Our lives are a collection of colourful, distinct moments. Pieces that may or may not hold significance on their own, but when put together to compose a beautiful tapestry, reveal more than just the sum of its parts. These moments, these numerous dots in our lives, tend to have something of a butterfly effect, compounding and moulding the bigger picture, the final product, us.
Drawing from the famous quote by Steve Jobs, the way these dots connect isn’t apparent while looking forward, but only discernible when looking back, when we take the time to see ourselves as fascinating beings made up of so many stories of our own.
TEDxNITKSurathkal presents “Connect the dots”, an experience that promises to help us see our wonderfully complex and unique story. Join us as our speakers through their talks and performances showcase the wondrous tapestry of their experiences and knowledge, helping us paint our own masterpiece.
Speakers
Speakers may not be confirmed. Check event website for more information.
Anil Pradhan
Founder and CEO ,Young Tinker Academy
Anil Pradhan is an Indian engineer, an innovator and a revolutionary educationist. He is the founder of Young Tinker and School for Rural Innovation (IPSFRI), which was founded in 2015 to educate the less-privileged students of Odisha through an interdisciplinary curriculum. Starting with three students, his team is now impacting the lives of 1,50,000+ students across India. He is well known for designing innovative labs, teaching tools, indigenous rockets and projects which solves real-life problems. In 2020, he started Young Tinker Academy, World’s 1st Live online hands-on learning academy. This Ed-Tech start-up from India is now going global with its students across the Globe. This Ed-Tech platform created a U-19 Indian team that secured World Rank 3 in NASA’s Rover Challenge 2021 and made India proud by becoming 1st U-19 Asian team to do so. This year, he received the National Youth Award from the Govt of India for his contribution towards Education, Science and technology.Ankush Jain
Multi-Instrumental BeatBoxer
A musician, book enthusiast, foodie, nature enthusiast, stage performer, and most importantly, India’s first multi-instrumental beat-boxer, Ankush Jain is a jack of many trades. Having performed in over 200 shows, he is now looking forward to heal the world with his music therapy. He describes himself to be a curiosity-driven person. Being born into a family of businessmen, Ankush Jain has a bachelor’s degree in commerce. But his love for music never went away. He has performed along with Armaan Malik and other leading artists from the Indian music community. He hopes to venture into music therapy, which has now become an instrumental remedy for individuals with ADHD, Down syndrome, among others. Having already performed in a TEDx event before, Ankush Jain is excited to be on the TEDx stage and own it again.Kavan Kuttappa
Founder , Naru Noodle Bar
Chef Kavan Kuttappa is the founder of Eatnaru and former Culinary Head of The Permit Room and Toit, Bengaluru. He is an engineer turned chef who is transforming India’s culinary landscape. After completing his engineering he realised his true calling was to follow his love for food and decided to get a culinary degree from CIA (Culinary Institute of America). He has had stints at prestigious establishments like Eleven Madison Park (voted the World's Best Restaurant in 2017), Le Bernardin, Jean Georges, and Momofuku in New York.In 2020, he was featured in ‘Condé Nast Traveller’s 40 under 40: India’s most exciting young chefs’. After working in the food and beverage industry for a decade, Chef Kavan decided to work on his passion project and launched his venture - 'Naru Noodle Bar', where he sends Ramen kits to Bangaloreans on a weekly basis. It has been the talk of the town since its inception and has been featured on Vogue India, Deccan Herald, and other prominent media houses.Neha Cadabam
Consultant Psychologist
Neha Cadabam is a Psychologist at Cadabam’s Hospitals and an Executive Director at the Cadabam’s Group. She's a Consultant Psychologist and is also a certified Neuro-Linguistic Practitioner with certification from Dr. Richard Brandler, one of the pioneers of the Neurolinguistic Programming approach to psychology. With over 11 years of experience in the field of mental health, her area of interest is preventive and promotive mental healthcare. She is very passionate about what she does and works closely in helping individuals to improve their mental health and in promoting lifestyle changes, healthier habits in daily life. She specializes in treating various mental health issues like stress management, depression, anxiety, and many others. She has a fond interest in working with children too. Apart from her skills in psychology, she has expertise in administrative and management of care giving facilities.Saad Khan
Director
An Indian director, screenwriter and acting teacher and Improv comedian, Saad Khan is an emerging young talent. He is also the founder of FirstAction Studios and Centre Stage, a new wave media movement based in Bangalore that promotes new artists in the city, he has shown his passion for the film industry. Khan is an alumnus of St. Joseph's College, eventually graduating as a mechanical engineer from M.S. Ramaiah Institute of Technology. While studying to be an engineer, he developed an interest in theatre at the age of 17 and started writing and directing plays, also spearheading a theatre group which then produced over 12 plays in a span of 4 years. Saad then decided to pursue a career in film and media and after graduating from college, he left for the United States to continue his education in filmmaking. He is known for his Kannada-English feature film Humble Politician Nograj (2018), which became a hit .Suhas Gopinath
Founder Ceo , Globals INC
Young and dynamic, Suhas Gopinath is a name to reckon with in this digital start up era. Recognized by the European parliament and International association for Human Values as “Young Achiever Award”, he is one of the youngest members in the World Economic Forum. He was a student who was very interested in programming culture of computer science. At the time when computer just made its first appearance, he bartered a deal with an internet café owner in his neighbourhood, where he used to take care of the shop during lunch hours and get free access to the computer he always dreamt of. He listed himself as a freelancer, and started his own website by the name of coolhindustan.com that catered to the NRIs. An experienced entrepreneur with a demonstrated history of working in EdTech, FinTech, SaaS, he has engagements with multilateral and government bodies. He is the co founder and CEO of HappyEMI and Globals Inc., a multinational IT company which he took charge as CEO at the age of 17.Susan Thomas
Director, NIFT Bengaluru
Susan Thomas, IRS, is a public speaker, debater, Director of the National Institute of Fashion Technology, Bengaluru, and all-around a woman of many accomplishments. She is an alumna of prestigious universities namely, St Teresa’s, JNU, the University of Oxford (Masters in Public Policy). She has worked with the Income Tax Department for 17 years, including many years in remote places in Rajasthan, as well as the Ministry of Textiles. She has spoken at TEDx before at TEDxChoiceSchool and TEDxGITAMVizag. On social media, she speaks about NIFT Bengaluru, textiles and culture, being a government employee, and feminism.Vahbiz Bharucha
Captain,Indian Women Rugby Team
Vahbiz Bharucha is the captain of the Indian Women Rugby Team. A seasoned TEDx speaker, physiotherapist and medical educator, Vahbiz is a name to reckon with. Being a rugby player and having a career in physiotherapy, she depicts how one can balance between two different passions in their life. She has been more than instrumental in developing the craze for the sport of rugby amongst the general population and has played a crucial role in encouraging more women to take up the sport. Vahbiz Bharucha is often regarded as ‘India’s Wonder Woman’ by several articles and blogs. Her commitment, dedication and admiration for the sport have been clearly reflected through her work habits and professional life. From kick-off to a perfect touchdown, Vahbiz’s journey as an athlete has been inspirational and a barrier-breaker for all the people out there!Organizing team
