Saundarya Rajesh is an Indian social entrepreneur. She is the founder president of AVTAR Career Creators, a talent strategy consulting firm, and FLEXI Careers India, a social enterprise focusing on creating sustainable careers for women, based in Chennai, Tamil Nadu.
Early life
Saundarya Rajesh grew up in the city of Pondicherry. She completed her schooling at St. Joseph of Cluny Higher Secondary School and her bachelor's degree in English Literature from Bharathidasan Government Arts College for Women at Pondicherry, which was then affiliated to University of Madras. She emerged University First and was a gold medallist in her BA and then proceeded to do her MBA from School of Management, Central University Pondicherry.
She obtained campus placement into Citibank N.A, and went on to manage Merchant Services at Citibank.
Career
Saundarya continued working at Citibank after her marriage but after the birth of her son, she decided to take a break in career, when she found that women’s careers were not sustainable in the absence of proper day care services and formalized flexible working methods. She worked as a producer and compere for All India Radio and Doordarshan between the year 1992-1995, and also anchored brief start-up projects.
In all her assignments, she sought and insisted on flexible working, often compromising pay in the quest for control over her time.
In the year 1995, Saundarya took up the opportunity of working as a part-time lecturer in management at M.O.P.Vaishnav College for women. While she was actively involved in teaching, she also associated herself with a local recruitment agency and used this opportunity to obtain placements for her women students. During this period, she also undertook several research studies to ascertain that Indian women viewed their careers very differently as compared to their western counterparts and required several career enablers to sustain at the workplace.
In the 2000, Saundarya was diagnosed with infected nodules on her vocal chords, which impaired her speaking completely. She was advised total voice arrest by doctors. Giving up her part-time career, Saundarya took a break for the second time. Realizing that she needed to pursue her passion of creating sustainable careers for marginalised pools of talent, in December 2000, Saundarya set up AVTAR Career Creators along with a few friends.
AVTAR Career Creators
AVTAR Career Creators started functioning at Chennai in December 2000. A talent strategy consulting firm, AVTAR works in the area of on-ramping strategies, just-in-time recruitment solutions and contingency hiring. With over 7 verticals, each focusing on a separate industry specialization, AVTAR is among the first few organizations to manage end-to-end recruitment turn-key projects. Believing in the credo that advocacy is required to provide opportunities for off-beat talent, AVTAR
works with organizations to create special career tracks.
AVTAR Career Creators has also incubated AVTAR I-WIN - India’s first career service for women. AVTAR I-WIN engages in tripartite consulting - 1) with women, 2) with the society and 3) with organizations to create sustainable careers for women. Members of the AVTAR I-WIN network are women professionals, who want to make a career comeback or house wives without any work experience who want to engage in a career for the first time in their lives. AVTAR is an ISO 9001 : 2008 certified organization. With the headquarters in Chennai, AVTAR has branches in Coimbatore, Bangalore and Mumbai.
AVTAR I-WIN
AVTAR I-WIN is an abbreviation of AVTAR Interim Women-managers’ Interface Network. This service was created in the year 2005 with the vision that India needs to harness its women managerial talent fully by providing enablers which will help them to stay engaged to their careers. Economic and intellectual empowerment of women is one of the major goals of AVTAR I-WIN. The 1.5 million second career women who have dropped off the career track due to non-sustainable career practices are the focus of all the efforts of AVTAR I-WIN. Being India’s first career service exclusively for women, AVTAR I-WIN is a networking, skill-building and career enabling initiative. It has 26,000 registered members and has provided work-life integrated career options to over 3500 women, across metros, cities and towns of India.
AVTAR I-WIN works towards creating sustainable careers for women and to increase workforce participation rate of women in India.
It has now become a social enterprise called FLEXI Careers India.
