Executive Mayoral Delegation to Bangalore November 29 – December 5, 2013

  • The executive mayoral trade mission will offer participants an unparalleled introduction to the economy and business climate of Bangalore, the locomotive of India’s new economy and the epicenter of innovation and entrepreneurship on the subcontinent.
  • Delegates will meet with top business leaders and major investors, as well as senior government
    officials responsible for technology, life sciences and infrastructure.
  • Participants will enjoy 5 star accommodations.
  • Participation is by invitation only.

For Additional Information Contact:
Ashley Montgomery
ashley@montgomeryentertainment.net

San Francisco – Bangalore Sister City Initiative Contacts:
Jim Herlihy, Co Chair; jamespherlihy@gmail.com
Madhav Mirsa, Co Chair; Madhav@misracap.com

SFBangalore

Happy Ugadi – Hindu New Year

The word Yugadi can be explained as; ‘Yuga‘ is the word for ‘epoch’ or ‘era’, and ‘ādi’ stands for ‘the beginning. The days marks Hindu New Year according to Luni-Solar calendar. While the people of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka use the term Ugadi/Yugadi for this festival, the people of Maharashtra term the same festival, observed on the same day, Gudi Padwa (Marathi: गुढी पाडवा). Marwari, people of Rajasthan celebrate the same day as their new year day Thapna. Sindhis, people from Sindh, celebrate the same day as their New Year day Cheti Chand. Manipuris also celebrate their New Year (Sajibu nongma panba) on the same day.

Arundhati Nag

Ms. Nag is an acclaimed stage and film actress in India with over 35 years of experience. One of the very few multilingual actresses in a country, she has over a thousand stage performances in English and in over five Indian languages to her credit. Ms. Nag has performed experimental and mainstream plays by a variety of Indian and Western playwrights. She is the recipient of some of the most prestigious State and National Awards for her service to the Indian Theatre.

Currently, Ms. Nag is on the advisory boards of the National School Of Drama and the Kalakshetra Foundation, two of the most prestigious performing art foundations in India. She is also the Managing Trustee of the non-profit, Sanket Trust, and is the Creative Director of the very successful and respected theatre space “Ranga Shankara” in Bangalore, which, in 5 years of its existence has played host to close to 2000 performances in 20 different languages, conducted 6 Theatre Festivals with National and International participation and runs a vibrant Theatre For Children program. Ms. Nag is now showcasing world-class theatre at affordable rates for the people of India; cutting edge theatre experiences are the mandate of this institution.

Kiran Mazumdar Shaw

A successful technocrat of global standing, Ms. Shaw heads India’s leading Biotechnology enterprise, Biocon. She is highly respected in the corporate world and her pioneering efforts in biotechnology have drawn global recognition both for Indian Industry and Biocon. Fierce Biotech, the biotech industry’s daily monitor, placed Ms. Shaw among the 25 most influential people in the Biopharma Business for 2012.

Ms. Shaw is a part of the U.S. Pharmacopeial Convention (USP) Board of Trustees and is also a Member of the USP Biologics Advisory Group. She has served on the Board of Science Foundation, Ireland. Ms. Shaw is the founder member of the Karnataka’s Vision Group on Biotechnology and currently chairs this forum. She also serves on the National Advisory Council of the Government’s Department of Biotechnology, where she has been instrumental in bringing government, industry and academia together, to charter a clear and progressive growth path for Biotechnology in India. Ms. Shaw serves as Member, Governing Body and General Body of the Indian Pharmacopoeia Commission, an Autonomous Body of the Government of India.

Ms. Shaw received a graduate honors degree in Zoology from Bangalore University (1973) and qualified as a Master Brewer from Ballarat University, Australia (1975). Ms Shaw also received an honorary Doctorate of Science in 2004, from her alma mater, Ballarat University, in recognition of her pre-eminent contributions to the field of Biotechnology. She has also been awarded honorary doctorates from University of Abertay, Dundee, U.K. (2007), University of Glasgow, U.K. (2008) and Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh, U.K. (2008). She has also received an honorary Doctorate of Science from the National University of Ireland (2012) for her contribution to economic life and was also conferred an honorary doctorate by Trinity College, Dublin (2012).

