Mysore, India
November 4-7, 2009
Mysore, India
November 4-7, 2009
"Within You, Without You," the final session of TEDIndia, rings in with a drumbeat -- the rich, propulsive stylings of Sivamani. He combines the sounds of a variety of percussive instruments with a recurring motif: water. Dipping instruments in water as he plays them, the instruments take on the character of the life-giving substance that all living things on Earth share. Sivamani's homepage >>
Alwar Balasubramaniam, a sculptor, painter and printmaker, is fascinated by the transition from the present to the future, the traces that entities leave behind as they pass through time. Through art that is part performance, part sculpture, he explores the possibilities that emerge from these transitions and self-discoveries. He uses plaster and other materials to capture traces such as a fingerprint, the path of the sun through the sky, flames ... and the human face. But how real are these traces? His work highlights how subjective, context-driven all experience is. The mind creates meaning; meaning isn't independent of it. He shows artwork that is designed to decay over time -- a bust made of semi-solid material that melts, slowly losing value as time goes on. A later sculpture captures the inverse -- attempting to create "something from nothing" by growing more substance as time passes. His later works explore perception, the substance of unseen things such as electricity, magnetism, light. Read about Alwar Balasubramaniam on Sculpture.org >>
Shashi Tharoor, member of Parliament and the Indian minister of state for external affairs, says, "The future beckons -- but which direction?" What constitutes a nation classified as a world leader? He suggests the answer is not just population, nuclear capacity, economy, but the power of example, or a country's ability to attract others. To have "soft power," you have to be connected. India is well-connected now, but telephones were once rare. What's striking, today, is who's carrying cell-phones: people without contact with other contemporary technologies, people such as fisherman, farmers. Meanwhile, India is exporting its culture (food, film) to the whole world -- not just the US and UK. "The Empire strikes back," he says. "We've gone from the image of India as a land of fakirs to a land of mathematical geniuses and software gurus." He says the country that tells the best stories will be the country that leads the world. In a diverse, plural democracy like India, you don't have to agree all the time; you just have to agree on the ground-rules about how to disagree. That is the India that is emerging. Shashi Tharoor's homepage >>
Ogyen Trinley Dorje, the 17th Gyalwang Karmapa, a revered figure in Tibetan Buddhism, tells the story of his life, his recognition as the Karmapa, and the important process of finding heart-to-heart connections with other human beings. He urges us to shift our motivation to be more sincere and genuinely positive -- to work on not just technology and design, but the technology and design of the heart. Homepage of H.H. 17th Karmapa Ogyen Trinley Dorje >>
So concludes TEDIndia. We hope you've enjoyed our coverage here on the TED Blog and on our TEDIndia Twitter feed. Look for TEDTalks from TEDIndia to appear on TED.com in the coming weeks. Namaste.
Photo: TED / James Duncan Davidson
Shashi Tharoor, India’s minister of state for external affairs, says India should influence the world though soft power -- attracting other countries to India’s example. Here are some responses from Twitter:
Tharoor: The penetration of mobile phones in India - testimony to development / empowerment / flattening of info hierarchies -- infosys
Engrossing talk by tharoor at #TEDIndia -- sidv
Tharoor: Similarly, the penetration of Bollywood, yoga, ayurveda & our cuisine make India the land of better stories -- infosys
@shashitharoor now speaks about India's cultural and religious diversity! Shouts of hurrah from crowd -- moneymunot
listening to @shashitharoor i am convinced -- vijaysankaran
Tharoor gets a standing ovation! -- TEDxShekhawati
Photo: TED / James Duncan Davidson
His Holiness the Karmapa, a spiritual Buddhist leader, proposes that the worldwide acceleration of technological connectivity should be accompanied by increased heart-to-heart connections. Check out some reactions from Twitter:
His Holiness the Karmapa speaking his story of being "found" at 7 as the next Karmapa. He expected more toys, less responsibilities! -- TEDxATX
Important for us to remember that we should focus on design and technology of the heart - Karmapa -- TEDxShekhawati
We should allow the information that we have to really make a change in our heart- HH the karmapa -- ShalG
No better way to end the @TEDIndia than have His Holiness the Karmapa on stage of #TEDindia amazing! -- FollowSamir
A big applause for Karmapa. What a beautiful talk :) -- shweta88
Our gavel-to-gavel coverage of TEDIndia comes from an extraordinary team. Matthew Trost, Shanna Carpenter and Jenny Zurawell have been blogging and live-tweeting conference proceedings as they happen. Emily McManus provided backstage reports. Leigh Ferreira led the social-media effort on Twitter and Facebook, engaging the worldwide community, responding to viewer questions and sharing information so that the whole world could watch Session 9, going now right now. Our social-media intern is Chris Griswold.