Segue Sessions
FLEXI Careers India, the social enterprise arm of AVTAR uses applied research, in making use of research based inputs to enable workplace development. Via research projects conducted by FLEXI, it has been found that women face challenges when they choose to make a transition to a career whether full-time / flexi-time / part-time. As a result of this research, the SEGUE SESSIONS, India’s first large-format skill building initiative for women seeking transition in their careers, was created. The SEGUE SESSIONS was launched on . Following that, SEGUE SESSIONS were held in cities like Mumbai, Bengaluru, Jaipur and Gurgaon in the year 2012. In 2013 the SEGUE SESSIONS series started with the Hyderabad edition on March 8th.
Over 2000 women were trained in attitudinal skills relevant to make a come-back into a second career
, the SEGUE SESSIONS are proposed to be conducted across the country, reaching hundreds of thousands of women professionals to help them bridge their hiatus in searching for a sustainable career. The word ‘SEGUE’ is a musical term, depicting seamless transition. se·gue to make a transition from one thing to another smoothly
Awards and Recognitions
Saundarya Rajesh has won several awards and recognition for being a woman entrepreneur with a vision to not only increase women’s workforce participation rate in India, but also the first proponent of formalized flexible ways of working for women.
Her awards include:
* The SCOPE Women Exemplar award in 2006,
* The Yuvashakthi Entrepreneur of the year award in 2007,
* The Swadeshi Jagran Manch woman business leader award in 2008
* CavinKare’s Chinnikrishnan Innovation award in 2011.
* Tie Stree Shakti Women Entrepreneur Award 2011
* FCCI FLO Women Entrepreneur of the Year Award Mar 2012
* Saveetha Best Entrepreneur Award 2013 presented by Saveetha Engineering College & Network Of Saveetha TechpreneursNEST
Saundarya has also authored several research papers on women's careers and is in the process of completing her PhD in women's careers from SRM University. She writes columns on Gender Balance and Diversity & Inclusion for the Economic Times, Business Line, Outlook Money and Business World. She has been featured in the Coffee Table book by India Today on Women Entrepreneurs of Tamilnadu, called 'Business Wizards of Tamilnadu' and in the book 'Dreams to Destiny' by The Indus Entrepreneurs.
Early life
Saundarya Rajesh grew up in the city of Pondicherry. She completed her schooling at St. Joseph of Cluny Higher Secondary School and her bachelor's degree in English Literature from Bharathidasan Government Arts College for Women at Pondicherry, which was then affiliated to University of Madras. She emerged University First and was a gold medallist in her BA and then proceeded to do her MBA from School of Management, Central University Pondicherry.
She obtained campus placement into Citibank N.A, and went on to manage Merchant Services at Citibank.
Career
Saundarya continued working at Citibank after her marriage but after the birth of her son, she decided to take a break in career, when she found that women’s careers were not sustainable in the absence of proper day care services and formalized flexible working methods. She worked as a producer and compere for All India Radio and Doordarshan between the year 1992-1995, and also anchored brief start-up projects.
In all her assignments, she sought and insisted on flexible working, often compromising pay in the quest for control over her time.
In the year 1995, Saundarya took up the opportunity of working as a part-time lecturer in management at M.O.P.Vaishnav College for women. While she was actively involved in teaching, she also associated herself with a local recruitment agency and used this opportunity to obtain placements for her women students. During this period, she also undertook several research studies to ascertain that Indian women viewed their careers very differently as compared to their western counterparts and required several career enablers to sustain at the workplace.
In the 2000, Saundarya was diagnosed with infected nodules on her vocal chords, which impaired her speaking completely. She was advised total voice arrest by doctors. Giving up her part-time career, Saundarya took a break for the second time. Realizing that she needed to pursue her passion of creating sustainable careers for marginalised pools of talent, in December 2000, Saundarya set up AVTAR Career Creators along with a few friends.
