Menu
 

 

Experts@Ekya is a monthly event where the school invites experts from diverse fields to speak to our students about their work. Experts who have made their mark across the spectrum of professions share their experiences and talk about their careers. Through these interactions students understand that there is a difference between the underlying passion involved in being a profession that one really likes and the one that is forced upon them.

Be it writing a story, making advertisements or short films, architecture, growing up or any topic of interest, through these talks, students realize that success is the result of the pursuit of excellence, hard work, dedication and commitment. Our students learn to formulate and ask relevant questions, engage with public speaking, and develop a sense of curiosity about the world. Through this program, we want to help our students make responsible career choices in the future.

 
ekya schools bangalore

Archana Mohan
Co-founder of Bookosmia

Big ideas, short stories workshop by Archana Mohan
During the Covid-19 lockdown on 11th May 2020, Ms. Archana Mohan – Co-founder of Bookosmia. She spoke with Ekya students through an online speaker session as part of the Community Connect Program.
The writing workshop was an interactive one as Ms. Archana enabled children to brainstorm on the characters seen on their screen and build a story based on them. She collected various inputs from children and took them through the writing dynamics. Children could come up with many ideas. Many students shared their stories post the workshop and one of them got selected and published on Bookosmia, where thousands across the world will be reading it.

 

Nikhilesh Shrikhande
Author of 'The Untold Stories of Indian Tigers’

The Untold Stories of Indian Tigers
Nikhilesh Shrikhande, avidly passionate about wildlife and the author of ‘The Untold Stories of Indian Tigers’ joined us on July 24, 2020 for a talk on tigers in India, conservation practices and the crucial role tigers play in the ecosystem.
Nikhilesh’s book has been very popular for the fictionalized but true stories on Indian Tigers. Students had a very interesting session with questions such as why do tigers have stripes? It was a much helpful session for our students, only 5 days before World Tiger Day.

 
ekya schools bangalore

Ms. Anandi Iyer
Head, Fraunhofer Gesellschaft

Concepts and educational opportunities in Europe – by Ms. Anandi Iyer (Head, Fraunhofer Gesellschaft)
In this very interactive and informative workshop, Ms. Anandi Iyer (Head, Fraunhofer Gesellschaft), talked about international educational opportunities for students and various other variables that impact the decision. Students learnt about the countries in the European Union, their economic potential and educational opportunities offered.

 
ekya schools bangalore

Dr. Procheta Mallik
Principal Scientist, ThinkTac

Wave Turbine Model TACtivity by ThinkTac
Grades 5-8 Ekya students interacted with Dr. Procheta Mallik in this 1 hour online workshop conducted through the Community Connect Program. The session began with Dr. Procheta showing a wave turbine model he created. He explained the role of each part in the model, while continuously taking questions from students. By the end of the session, each student was equipped enough to make their own model and understand the concept of turbines.

 

Mr. Mayur Channagere
Photographer & Filmmaker

Art of Storytelling through the lens by Mr. Mayur Channagere
Mayur Channagere is a photographer and filmmaker. He is the founder of Photomojo, a Visual storytelling Boutique.
During this online session during the COVID lockdown which was open to the students across the world, Mr. Mayur shared his journey as a visual storyteller and his approach to the Art of Visual Storytelling through Photography. The students learnt about the importance of context and stories in photography.

 

Leela Gour Broome
Teacher & Environmentalist

“Earthquake Boy” book reading by Leela Gour Broome
The students of Grades 5 and 6 attended a presentation and a book reading with the incredibly talented author and an equally wonderful teacher and environmentalist, Leela Gour Broome, of her new book, “Earthquake Boy”. Ms. Broome encouraged the children to guess the plot points and the end of the story.
The students were more than happy to shoot their ideas about the plot of the story throughout. At the end of the presentation and a short description of a real earthquake, Ms. Broome showed the children pictures of places mentioned in the book.
It was an interesting learning experience for the students who surely took back a lot from this session as was evident from their numerous questions to the author and their sheer excitement during the session.

Expert @ Ekya BTM- Ms. Leela Gour Broome

 

Ms. Rohini Nilekani
Author

A reading session by the author of “Not now, Not now” by Ms. Rohini Nilekani
The Early Literacy program at Ekya focuses on instilling a love for reading right from an early age. The Curriculum Resource books for the Pre-primary Group include a wide range of fiction and non-fiction books by various authors. One of the much-loved books in our curriculum includes “Not now, Not now” by Ms. Rohini Nilekani.
Ms. Rohini Nilekani visited our JP Nagar campus and spent time reading and interacting with the Montessori students. Our students were excited and happy to listen to their favourite author. She read “Too many bananas” and “Sringeri Srinivas Learns to Laugh” from her Sringeri Srinivas series. She had the students completely engrossed right through the session with her humour and innate storytelling skills.