Look for TEDTalks from TEDIndia starting in mid-November and continuing throughout the year.
Comments or suggestions on our coverage? Email contact@ted.com with the subject line "TEDIndia social media." Thanks for sharing TEDIndia.
Eve Ensler at TEDIndia, Session 8, "Learning to Learn," November 7, 2009, in Mysore, India. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson
Eve Ensler brought her dynamic stage presence to TEDIndia, to fight for a new celebration and love for the girl inside us all. The audience gave her all the love she wanted, and couldn't stop sharing her words on Twitter:
Being a girl is so powerful that we've had to train everyone not to be a girl. Eve Ensler -- dina
The inspiring Eve Ensler on stage at TEDIndia. Every bit of visibility she's had, she deserves more. -- ralphtalmont
Eve Ensler: "bullets are actually hardened tears" -- eneylon
Eve Ensler at TEDIndia talks about how we have been harsh to men by eradicating the girl self in them. Truly authentic thought. -- thousandtyone
"Girls throughout the world are taught to please. Change it to educate or activate!"-Eve Ensler-- leighleighsf
Whoa! Eve Ensler - impactful like Sunitha Krishnan, in a very different way, yet with the same goal. -- achitnis
Amazing talk from Eve Ensler. It was like DefJam meets TED ... and yeah I love being a girl! #TEDindia -- Myd
Eve Ensler just rocked Ted india. I love love love being a girl. -- mallikadutt
Kiran Bir Sethi at TEDIndia, Session 8, "Learning to Learn," November 7, 2009, in Mysore, India. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson
Kiran Sethi is the founder of a revolutionary new school in India, called The Riverside School. She's changing the way we think about children, the way they think about themselves and her ideas are contagious! Here are some of the real-time reactions:
Finally. Kiran Sethi at TEDIndia ... Riverside school ... amazingness ... -- aDeSe
If you blur boundaries between school and life, children become aware, enabled and empowered. Kiran Sethi -- ralphtalmont
Kiran Sethi: Laughter is contagious, passion is contagious. "I can" is contagious. -- shivya
Design for Giving Contest.. :) finally.. we are there. Amazing concept by Kiran Sethi -- TEDxAhmedabad
kiran sethi - This is a well thought out, well executed talk with significant and important content -- Udindex
Photo: TEDIndia 2009. Mysore, India, November 4-7, 2009. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson
Here's what we learned from the the second-to-last session of TEDIndia, "Learning to Learn":
Sashwati Banerjee brings greetings from the longest street in the world: Sesame Street. Director of Sesame Workshop, Sashwati Banerjee takes the stage after a fun dialogue between Googly and Chamki, two colorful Muppets that were created for Galli Galli Sim Sim, the Indian version of Sesame Street. She asks, How can we use TV and other outreach to connect to the children who have little access to education? The 128 million pre-school children (of whom 4 of 5 are marginalized) in India are a huge opportunity. She's fascinated by the potential of new media: social networking and mobile technology, she says, can bridge the education gap between rich and poor even faster than satellite TV can. Galli Galli Sim Sim >>
C.K. Prahalad studies business and innovation around the globe -- from the top to the bottom of the economic pyramid. He asks, "How do you convert information into insight, and then into action?" Learning, he says, is about inference; two people will infer different things from the same information. We can improve learning by understanding the processes that alter the way different people make inferences. Organizations must understand these processes, or develop an institutional "learning disability." Organizations make mistakes as a result: mistaking current profits for leadership, unwillingness to face up to capability gaps. How can we break the power structure that creates these "disabilities"? Prahalad suggests technology: new ways to communicate, to analyze problems, to create dialogue with customers. We're at a unique point in history -- more people than ever have access to information through technology, but we must democratize learning, too. Books by C.K. Prahalad >>