AVTAR Career Creators
AVTAR Career Creators started functioning at Chennai in December 2000. A talent strategy consulting firm, AVTAR works in the area of on-ramping strategies, just-in-time recruitment solutions and contingency hiring. With over 7 verticals, each focusing on a separate industry specialization, AVTAR is among the first few organizations to manage end-to-end recruitment turn-key projects. Believing in the credo that advocacy is required to provide opportunities for off-beat talent, AVTAR
works with organizations to create special career tracks.
AVTAR Career Creators has also incubated AVTAR I-WIN - India’s first career service for women. AVTAR I-WIN engages in tripartite consulting - 1) with women, 2) with the society and 3) with organizations to create sustainable careers for women. Members of the AVTAR I-WIN network are women professionals, who want to make a career comeback or house wives without any work experience who want to engage in a career for the first time in their lives. AVTAR is an ISO 9001 : 2008 certified organization. With the headquarters in Chennai, AVTAR has branches in Coimbatore, Bangalore and Mumbai.
AVTAR I-WIN
AVTAR I-WIN is an abbreviation of AVTAR Interim Women-managers’ Interface Network. This service was created in the year 2005 with the vision that India needs to harness its women managerial talent fully by providing enablers which will help them to stay engaged to their careers. Economic and intellectual empowerment of women is one of the major goals of AVTAR I-WIN. The 1.5 million second career women who have dropped off the career track due to non-sustainable career practices are the focus of all the efforts of AVTAR I-WIN. Being India’s first career service exclusively for women, AVTAR I-WIN is a networking, skill-building and career enabling initiative. It has 26,000 registered members and has provided work-life integrated career options to over 3500 women, across metros, cities and towns of India.
AVTAR I-WIN works towards creating sustainable careers for women and to increase workforce participation rate of women in India.
It has now become a social enterprise called FLEXI Careers India.
Segue Sessions
FLEXI Careers India, the social enterprise arm of AVTAR uses applied research, in making use of research based inputs to enable workplace development. Via research projects conducted by FLEXI, it has been found that women face challenges when they choose to make a transition to a career whether full-time / flexi-time / part-time. As a result of this research, the SEGUE SESSIONS, India’s first large-format skill building initiative for women seeking transition in their careers, was created. The SEGUE SESSIONS was launched on . Following that, SEGUE SESSIONS were held in cities like Mumbai, Bengaluru, Jaipur and Gurgaon in the year 2012. In 2013 the SEGUE SESSIONS series started with the Hyderabad edition on March 8th.
Over 2000 women were trained in attitudinal skills relevant to make a come-back into a second career
, the SEGUE SESSIONS are proposed to be conducted across the country, reaching hundreds of thousands of women professionals to help them bridge their hiatus in searching for a sustainable career. The word ‘SEGUE’ is a musical term, depicting seamless transition. se·gue to make a transition from one thing to another smoothly
Awards and Recognitions
Saundarya Rajesh has won several awards and recognition for being a woman entrepreneur with a vision to not only increase women’s workforce participation rate in India, but also the first proponent of formalized flexible ways of working for women.
Her awards include:
* The SCOPE Women Exemplar award in 2006,
* The Yuvashakthi Entrepreneur of the year award in 2007,
* The Swadeshi Jagran Manch woman business leader award in 2008
* CavinKare’s Chinnikrishnan Innovation award in 2011.
* Tie Stree Shakti Women Entrepreneur Award 2011
* FCCI FLO Women Entrepreneur of the Year Award Mar 2012
* Saveetha Best Entrepreneur Award 2013 presented by Saveetha Engineering College & Network Of Saveetha TechpreneursNEST
Saundarya has also authored several research papers on women's careers and is in the process of completing her PhD in women's careers from SRM University. She writes columns on Gender Balance and Diversity & Inclusion for the Economic Times, Business Line, Outlook Money and Business World. She has been featured in the Coffee Table book by India Today on Women Entrepreneurs of Tamilnadu, called 'Business Wizards of Tamilnadu' and in the book 'Dreams to Destiny' by The Indus Entrepreneurs.