Click here to read our blog on Ms. Rohini Nilekani’s reading session.

 

Dr. Indu Antony
Visual Artist

Workshop on “Women’s Safety in Public Spaces”
Ekya School BTM Layout invited Dr. Indu Antony, a visual artist based in Bangalore for a workshop on “Women’s Safety in Public Spaces.”
The workshop by Dr. Indu Antony for the students of Grades 7 and 8 was very informative and gave them an opportunity to understand the importance of safe spaces in public for everyone. She also educated them on how to deal with unsafe places and shared information on how to contact the necessary authorities in case of need.

Click here to read our blog on the workshop by Dr. Indu Antony.

 

Nandini Yadalam
Art Therapist

A Talk on Art Therapy
Ms. Nandini Yadalam, an art therapist visits Ekya School BTM Layout for a talk on art therapy, the new therapeutic technique for psychological healing. Art has always been helpful in communication and healing and Art therapy formally evolved as a healing strategy during the middle of the 20th-century
Ms. Nandini took a detour from her IT career to pursue Art Therapy. She explained to our students the significance of art therapy in psychological healing and for emotional well being.

Click here to read our blog to know more about the talk.

 

Dr. Siddharth P. Singh
Professor

Insight into the Ph.D. program
There is a perpetual demand for Researchers as they foster innovations. The intense and aggressive research of Ph.D. students has given the world some amazing inventions.
To give our students an insight into the Ph.D. program, Ekya School ITPL invited Dr. Siddharth P. Singh to share his experience. He interacted with the students and answered pertinent questions like “What it meant to get a Ph.D.” and “What the research required for a Ph.D. encompassed” and more, through interesting illustrations.

Click here to read our blog on Dr. Siddharth P. Singh’s talk.

 

Ms. Padma Venkatraman
Author of The Bridge Home

A reading session by Ms. Padma Venkatraman
Ms. Padma Venkatraman visited Ekya School, JP Nagar and had the audience engrossed in her stories. Students were captivated by her books and her recollection of her journey in life.
Click here to read our blog on Ms. Padma Venkatraman’s visit:

 

Mr. Taher Merchant
Businessman, Ultra-Marathon Runner

Conquering the Everest Marathon
Students of Ekya had the privilege of meeting an individual who had passed the limits of running, that most would not dare to do. Mr. Taher Merchant is the first Indian man to complete the 60km Extreme Ultra – Everest Marathon. An Ultra Marathon is one of the hardest stamina based running event, surpassing the distance, terrain, and other challenges of a regular Olympic marathon event. Sharing the “best experience of his life” with our students, Mr. Taher spoke of his preparation for the gruelling race, the adversities he faced during the event and how he beat them. He concluded his inspiring talk by highlighting the importance of discipline, dedication, and smart work for achieving one’s goals.

Click here to know more about Mr. Taher’s talk at Ekya

 

Mr. Christopher Doyle
Author of The Mahabharata Secret

Blending legends and myths with science, history and fantasy
The students of Grades VI-XII had the wonderful opportunity to meet and interact with Mr. Christopher Doyle who has authored the popular books the Mahabharata Secret, The Mahabharata Quest Series and his latest release The Son of Bhrigu. Mr. Doyle’s books are known to transport the reader into a fascinating world where ancient secrets buried in legends blend with science, history, and fantasy to create a gripping story. At the expert talk, Mr. Doyle narrated tales about myths and legends from across the world, also taking our students through the process of writing a bestseller. Following his talk, he signed copies for our children and answered their questions through an interactive Q&A.

 
ekya schools extra curricular activities

Ms. Neeth Medappa
Master Chef

Exploring delightful recipes of pure indulgence.
Ms. Neeth Medappa from Pastry Masterclass organized Baking Workshops as part of the Experts@Ekya program. A trained French Pastry Chef from Le Cordon Bleu, Ottawa, Canada, Ms. Neeth has had over 300 enthusiastic bakers in attendance at her signature baking master-class, organized in Coorg and Mysore. Young, budding bakers now enjoy the same experience with Ms. Neeth’s student-friendly ‘Junior Pastry Masterclass’.

