajaj Foundation has been involved in the restoration of many heritage structures – The Bhau Daji Lad Museum being one of the more significant ones. The Family has many charitable trusts and is involved in various philanthropic activities.

Sunita Choraria has been an Art patron & collector for the past 25 years along with her husband Vijay Choraria. Sunita’s undying passion coupled with her academic-like approach has enabled her to delve deep and wide into the art world and integrate herself with artists, gallerists, other art patrons and practitioners alike. She is the Co-founder of ArtC: a Non-Profit driven to support contemporary art in India. ArtC has established a robust public art program in Phoenix MarketCity and Palladium, Chennai, and aims to create an alternate space for all audiences to interact with contemporary art. By exhibiting a variety of works in multiple mediums in various public spaces, the objective is also to push the definition of what art can be. In Mumbai, ArtC has annually supported Mumbai Art Room and continuously supports What About Art? for whom it provides the spaces for their office and residencies. Sunita is a Platinum patron of Kochi-Muziris biennale and has been its active supporter from the very beginning in 2012. She is on the Board of FICA, a non-profit organisation based out of New Delhi that works in the field of art education and provides grants for art practitioners. She is also a member of the Advisory committee of Khoj, that plays an important role in the development of experimental, interdisciplinary and critical contemporary art practice in India and is now recognised as an outstanding alternative arts incubation space. Sunita is a member of New Museum's International Leadership Council for past 8 years. The New Museum is focused on exhibition (only & not acquisition) of cutting edge, contemporary art shows. The curatorial team is headed by Massimiliano Gioni, who was the curator for the Venice Biennale in 2013. She has also sponsored their curatorial study trips to India, while researching for their triennale. All these efforts stem from a deep desire to share her passion and to help others to actively engage with the contemporary art of India.

Tasleem Somji is a creative consultant and communications specialist, actively engaged in a variety of mediums from film curation and cultural institution development, to festival and live events management, and more recently in content production and documentary filmmaking. An advocate for cultural heritage as a means for community development, Tasleem has participated globally as an advisor and Board Member of multiple arts organizations and film initiatives – the Toronto International Film Festival, The Dubai International Film Festival, the Indo-American Arts Council in New York, and served as a Jury Member for the inaugural Jubilee Arts Festival in Lisbon, Portugal. All while venturing the startup of her own media production company, The Melonade Co. In recognition of her professional accolades, Tasleem is this year’s recipient of the “Exceptional Woman of Excellence Award” by the Women’s Economic Forum.

Trishla Talera is the Director of TIFA Working Studios, a multi-disciplinary platform for creativity and culture in India. A fibre artist from the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD), she has worked with sustainable textiles and processes using hand loom, and interacted extensively with weavers’ communities in India. Trishla has travelled extensively to develop collaborations with institutions from around the world and is a part of ongoing dialogues about new educational formats and experiments. Trishla has engaged in various conferences worldwide and has spoken at the Transcultural Exchange conference in Boston in 2016. She was recently a fellow at Art Think South Asia (ATSA) supported by Goethe Institute while researching with Savvy Contemporary, Berlin.