Kelton is a strategy consultancy that creates consumer-oriented business solutions. They create brand relevance and resonance for their clients, by interpreting insights, developing strategies, and creating solutions designed to deliver on consumer desires. They have a leadership team made up of research, communications, marketing, and innovation/design professionals. They have an entrepreneurial, start-up culture where training is hands on and highly collaborative.
Kelton’s client list includes more than 100 of the Fortune 500, the largest PR firms in the country and thousands of smaller companies and organizations
History
Kelton was founded in 2003 by Tom Bernthal and Gareth Schweitzer. Feeling that research was too often about number reporting and not actionable insights, they sought to combine diverse backgrounds of research with that of communications and strategy.
Prior to founding Kelton, CEO Tom Bernthal worked as Managing Director of an Omnicom owned strategic and political consultancy. Before joining Omnicom, Bernthal was a producer at NBC News, winning three Emmy Awards during his 5 year tenure.
President Gareth Schweitzer founded Kelton after a career in political journalism, as both an imbedded reporter in Iraq and one of the youngest members of the White House Correspondents’ Association.
Areas of Expertise
*Navigating Change
*Exploratory Research
*Marketing Innovation
*Marketing & Messaging
*Consumer Experience
*Public Opinion Polling
*Segmentation
*Tracking & Measurement
*Branding & Positioning
*New Products & Services
Awards and Accolades
Kelton has been listed on Inc. Magazine's Inc. 5000 list for five consecutive years and was also named as the “Fastest Growing Market Research Consultancy” twice. According to the company, Kelton had experienced an unprecedented 500% growth over the four years prior, largely through word-of-mouth referrals. Kelton was also named by Inc. as #51 in the Top 100 Advertising and Marketing Companies, #38 in the Top 100 Business in the Los Angeles area and #683 in the Top 5,000 Fastest Growing Privately Held Companies in the U.S.
Kelton was recognized with the Best of Bullseye award for helping Target better understand the way their customers perceive price and value in the evolving economic climate. The annual awards are given to marketing partners that exceed Target’s expectations.
Entrepreneur Magazine’s Hot 100 Companies List, which honors the nation’s fastest growing new businesses, named Kelton as number 64.
The firm was also named one of the 500 Fastest Growing Companies in North America by Technology Fast 500 Awards, sponsored by Deloitte
Kelton was recognized by the American Business Awards as a finalist in the categories of Most Innovative Company and Best Communications or PR Campaign.
Kelton has received two MarCom Platinum Awards by the Association of Marketing and Communication Professionals (AMCP). The Platinum MarCom Award is the highest award given by the AMCP and is presented to marketing and communication projects judged to be among the most outstanding in terms of quality, creativity and resourcefulness. Competing against a total of 5,000 entries, Kelton earned the Platinum MarCom Award in the category of “Research/Study” for their entries “Rethinking Generation X's Financial Attitudes" and "CMO Challenge Survey".
Current Work
Kelton’s notable clients within the last year include: Target, CocaCola, eBay, Toms, Viacom, Groupon, Logitech, Harrah’s, Philadelphia Eagles and Bloomingdales.
Kelton delivered the insights behind the now famous Domino’s Pizza turnaround. Their work directly with the brand, and agency partner Crispin Porter, led to the single strongest business reversal in QSR history and growth of 43% year over year.
Kelton spent a full-year engaged by Bloomingdale’s on the single biggest segmentation study and business realignment the brand has ever undertaken. The work led to entirely new marketing, product and CRM initiatives.
Kelton was engaged by Viacom to examine how tablets have altered viewer engagement, particularly as TV and gaming devices. Their insights are driving Viacom’s overall creative development for shows, channels, and content for the tablet.
Over the last two years, Kelton has become Target’s key consumer insights partner, and last year they were named Marketing Strategy Partner of the Year. Kelton has assisted Target with strategies for healthcare, baby, in-store signage, grocery business, urban, holiday and much more.