Her most cherished awards are the national awards, PADMA SHRI (1989) and PADMA BHUSHAN (2005) presented to her by the President of India, for her pioneering efforts in Industrial Biotechnology.

Under her stewardship, Biocon has evolved from its inception in 1978 as an industrial enzymes company to a fully integrated Biopharmaceutical enterprise encompassing a well-balanced business portfolio of products and services with a research focus on Diabetes, Oncology and Auto-immune disease. Biocon also has a subsidiary, Syngene, which was established in 1994 to provide research services and contract manufacturing to the big pharma industry.

She is also the Honorary Consul of Ireland in Bangalore.

Prof. Shivaram Malavalli

Prof. Malavalli has 32 years of Industrial and Research experience and has been the architect in the establishment, sustenance and growth of the first Science & Technology Entrepreneurs Park (STEP) in the country and was instrumental in this STEP getting the National Award, from the Dept. of Science & Technology, Govt. of India, as “THE BEST STEP” in the country from among fourteen STEPs. He also spearheaded establishment of SEED (Software Entrepreneurs and Employees Development) a Technology Business Incubator (TBI) supporting exclusively IT start-ups.

Honored with a Citation and Medal by WASME (World Association of Small & Medium Enterprises), for his contribution to the establishment/sustenance/growth of SMEs in the Region and for his contribution internationally in China, Mr. Malavalli was instrumental in spreading the concept of Science & Technology Entrepreneurs Parks in Malaysia and Thailand and was Advisor to the University Technology Malaysia.

Mr. Malavalli has chaired a session at the ENDEC World Conference on “Entrepreneurship and Innovative Change” in 1991, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore as well as sessions at the American Society of Engineering Education (ASEE) Conferences. He was also the Secretary General of the Indian Science and Technology Entrepreneurs Park Association and the 2002-2004 Chairman of the Institution of Engineers, Mysore where he organized two important national events: the National workshop on ICT for Masses and the National convention of Production Engineers with the Theme “World class Manufacturing.” He was the Resource person for UNESCAP on Entrepreneurship and Technology Business Incubator. He was invited by Negev Institute for Strategies of Peace and Development (NISPED), International Centre for the Promotion of Small & Medium size Enterprises (InCeP-SME), Israel, through World Association of Small and Medium Enterprises (WASME), to participate in the International forum of Policy Development of SMEs. He developed the entire strategic plan for the establishment of Technology Incubators across the country

Mr. Malavalli is presently the Chairman – International Division ISBA – An Association of Technology Business Incubators of India and President of an eHealth Company, TeleVital, which was adjudged and awarded as “The Telemedicine Company of the Year” by Frost & Sullivan. He is the Chairman & Managing Director of the eHealth TBI (Technology Business Incubator), an initiative sponsored by the Dept. of Science and Technology, Govt. of India, and also the Trustee of the Indus International Schools.

Raghu Shivaram

As an individual who is truly “international”, Raghu has a love for learning, networking and business building in San Francisco and around the globe. An Engineer by trade, he discovered a knack for Marketing that has been one of the driving forces behind the genesis of Spritz, An Interactive Marketing Agency based in San Francisco (www.spritzsf.com).

Raghu’s entrepreneurial sense for business has lead him to unique opportunities with companies such as Mphasis, AOL and Network Engineering Dept, SIUC. Raghu served as an advisor with JumpFox, a Francisco-based mobile and web applications development company. He has also done extensive consulting with wineries, hotels and restaurants.

With a strong commitment to community outreach, Raghu serves on the board for the Richmond Ermet AIDS Foundation, committee member at the American Red Cross Bay Area and 2020 committee member at San Francisco Bangalore Sister Cities Initiative .

Raghu received his Master of Science Degree from Southern Illinois University Carbondale.