Synopsis
Ten media persons share their perspectives and understanding of today’s media from their personal journeys in academics and industry. Media & You is a collection of essays, articles and papers on how different forms of media function, and what it takes to make it in a world of competition and technology. Written by women but not just for women, it takes readers through the broad canvas of print, broadcast, film, digital and multimedia against the backdrop of recent trends, education and skills.
5:15 PM Registration & Hi-Tea
6:00 PM Welcome Address
Gp Capt R Vijayakumar (Retd), VSM
Executive Director
Madras Management Association
Launch of the book and Opening Remarks by the CoAuthor & Editor Programme
Dr Latha Rajagopalan Kumar
Co -Author & Editor and Consultant - Communication for Development
Special Invitees and Co- Authors in conversation with the Editor
Ms Latha Menon
Film Maker
Ms Deepika Kumaravel
Theatre Professional
Ms Joy Andavan
All India Radio News
Ms Lalitha Vaidyanath
Advertising Consultant
Ms Rangapriya Goutham
Media Management
Dr Susan Sridhar (Retd)
Professor, MOP Vaishnav College for Women
Q&A
Vote of Thanks 7:45 PM
Dr Latha Rajagopalan Kumar
Co -Author & Editor and Consultant - Communication
for Development
Dr Latha Rajagopalan Kumar is an independent researcher and a communication consultant. She has been a visiting faculty in leading institutions in Chennai and earlier in other parts of India. She began her career as an advertising professional and worked in the industry for 12 years before turning to academics. She obtained a PhD in Marketing Communication from the University of Madras in 2007 and completed a post-doctoral project in Communication for Development in 2014. She has presented and published scholarly papers at regional, national and international conferences in India, USA, China and Austria. Latha is passionate about teaching and learning. She describes herself as a lifelong student. To update herself on current communication and media technology, she completed a certificate course in New Technologies and Basics of Data Science conducted by IIT Madras in association with GITAA and Nasscom, in 2021. Her special interest is ‘science for children’. She runs a non-profit called Tanushka through which she has been conducting knowledge-enhancement programs at schools run by the State Government and a few charitable institutions. She is also an external guide for PhD scholars, with her experience in both industry and academics. She serves on the Editorial Advisory Board of Cambridge Scholars, UK and has a contract with a US-based private research publication.
Ms Latha Menon Film Maker
Latha Menon is a storyteller whose soul comprises of visuals and words that translate into narratives She set up her production house ‘Iris Film’ in the year 1996 with the intent of producing content that is emotional, aesthetic and informative. From an actor endorsing an efficient telecom brand to the real-life stories of dairy farmers, to a weaver staying true to her art in times of change, she believes understanding character is the crux of art. She has directed and produced over 150 ad films. Her clients include HAP’s Arokya Milk and Arun Ice creams, Unilever, and Britannia among others. Her documentaries deal with contemporary social issues and personalities, such as adoption for the ‘Karna Prayag trust, The National Association for the Blind and The Hindu
Vaal Paarai Vata Paarai, a music video directed by Latha featuring Malgudi Shubha was among MTV’s top 100 music videos in 1999. Latha has won several awards for her ad films She has also become a producer of Mind screen Films that have produced “Sarvam Thala Maayam” and been a part of the Amazon anthology “Putham Pudhu Kaalai” (both the anthologies).
Ms Deepika Kumaravel
Theatre Professional
Deepika Kumaravel is a branding and advertising professional who has been straddling the world of theatre for 3 decades As a copywriter and creative head, Deepika has handled a host of leading regional and national brands of MNCs. Heading creative units in several agencies notwithstanding, Deepika’s commitment to theatre has been steadfast. She trained in Koothu Pattarai, one of Tamil professional stages most prolific and recognised theatre groups. In 1993, she was part of a team that began Magic Lantern Theatre, one of India’s foremost theatre groups based out of Chennai.
Performed first in 1999 and recently in 2104, 2016 and 2017(Singapore) Magic Lantern’s creation of Kalki’s Ponniyin Selvan is one of the biggest and most cost intensive Tamil productions of its time. Deepika was part of the Ponniyin Selvan team in several capacities, including that of an actor. She is a recognized playwright for children whose plays have been performed by Chettinad Players for 2 decades. Her plays have won praise from stalwarts like the late Director K. Balachander.
Ms Joy Andavan
All India Radio News
Joy Andavan is a correspondent of All India Radio News. She has been in the field of communication for more than two decades She has had the opportunity to handle important assignments like Parliament and State Assembly proceedings, elections, and sensitive assignments like effective communication during natural disasters and coverages of G7, G20 conferences. She has also been covering other international events and interviews on important topics.
Joy is a passionate broadcast journalist with vast experience in a variety of newswriting She believes in nurturing talented young entrants and is committed to mentoring them. In her free time, she enjoys listening to music, reading, cooking and travelling.
Ms Lalitha Vaidyanath
Advertising Consultant
Lalitha Vaidyanath is an advertising professional with over 25 years of experience in the field Her specialisation is in Creative (Copywriting), and she offers her expertise as a Senior Creative Director and Consultant. In her career span, Lalitha has worked with leading advertising agencies and finest teams across different cities. She has led creative teams on major global and national brands across the gamut of media and communication platforms–film, digital, social media, print, radio, outdoor and direct marketing. During her various tenures, Lalitha has handled the creative requirements of diverse industries including automobiles, consumer durables, education, to name a few.
Lalitha has won Awards at national advertising events for her campaigns. She has been a guest speaker at Indian Institute of Management, Indore and at schools in Hyderabad and Chennai. She was empaneled by Bangalore- headquartered Thomas Assessments to conduct analytical tests, appraise and facilitate talent management at IT majors in Chennai. She has served on the evaluation panel of Loyola College, Chennai, for assessing post- graduate students.
Ms Rangapriya Goutham
Media Management
Rangapriya Gouthamis an alumnus of Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore and heads the Marketing & Operations Advisory at Initium Partners LLP. She has over 17 years of senior management experience in large accounts management, strategic marketing and talent-mapping for large corporates. She was associated with three leading educational Institutions in India – Swarnabhoomi Academic Institutions, Aptech Computer Education and SSI Limited, creating significant brand equity in a short span of time for these companies.
Rangpriya’s core competencies include strategic marketing, framing new business initiatives, implementing systems, processes and practices for continuous improvement and standardization of existing businesses and creating best practices within business units.
Dr Susan Sridhar (Retd) Professor, MOP Vaishnav College for Women
Dr Susan Sridhar was Associate Professor and Head of Media Management in the Department of Communication and Media Studies, MOP Vaishnav College for Women, Chennai, at the time of completing this article. She has now retired and relocated after 32 years in academics. She has several research papers to her credit and has produced four PhD research scholars. She has served as an Inspection Commission member at the University of Madras for several years.
Susan has been more than a teacher to her students. Under her guidance, several batches of students have joined the media industry and later become successful professionals. She is now dedicating her time to plan and design curriculum for a few leading institutions. She is a member of the Board of Studies for Media courses at Sastra University. Along with this, she is working on training material in corporate communications for a private company