Thulasiraj Ravilla directs the Lions Aravind Institute of Community Opthalmology, helping eye-care hospitals prevent blindness. He asks us, "What does it mean to be blind?" We often forget that blindness can deprive more than eyesight: dignity and status, too. Yet most blindness can be prevented. He breaks down the thinking that led to the creation of his innovative Aravind system. In part, the system was inspired by McDonald's: if you can franchise the mechanism for giving eye care, replicating the same methodologies in multiple places, you can solve blindness all over the country. You must also remove the barriers to entry to the system, making eye care centers accessible, and making the screening process more efficient by going paperless. His system also allows highly specialized care to be delivered to small villages, using satellite communication technology. But once you have an efficient system, how to you manage the demand when there are so few opthalmologists? He shows video clips of clinics, where doctors alternate between two surgical chairs in one operating room, a patient being prepared in one as surgery happens in another. He plans on helping to extend his system to the rest of the world -- perhaps even the United States. Standing ovation. Learn about the Aravind Eye Care System >>
Kiran Bir Sethi founded the Riverside School in Ahmedabad. She says "contagious is a good word -- even in the age of H1N1. Laughter is contagious too." She wants us to get infected with "I can." She shows video clips of common practices at Riverside School -- practices that give children the feeling that they can go out and change the world. By making children aware of learning, enabling them to teach themselves, the system empowers them to teach others -- including their own parents. The public service aspect of the program may seem a diversion from core education programming, but the students at Riverside have shown to out-perform other students in math, science, and English studies. Standing ovation. Learn about Riverside School >>
Matthew Spacie runs Magic Bus, a nonprofit that helps kids develop through sport. He shares the story of how a simple rugby game ended up encouraging a group of boys to stay off of the streets and away from drugs. He expanded the game into a full-fledged program that is changing the way we look at how to help individuals escape poverty traps. By giving children community and self-confidence, they learn to make better decisions for their lives -- and contribute to a more sustainable society. Standing ovation. Matthew Spacie's profile at Magic Bus >>
Eve Ensler created "The Vagina Monologues," whose success propelled her to found V-Day -- a movement to end violence against girls and women. She asks us to get in touch with our "girl self" -- an attribute that is a part of every human being, but which has been suppressed by cultural power-structures. She says "being a girl is so powerful that we've taught everyone not to be that." She takes us to Congo, where women are raped routinely as a part of the barbaric conflict. She takes us to her childhood, where her father abused her sexually -- and she realized that her crying exposed his brutality. It's a travesty, she says, that young boys are taught to be cold, hardened, to behave without tenderness or compassion. Just as girls are oppressed, they are also objectified, and also "trained to please." Girls must be taught to educate. The fate of the girl is entwined with the fate of humankind. The capacity for girls to overcome situations is mind-blowing -- as a species, we need to learn from that capacity. She closes with a powerful, energizing reading from "I Am an Emotional Creature." Standing ovation. Eve Ensler's profile at the V-Day website >>
Babar Ali, at 16, created his own school in his home village. He joins TED Curator Chris Anderson and TED Fellow Mohammed Tauheed (acting as a translator) for a short Q&A session. BBC article on Babar Ali >>
Watch the final session online
Stay tuned! The closing session of TEDIndia, Session 9, will be available for free on the Times of India website at 11:00 AM IST (GMT/UTC +05:30 hours).
Abhay Deol at TEDIndia, Session 7, "Power of Stories," November 6, 2009, in Mysore, India. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson
Beginning the last session of the day, Lakshmi Pratury takes the stage and explains that this theme was chosen because she believes that stories are extremely powerful. She says that the TEDIndia team wanted to share stories through the eyes of many different kinds of storytellers.
