Gender equality in India’s politics, with Kavitha Kalvakuntla (6 Oct, London)
A wide range of events coming up in October.
Hi there,
We’re delighted to be hosting Kavitha Kalvakuntla (Former Member of Parliament, India and prominent BRS Party Leader, Member of Legislative Council, Telangana), this coming Friday. She has emerged as a formidable force in championing the cause of gender equality through India’s historic Women’s Reservation Bill, passed last week. Scroll down for more.
Member news
Come and learn about responsible and regenerative farming, manufacture and threads of change, including hemp, regenerative cotton (carbon positive), nettle, wool, flax, forest peace silk and more, at the Festival of Natural Fibres, organised by Khadi London and the High Commission of India, on 16-20 October. Scroll down for more, or reply to this email to be put in touch with our Member Jui Gangan, Advisor, Khadi London.
Congratulations to Rangasudha Vinjamuri for presenting a dance tribute to Lord Ganesha during the Ganesh Utsav celebrations at the Maharashtra Mandal London recently.
We are delighted to welcome as our newest Member Sukanti Ghosh, who was Senior Vice President & Co-lead, South Asia Practice, Albright Stonebridge Group, and before that Senior Vice President at APCO Worldwide. Sukanti has significant experience advising leading corporations, alliances, associations, and civil society organisations on effective engagement with national and state governments. His expertise includes market access, tariffs and trade barriers, regulation, investment-linked policy incentives, economic development, healthcare, responsible food marketing to children, intellectual property rights, education, and sustainable development.
Welcome also to Leah Pattison, Venture Designer at Founders Factory. She is an experienced designer turned strategist with a history of driving innovation across a range of sectors. She is focussed on creating impactful ventures, with a specific interest in circular economy, new material development and social impact. She is a guest lecturer at Imperial College London and was a Senior Computation Designer at Rheon Labs.
Congratulations to Ketan Dattani for working with the Uganda Water Project to bring clean drinking water to his paternal and maternal village in Uganda. You can see more about his work in Bunono village near the capital Entebbe in the video below.
Gender equality in India’s political representation (6pm, Fri 6th Oct | Central Hall, Westminster | Book here)
Shaping History: An audience with Kavitha Kalvakuntla, to discuss the Women’s Reservation Bill and wider female inclusion in politics
India’s Women’s Reservation Bill now has the President’ assent. The new law provides 33 percent reservation for women in the lower house of Parliament, the Lok Sabha, and state assemblies.
According to Reuters, women occupy just 82 out of 550, or about 15% of seats in the lower house, and only 31 out of 250 seats, or 12%, in the Rajya Sabha. A 2015 Report on the Status of Women in India by the Ministry of Women and Child Development noted that women’s representation in parliament and state assemblies was dismal, especially in senior decision-making positions. India’s record has pushed it to the bottom of the global list on gender parity in legislatures. The country ranks 141 out of 185 in the World Economic Forum’s latest Global Gender Gap Report.
Our Keynote Speaker Kavitha Kalvakuntla (Former Member of Parliament, India and prominent BRS Party Leader, Member of Legislative Council, Telangana) has emerged as a formidable force in championing the cause of gender equality through the Women’s Reservation Bill.
Kavitha’s pursuit of the Women’s Reservation Bill began during her tenure as a Member of Parliament in 2014, as the first women Member of Parliament from the newly formed Telangana state. She recognised the urgency and significance of the Bill, not just for her home state of Telangana but for the entire nation. The Telangana State Legislature unanimously passed a resolution on 14 June 2014, requesting the Union government to provide 33 percent reservations for women in legislatures. This historic move laid the foundation for what would become a defining mission for Kavitha.
When: 6pm onwards, Friday 6th October
Where: Central Hall Westminster, Storey’s Gate, London, SW1H 9NH
Who: 200+ Indian diaspora community leaders, gender equality advocates, policy experts, researchers and policy leaders from the UK
Book here: Click here
Upcoming events:
UK tour of Prataya Saha short films (4 Oct [Manchester], 6 October [Bradford], 10 October [Birmingham], 13 October [London] | Book here)
Award-winning filmmaker Prataya Saha is touring the UK with his critically acclaimed short films, Just Another Day (2021), I am Mehmood (2022) and the recent worldwide film festival entry The Golden Cage (2023). Join ReelN to celebrate independent filmmaking with a rare opportunity to watch these unique films together, and discuss the important themes and questions they raise with filmmaker Prataya Saha.
Festival of Natural Fibres: Threads of Change 2023 (16-20 October | Nehru Centre, London | Book here)
From creators of the problem to leaders to the solution: could the fashion and textiles industry drive the change, thread by thread? Join Khadi London for the latest in a series of events aimed at everyone, from those in the global fashion and textiles community, to all of us as consumers who want to see revolutionary change and who recognise our collective power to make it happen.
Details:
16th October (5:30 - 8pm): Inauguration, exhibtion, keynote and networking (book here)
17th October (10am - 12:45pm): Climate Change and Social Justice group discussion and networking (book here)
19th October (1:30 - 6pm): Education, Heritage and Culture with craft demonstrations in the morning, followed by panels and networking, then music and film (book here)
6:30pm: Gandhi Foundation Annual Lecture: Becoming Gandhi by actor Paul Bazely who is currently starring in the National Theatre production The Father and the Assassin.
20th October (10am - 1pm): Culture and Inclusive Ecosystem group discussion and networking (book here)
Book launch of The Concert for Bangladesh: United friends of Bangladesh (5pm, 18 October, SOAS | Book here)
This book predominantly discuses not only the history of Bangladesh but also from a global perspective as to how the chain of events leading up to the 1971 Bangladesh liberation war impacted geopolitically. It was a great pleasure for both of us to have collaborated and worked jointly on this huge and vast piece of current history. The idea first to write about this book came about a few years ago when both of us were reading the pieces of the 1971 liberation war and in that context we came about some original pieces of advertisement and the LP vinyl disc records of the 1971 Concert for Bangladesh.
Its authors are Abu Sayed, an imminent journalist from Bangladesh who works with special focus on the 1971 war of liberation, and geopolitical analyst Priyajit Debsarkar.
Ramayana: A puppet show (6pm, Fri 10 Nov | Central London | Book here)
The Ramayana Puppet Show is StoryHour UK flagship performance. A timeless piece of culture and art, this story narrates the epic tale behind the festival of Diwali, using uniquely hand-crafted puppets. Having been performed across many different audiences, this puppet show has been celebrated for capturing the essence of a classic. The show has been screened at various Indian embassies across Europe and schools in London while also being readily available in 6 languages here. It has been applauded by Indian Member of Parliament Shashi Tharoor, author Amish Tripathi and others.
Alongside a screening of the puppet show, there will be live puppeteers demonstrating scenes from the Ramayana, with an installation of the six puppets, followed by a talk and Q&A with producer Neelima Penumarthy.
When: 5 – 6:30pm, Wed 19 July
Where: Central London
Book: Bridge India Members: £10 | Others: £20 bookable here | Drinks and snacks provided
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