Kelton’s client list includes more than 100 of the Fortune 500, the largest PR firms in the country and thousands of smaller companies and organizations
History
Kelton was founded in 2003 by Tom Bernthal and Gareth Schweitzer. Feeling that research was too often about number reporting and not actionable insights, they sought to combine diverse backgrounds of research with that of communications and strategy.
Prior to founding Kelton, CEO Tom Bernthal worked as Managing Director of an Omnicom owned strategic and political consultancy. Before joining Omnicom, Bernthal was a producer at NBC News, winning three Emmy Awards during his 5 year tenure.
President Gareth Schweitzer founded Kelton after a career in political journalism, as both an imbedded reporter in Iraq and one of the youngest members of the White House Correspondents’ Association.
Areas of Expertise
*Navigating Change
*Exploratory Research
*Marketing Innovation
*Marketing & Messaging
*Consumer Experience
*Public Opinion Polling
*Segmentation
*Tracking & Measurement
*Branding & Positioning
*New Products & Services
Awards and Accolades
Kelton has been listed on Inc. Magazine's Inc. 5000 list for five consecutive years and was also named as the “Fastest Growing Market Research Consultancy” twice. According to the company, Kelton had experienced an unprecedented 500% growth over the four years prior, largely through word-of-mouth referrals. Kelton was also named by Inc. as #51 in the Top 100 Advertising and Marketing Companies, #38 in the Top 100 Business in the Los Angeles area and #683 in the Top 5,000 Fastest Growing Privately Held Companies in the U.S.
Kelton was recognized with the Best of Bullseye award for helping Target better understand the way their customers perceive price and value in the evolving economic climate. The annual awards are given to marketing partners that exceed Target’s expectations.
Entrepreneur Magazine’s Hot 100 Companies List, which honors the nation’s fastest growing new businesses, named Kelton as number 64.
The firm was also named one of the 500 Fastest Growing Companies in North America by Technology Fast 500 Awards, sponsored by Deloitte
Kelton was recognized by the American Business Awards as a finalist in the categories of Most Innovative Company and Best Communications or PR Campaign.
Kelton has received two MarCom Platinum Awards by the Association of Marketing and Communication Professionals (AMCP). The Platinum MarCom Award is the highest award given by the AMCP and is presented to marketing and communication projects judged to be among the most outstanding in terms of quality, creativity and resourcefulness. Competing against a total of 5,000 entries, Kelton earned the Platinum MarCom Award in the category of “Research/Study” for their entries “Rethinking Generation X's Financial Attitudes" and "CMO Challenge Survey".
Current Work
Kelton’s notable clients within the last year include: Target, CocaCola, eBay, Toms, Viacom, Groupon, Logitech, Harrah’s, Philadelphia Eagles and Bloomingdales.
Kelton delivered the insights behind the now famous Domino’s Pizza turnaround. Their work directly with the brand, and agency partner Crispin Porter, led to the single strongest business reversal in QSR history and growth of 43% year over year.
Kelton spent a full-year engaged by Bloomingdale’s on the single biggest segmentation study and business realignment the brand has ever undertaken. The work led to entirely new marketing, product and CRM initiatives.
Kelton was engaged by Viacom to examine how tablets have altered viewer engagement, particularly as TV and gaming devices. Their insights are driving Viacom’s overall creative development for shows, channels, and content for the tablet.
Over the last two years, Kelton has become Target’s key consumer insights partner, and last year they were named Marketing Strategy Partner of the Year. Kelton has assisted Target with strategies for healthcare, baby, in-store signage, grocery business, urban, holiday and much more.
* AARTI SURENDRANATH.
* Aarti started her modelling career early in life at the young age of 15 still in school, chosen over a selection of over 25 candidates as the model for Sunsilk shampoo, Directed by the maverick famous Director ‘Kailash Surendranath’ She very quickly reached an enviable position at the top of this field having to her credit done the biggest Campaigns of the day. She was also the first ever “Garden Sarees” model was known then by her maiden name Aarti Gupta. She went on to become one of India’s leading models in Advertisement Print and film Campaigns and ramp shows.