Ramachandra Budihalwalks on to the stage with a backpack. He explains that he will tell a story using technology. He's going to take us back to experience ancient Hampi and the ruins of Vijayanagara with an augmented reality demo. He pulls out a headset, places it over his eyes and begins projecting his augmented reality system. He uses its GPS system to go from the campus of Infosys, up the map to Hampi and begins exploring the wonders of the ancient city from the stage, explaining at points that he's even getting tactile feedback. For the first time anywhere, he says, it's a live demo from the third and first perspectives. Budihal considers the innovation a storytelling unit that can be used to engage, entertain, educate, immerse and transform. We create what we imagine, he explains, and technology is the way to realize our dreams, so he calls this imagineering. Read more about Ramachandra Budihal's extraordinary research organization here >>
Abhay Deol is a Bollywood actor and brand new producer. He asks us to watch a trailer for a movie he stars in, and then tells the story behind the movie. This story is true, he explains, and his character (a thief) is in jail. They decided to make a movie about him because everyone he met, even his victims, could not help but find him charming. Deol can't understand why Bollywood doesn't pursue more real stories like thus one. He shows the trailer for hid first production attempt -- Dev.D, which is a retelling of the classic Indian story of Devdas. He wanted to tell the story without pushing everything under the carpet to make it look pretty. He shows another trailer and goes on to explain that he wants to see change in Bollywood. He says that the mindset of the audience is changing. They want new stuff. A new wave is happening today in Bombay. There are stories all over India to be told, and he relates some interesting examples. You can be entertaining and socially conscious at the same time, he concludes. To see all his work, visit Abhay Deol's profile on IMDb.com >>
Shekhar Kapur, who directed Elizabeth, tears up his speech, just a few minutes into being on stage and says, "Now, I'm in absolute panic." It's a symbolic gesture he does everyday, he explains. He allows myself to go into chaos, hoping that some truth will come out of it. The first thing he learned about storytelling is to panic, because that is the only way to get rid of your mind. Out of the emptiness, comes a moment of creativity. We create stories to define our existence. A film tells a story. Showing the scene from Elizabeth: The Golden Age where Elizabeth realizes her lady-in-waiting is pregnant for Walter Raleigh, he asks, "What am I trying to say here?" Kapur explains how he used the imposing stone to show Elizabeth is not powerful in this moment and shoots down to show that she is a bottom of an emotional well. Ultimately, he explains, a story is a contradiction but all of us are constantly looking for harmony and he must find a way to create both. Read more about Shekhar Kapur on his homepage here >>
Ryan Lobo was in documentary film, but would find himself taking photographs. The photo-taking became almost compulsive. Now, he tells his stories through photography. He shares three recent stories of mine that exemplify what he aims for in his work -- compassionate storytelling. In Liberia, he tells the story of a once famous warlord who commanded child soldiers and committed horrific crimes. This man, Joshua has now repented and finds those he hurt to ask forgiveness. Does forgiveness and redemption replace justice? Lobo's second story is of an oddly successful contingent of all-Indian, all-women UN peacekeepers in Liberia that have also inspired many of the local women. His third storytelling series is of the Delhi Fire Service, who, due to traffic jam, were late in getting to slum to out a large fire and were attacked by hostile crowds. Lobo's pictures help him to tell these stories beautifully, even when the subject matter is not beautiful, and their portraits of the human condition are stunning. To see Ryan Lobo's work, visit his photostream on Flickr >>
Ananda Shankar Jayant is a classical Indian dancer and begins her time on stage dancing. Then she stops, and comes forward to the mike. She tells the audience that on July 1, 2008, she was diagnosed with breast cancer and realized she had an unwelcome, uninvited life partner. She needed something to pull her out of this. She went from beautiful to bald in three days and climbing a staircase was sheer torture. She decided to go to her dance studio every day and re-learn everything she had learned since she was four years old, through the pain of chemo. She made the image of the goddess Durga -- the fearless one -- her own. She begins a new dance now, one inspired by her current vision herself. Drawing with the henna on her feet, while dancing on a huge stretched canvas, she creates a spectacular angry face that her musicians hold behind her at then end of her performance. The audience jumps to a standing ovation. Visit Ananda Shankar Jayant's website to learn more about her story >>