I recently attended the Harvard Business School’s and the Harvard Kennedy School’s conference on India along with three other members of the 
BSIA board. The conference began with an early 7:15 AM breakfast on both Saturday and Sunday, followed by some amazing keynote speakers. One of the most memorable keynotes from the weekend was a man by the name of Biju who had developed a learning app for Indian children that allows kids to study in a more interactive and game focused manner. Another amazing speaker was the Indian fashion designer Sabyasachi Mukherjee who has reached stardom in the fashion world with his portrayal of the modern sari. Throughout the day, my team and I attended a number of incredible panels ranging from women in leadership, to the evolution of news and media in India. Panelists such as Barkha Dutt, an Emmy nominated reporter and Washington Post columnist spoke to her struggles of being a female war correspondent, and how she has been able to overcome prejudice to retain her journalistic integrity. Other panelist such as Abhinanda Sekhri playfully articulated some of the struggles that Indian television personas face as a result of the current political climate in India. Overall the conference exposed me and my board to some of the coolest Indian innovations on the market today, the modern hardships of an Indian journalist, and the division between Indian politicians (not so far from the political situation in America). Thank you to the graduate students who put the conference together and to my fellow board members for a memorable weekend!