* Sunsilk Shampoo; Nescafe; Band Aid; Garden Sarees; Bombay Dyeing Sarees; Clearasil. Tata Tea, Yera Glassware; along with that she also appeared in a song in Nasir Hussain Productions “ Zamane Ko Dikhana Hai- Halo Shampoo; Campa Cola Where she discovered the young Salman Khan and recommended him to her then fiancé Kailash Surendranath with whom he faced the camera for the first time as a model for the ad.
* All this added to her experience, and she quickly transited into the second phase of her career as a Hindi film actor. Signed her first Feature film as a leading lady in Shakti Samanta Productions directed Ashim Samantha opposite Mithun Chakrabarthy - “Aamne Saamne”; Ramsey Brothers “Purana Mundir” Opposite Manish Behl , which became one of the biggest grosser of its time followed by “Tahkhana” & Samri” in 3D. She also dabbled in a Art Cinema -Aashiana” Directed by Mahesh Bhatt where she played a tribal girl- with Mark Zuber & Deepti Naval. “Apna Jahan” Dir. Subroto Bose with Naseeruddin Shah & Deepti Naval; Opposite Anil Kapoor in Feroze Khan’s “multi- starrer “Jaanbaaz”
* Regional - Aarti Starred opposite Mohanlal in the superhit Malayalee film “Jeevante Jeevan” directed by J.William
* As that was again a pioneering time, Aarti started many trends in these fields, helped in building various brands, and in a sense revolutionised the Styling look and feel of advertising through the time She has worked alongside Kailash as asst Dir- Production designer stylist & designer costumer & is responsible for the “Look’s” for Various Campaigns - “Garden Sarees” Vimal Suitings & Vimal Sares. Fair & Lovely ; Dinesh Suitings; Raymond Suitings; Washing Powdeer Nirma ; Wheel Detergent Soap ; Rin; Neema Beauty Soap; Boro Plus ; Various Boro Plus Campaigns; ”. .
*
* After working in over a dozen films, Aarti married iconic Ace director Kailash Surendranath in 1985 and very quickly took on the various cinema and television commercials produced by their production company as producer, creative consultant; Casting Director; stylist & assistant Director at “Far Productions” the company started by Kailash Surendranath. Together they started “Kailash Picture Company” in 1994 . Aarti is self taught and for all these hats that she wears today attributes her versatile skills purely to her hands on experience in the film and advertising industries over the years.
*
* Aarti also started a very successful and exclusive business of making bridal Trousseaus & Couture garments by appointment only at this time. This was her individual entrepreneurship, started in a small workshop, Which was an achievement and experiment coming from the field of advertising she challenged as it achieved success & gained a dynamic reputation and great popularity by sheer word of mouth- never advertised her company. She did have to however give up this very personalised and time consuming business as the production company and her family grew.
*
* Aarti Surendranath is today a well known producer in India and along with her husband started “Kailash Picture Company “ In director on the board of the production company ‘the Kailash picture company ’ in 1994
* She has to her credit over a thousand commercials as producer for Indian and
* International - Line Produced Paramount Vantage and plan B’s (Mr. Brad Pitts) ‘A Mighty Heart’ starring Angelina Jolie & Daniel Futterman filmed in Pune - re- created Pakistan & in locations in Mumbai never filmed before. She also Line- produced ‘Code 46’ starring Tim Robbins and Samantha Morton.- Filmed in Rajasthan Both these films have been directed by British cult director Michael winterbottom.
* Produced all India Campaigns for International Photographers like Steve Mcurry. Aarti is also creative consultant for various films planning to shoot in India; contributing to the concept development and production design the latest being the most renown Indian Patriotic film “Mile Sur Mera Tumhara” .
* Besides this Aarti is script writer and has penned two original scripts both of which will soon be mounted in India very soon.