Read more about the workshop here.

 

Dr. Meera Velankar
Athlete and Cyclist

Cycling for Good Health.
Students of Ekya had the chance to meet and interact with two-time Limca Book record holder, Dr. Meera Velankar, who joined us at our campus for an expert talk. A seasoned endurance athlete and cyclist, Meera has over a decade’s experience in cycling. Her athletic resume consists of an Ironman 70.3 finish, Super Randonneur norm earned twice, and the coveted podium finishes at Tour of Nilgiris. She also conducts kids coaching in lifestyle fitness and holds a Ph.D. in Life sciences. She spoke about the various aspects of cycling and the importance of lifestyle fitness, urging the children to pledge for their health.

 

Ms. Mala Martina
Yellow Collar Innovator & Speaker at TEDx

Jack of all trades but master of at least one
The brain behind Yellow Collar Careers in India, Ms. Mala Martina established the program through her organization, I Love Mondays, which helps teenagers do what they love, lets them know how to become really good at it and connects them to the right people to become successful.
At her talk, our students learned to distinguish between the Blue collar, White collar and Yellow collar jobs. Ms. Mala spoke about the traits of a yellow collar job, namely competency, doing what you love, the dominance of the right brain, being a jack of all trades but master of at least one and developing empathy.

Know more about her talk here.

 

Mr. Manikantan
CTO, Abstream Technologies, Asia-Pacific Region

Internet safety and the future of jobs.
How do startups work? How is your data being used by companies? What and how will jobs look like in the coming decades? How to be safe while using the Internet?
Answers to these questions were delivered by Mr. Manikantan, who was hosted by our students as part of the Experts@Ekya programme. Currently serving as the Chief Technical Officer, Asia Pacific and Japan Region for Abstream Technologies, Hong Kong, he is also leading a corporate social responsibility initiative with an objective to train Indian youth on enterprise technology, the tech which is runs and connects all businesses today. Mr. Manikantan’s interactive session helped the children understand how the world functions and how it is shaping up to function in the future.

Click here to read more about his talk.

 

Dr. B Durgaprasad Reddy
Head, Cardiovascular & Thoracic Surgery at Vydehi Institute of Cardiac Sciences

Taking a closer look into cardiology
Currently, the Head of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery at Vydehi Institute of Cardiac Sciences, Dr. B Durgaprasad Reddy’s session was aimed to raise awareness among our young children, about the effect of toxic habits on the cardiac system and their implications. Videos of cardiac surgery were also the highlight of the interactive session as our students got a glimpse of a beating heart inside the thoracic cavity. Dr. Durgaprasad has been across the country and the globe, undertaking workshops and presenting papers and has addressed 10,000 medical cases. Adding to his credit are the number of awards he has won including the Paul Harris Fellow Award from the Rotary Foundation International and an Excellence award from the Minister of Health.

 

Ms. Usha
Volunteer, Manasa Foundation

Finding peace through corrective meditation
Grade 4 students of Ekya participated in a corrective meditation session with Ms. Usha, a volunteer at Manasa Foundation. Helping the children experience their inner light through the meditation technique, Ms. Usha connected well with them and identified different kinds of stress and restlessness they harboured. She explained how meditation brings calm and facilitates healing. After practising a few of the techniques she shared, the students noted how different they felt and shared positive feedback about what they had just experienced.

 

Ms. Reshma Krishnamurthy
Founder, Moms and Stories

Exploring other career choices
Ms. Reshma Krishnamurthy joined us at Ekya to talk about ‘Alternate Careers and Offbeat Careers’. An established entrepreneur, Ms. Reshma founded ‘Moms and Stories’, a platform that publishes inspiring stories on stay at home mothers, women athletes, acid attack survivors, mothers who blog or have a love for adventure, mothers with physical disabilities and children with special needs. Adding to this, she has been a writer, radio jockey, and communications manager. Having addressed our students from Grades VI to X, Ms. Reshma conducted an interactive Q & A with the children.

 

Ms. Venita Coelho
Writer & Director

Writing for television, film and art
As a part of Reading week and Children’s Day Celebrations, Ekya hosted renowned author Venita Coelho. Talking extensively about her work, Ms. Venita engaged the children in an interactive session that covered what motivated her to write, her career in television, film, and art. She encouraged her audience to explore and read more of contemporary Indian authors. Coinciding with the launch of her latest book, Boy No.32, a few of our teachers and students got signed copies at the end of the session.

×
ADMISSIONS ENQUIRY