SPRING 2018
BOLLYWOOD MEETS TEXAS y KOVID GUPTA, BBA ’10, SCREENWRITER, FILMMAKER since he graduated from UT, Kovid Gupta has rocketed through India’s entertainment stratosphere, and at age 30, is on the verge of launching a Texas-based, Bollywood-style production company. Gupta was recently named as one of Forbes’ “30 under 30” in Asia for his achievements as a writer and filmmaker. He started as a screenwriter for Indian television, wrote two highly acclaimed non-fiction books, worked as the assistant director for the fourth-highest grossing Indian film, Prem Ratan Dhan Payo (Found a Treasure Called Love), while studying for his MBA at Cornell, and now works as head of business development for India’s Vinod Chopra Films. Ever since he was a child growing up in Houston, Gupta says he loved watching videos of Bollywood movies and TV shows. Their larger-thanlife characters and dream worlds filled with rich stories were completely unlike his suburban upbringing, he says. As an undergraduate at UT, he triple-majored in marketing, Asian studies, and radio-television-film. He knew he wanted to work in India’s Hindi-language film industry, but he had no connections there. So, during his last semester at UT, Gupta sent scores of Facebook messages to people in Bollywood asking for advice on how to get into the business. One of those messages panned out. The writer Rajesh Dubey from the show Balika Vadhu (Child Bride) invited Gupta for a meeting in India. It was a success. Gupta worked for Dubey on a trial basis before being asked to fill in for an assistant who had just left. Gupta went on to write for two of India’s most popular TV shows. In the midst of all t his, Gupt a is working on getting his own production company off the ground in Houston. His goal is to create an American take on Bollywood-inspired content using both Indian and non-Indian talent. His biggest piece of advice? No matter the field, persistence is key. “For every one offer I’ve received, I’ve gotten 99 rejections. That just happens,” Gupta says. “You do have those low periods, but you’ve just got to stay resilient and stay strong.” — Danielle Ransom IN THE EIGHT YEARS
CORPORATE CITIZEN y TAMARA FIELDS, BBA ’96,
MANAGING DIRECTOR, ACCENTURE
CREDIT TK
I N T H E A F T E R M AT H of Hurricane Harvey, native Austinite Tamara Fields felt compelled to help in any way she could. “I had several friends in the Houston area whose houses got flooded,” Fields recalls. “I knew I needed to help, so I personally went to help them muck their homes immediately after the disaster.” Her employer, Accenture, also quickly mobilized, contributed funds, and provided support to affected employees. “I’ve always been proud to work for Accenture,” she says, “but that was another moment that reaffirmed that I work for a great company.” For Fields, managing director of Accenture’s Austin office, helping others in tough times has been a running theme throughout her life. When her father and later her stepfather passed away during her childhood, Fields says she knew she needed to take charge and support her mother and younger siblings. In order to alleviate additional financial burden on the family, she applied for more than 100 scholarships in high school — many of which she received — enabling her to attend McCombs. That sense of duty and accountability has served her well in her position at Accenture. She’s been with the company for 20 years — ever since she graduated from college — and is responsible for helping advance Accenture’s business in the health and public service practice across the Southwest region. Fields oversees more than 20 large-scale client projects and regional sales opportunities at any given time, and manages a team of more than 100 people. “It’s important to me that my company has the same core values that I have about helping others and being a good corporate citizen,” she says. “I’m honored to be in a position to encourage others to work hard and aim high. I take great pride in my work, knowing that what I do matters.” — Kristen Hensley
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