*
* Through her career, she has been involved in many social causes specially gaining an admirable reputation for being a great Animal Lover-
* She contributed to the Wildlife Trust of India’s Awareness initiative to save the near extinct Tibetan Antelope. Say No to shahtoosh (2002-2005) - this involved the film and fashion industry that promoted the message and the involvement of Arti Surendranath brought in many celebrity supporters from the film and fashion industry -
* Along with Wildlife Trust of India & World land Trust, she has arranged an awareness fundraiser for the “Haathi Mere Saathi “ Campaign which is involved in spreading awareness about the plight of the Asian Elephant with “Emeralds for Elephants” in 2011 where she brought on Madhuri Dixit as brand ambassador for the Auction. She has been appointed ‘Campaign Advisor’ for the HMS- HAthi Mere Sathi by Wildlife Trust of India & MOEF. Involved in her own precious way with animals, she is a favourite with many animal welfare organizations. PETA; Welfare of Stray Dogs She is involved in the rescue of abandoned animals.
* Aarti started her modelling career early in life at the young age of 15 still in school, chosen over a selection of over 25 candidates as the model for Sunsilk shampoo, Directed by the maverick famous Director ‘Kailash Surendranath’ She very quickly reached an enviable position at the top of this field having to her credit done the biggest Campaigns of the day. She was also the first ever “Garden Sarees” model was known then by her maiden name Aarti Gupta. She went on to become one of India’s leading models in Advertisement Print and film Campaigns and ramp shows.
* Sunsilk Shampoo; Nescafe; Band Aid; Garden Sarees; Bombay Dyeing Sarees; Clearasil. Tata Tea, Yera Glassware; along with that she also appeared in a song in Nasir Hussain Productions “ Zamane Ko Dikhana Hai- Halo Shampoo; Campa Cola Where she discovered the young Salman Khan and recommended him to her then fiancé Kailash Surendranath with whom he faced the camera for the first time as a model for the ad.
* All this added to her experience, and she quickly transited into the second phase of her career as a Hindi film actor. Signed her first Feature film as a leading lady in Shakti Samanta Productions directed Ashim Samantha opposite Mithun Chakrabarthy - “Aamne Saamne”; Ramsey Brothers “Purana Mundir” Opposite Manish Behl , which became one of the biggest grosser of its time followed by “Tahkhana” & Samri” in 3D. She also dabbled in a Art Cinema -Aashiana” Directed by Mahesh Bhatt where she played a tribal girl- with Mark Zuber & Deepti Naval. “Apna Jahan” Dir. Subroto Bose with Naseeruddin Shah & Deepti Naval; Opposite Anil Kapoor in Feroze Khan’s “multi- starrer “Jaanbaaz”
* Regional - Aarti Starred opposite Mohanlal in the superhit Malayalee film “Jeevante Jeevan” directed by J.William
* As that was again a pioneering time, Aarti started many trends in these fields, helped in building various brands, and in a sense revolutionised the Styling look and feel of advertising through the time She has worked alongside Kailash as asst Dir- Production designer stylist & designer costumer & is responsible for the “Look’s” for Various Campaigns - “Garden Sarees” Vimal Suitings & Vimal Sares. Fair & Lovely ; Dinesh Suitings; Raymond Suitings; Washing Powdeer Nirma ; Wheel Detergent Soap ; Rin; Neema Beauty Soap; Boro Plus ; Various Boro Plus Campaigns; ”. .
*
* After working in over a dozen films, Aarti married iconic Ace director Kailash Surendranath in 1985 and very quickly took on the various cinema and television commercials produced by their production company as producer, creative consultant; Casting Director; stylist & assistant Director at “Far Productions” the company started by Kailash Surendranath. Together they started “Kailash Picture Company” in 1994 . Aarti is self taught and for all these hats that she wears today attributes her versatile skills purely to her hands on experience in the film and advertising industries over the years.
