It’s the spring of ’18, and perched on a cushion, I sit in the shade of the cool wall, in the corner along the parapet. I find refuge on the sunlit rooftop of my house, looking up at the clear sky and enjoying the comforting warmth of the afternoon sun, and the yet brisk cool breeze — a perfect mix & mood I can find of the spring season. And lo! I get to find a perfect companion for quite a contemplation for the time being — the talks and words, and people that would become a certain part of me forever. Not all talks are just words—some echo long after they end. And like ‘Satyamev Jayate’, which set the precedent in the socially conscious television space in India, TED Talks India was that next place for me where Indian intellect, intelligence and ingenuity took centerstage. The stories unfolded, and there I was — trying to comprehend the notions and emotions of India’s thought leaders, changemakers and innovators. But one thing was for sure – that I was watching India unfold its emotions, stories, history, notions, technology, philosophy & science on the original TED Talks [Yes, TEDx Talks are different :)], to the world stage, and yet in Hindi. (TED really wanted to extend its reach via StarPlus networks as the latter had a large audience base and viewers)
This first-of-a-kind series, split in 2 seasons — namely, TED Talks India: Nayi Soch (New Thinking) and Ted Talks India: Nayi Baat (New Things) was an amalgamation of almost everything. From Shelja Sen to Sundar Pichai, Geetanjali Rao to Gurmehar Kaur, Javed Akhtar to Jasmeen Patheja—the talks offered the audience a cross-section of speakers and a multitude of themes from women empowerment, entertainment to innovation, technology, and whatnot.
This was the first time ever that TED launched a non-English show, though the non-Hindi speakers out here need not worry as the talks have transcripts and subtitles as well in English and other languages. The first season garnered 96 million viewers and the second one was scaled up by its broadcast on Star World and National Geographic channels, in addition to Star Plus channel and OTT platform Hotstar. Hosted by Shah Rukh Khan, first season aired from Dec. 10, 2017, to Jan. 28, 2018, while Season 2 premiered on Nov. 2 [Shah Rukh’s b’day—guess TED loves him a lot :)], 2019, and ended on Nov. 24, 2019.
But what didn’t end? The influence it had. Some talks stir the soul, some linger, and equal parts poignant and powerful, some refuse to leave you unchanged. Here are the ones that did all three for me.
Shubha Tole: Our Flexible Brains
[Pro tip: Keep a paper sheet by your side before you start watching this talk 🤭] One of my very fave ones, this TED Talk talks about the wonders of our remarkable brains that being so similar in structure, with the same ‘wiring’ and ‘circuits’ still produce feats, traits and expertise that range from one corner to another, making each one of us peculiar beings on our own. Shubha Tole is a distinguished Indian neuroscientist, professor and principal investigator at TIFR (Tata Institute of Fundamental Research) in Mumbai, India. Tole is now also the newly elected President-elect of the International Brain Research Organization (IBRO). The talk was featured in episode 6 of Season 1, where she