The first set of talks just got over, and it was marvelous !
Starting off was Prof. Hans Rosling. If you haven’t heard of him, you should check out his previous Ted appearances here and here. He has an absolute novel way of presenting statistics — the fun way. He was his usual best today, and the gist of his talk — the average income in India will surpass the average income in the U.S. on 27th July 2048. Go figure.
The next speaker was Devdutt Patnaik, a mythologist, who has a mythological way of looking at everything — behaviours, businesses, mindsets and attitudes. Invoking the mythologies of many civilizations, the talk centered on why India is India.
Third was Mallika Sarabhai, my least favourite performance of the session. She is a genius, no doubt, but her blend of art and issues didn’t quite strike as seamless. I didn’t quite agree with some of her theories either. I hope she isn’t another Arundhati Roy in the making, but all that’s just my opinion.
Last was singer Usha Uthup, who gave a scintillating performance. That she sings in a million languages is no secret, but the way she put together her music for unity and peace, was awesome. If only this had come before the Nobel was announced.
Again, you watch the talks live here.
Meanwhile, I am doing some frantic sleep math to accommodate as many talks as I can.