*
* Aarti also started a very successful and exclusive business of making bridal Trousseaus & Couture garments by appointment only at this time. This was her individual entrepreneurship, started in a small workshop, Which was an achievement and experiment coming from the field of advertising she challenged as it achieved success & gained a dynamic reputation and great popularity by sheer word of mouth- never advertised her company. She did have to however give up this very personalised and time consuming business as the production company and her family grew.
*
* Aarti Surendranath is today a well known producer in India and along with her husband started “Kailash Picture Company “ In director on the board of the production company ‘the Kailash picture company ’ in 1994
* She has to her credit over a thousand commercials as producer for Indian and
* International - Line Produced Paramount Vantage and plan B’s (Mr. Brad Pitts) ‘A Mighty Heart’ starring Angelina Jolie & Daniel Futterman filmed in Pune - re- created Pakistan & in locations in Mumbai never filmed before. She also Line- produced ‘Code 46’ starring Tim Robbins and Samantha Morton.- Filmed in Rajasthan Both these films have been directed by British cult director Michael winterbottom.
* Produced all India Campaigns for International Photographers like Steve Mcurry. Aarti is also creative consultant for various films planning to shoot in India; contributing to the concept development and production design the latest being the most renown Indian Patriotic film “Mile Sur Mera Tumhara” .
* Besides this Aarti is script writer and has penned two original scripts both of which will soon be mounted in India very soon.
*
* Through her career, she has been involved in many social causes specially gaining an admirable reputation for being a great Animal Lover-
* She contributed to the Wildlife Trust of India’s Awareness initiative to save the near extinct Tibetan Antelope. Say No to shahtoosh (2002-2005) - this involved the film and fashion industry that promoted the message and the involvement of Arti Surendranath brought in many celebrity supporters from the film and fashion industry -
* Along with Wildlife Trust of India & World land Trust, she has arranged an awareness fundraiser for the “Haathi Mere Saathi “ Campaign which is involved in spreading awareness about the plight of the Asian Elephant with “Emeralds for Elephants” in 2011 where she brought on Madhuri Dixit as brand ambassador for the Auction. She has been appointed ‘Campaign Advisor’ for the HMS- HAthi Mere Sathi by Wildlife Trust of India & MOEF. Involved in her own precious way with animals, she is a favourite with many animal welfare organizations. PETA; Welfare of Stray Dogs She is involved in the rescue of abandoned animals.
"The Death of the Death of the Novel" (2008) is an essay by Robert Clark Young that first appeared in the Southern Review.
Summary
Young's thesis is that all arguments postulating the death of the novel are fallacious. Young goes back through literary history to show that F. Scott Fitzgerald, John Barth, Roland Barthes, Norman Mailer, Ambrose Bierce and others were incorrect when they claimed, at various times, that the literary novel was dead. Not only did literary novels continue to be published long after these writers announced the death of the novel, but many of the same writers, including Barth and Mailer, continued to publish literary novels—often to great acclaim—decades after arguing that continuing to do so was impossible.
Young also argues that new technologies such as radio, silent movies, talking movies, television, and the Internet have failed to destroy the novel, a genre which today enjoys higher sales than ever. With the advent of each of these new technologies, literary pessimists declared the death of the novel, and were wrong each and every time.
Critical reception
Rachel King, writing in "Good Reading Starts Here", said "I love the historical perspective Robert Clark Young emphasizes in his 'The Death of the Death of the Novel.' I've read about the death of the novel in essays from Barth to Birkerts, but Young has a compelling argument: although people have been predicting the novel's death for hundreds of years, somehow it keeps on flourishing. And it will continue to flourish, for reasons you will have to read yourself."
The Summerset Review agreed that "‘The Death of the Death of the Novel,’ by Robert Clark Young, sheds positive light on the health of the literary world, and is a comfort to read. The author argues that ‘the Internet and iPods and DVDs are not responsible for turning book publishing into a money loser,’ and that ‘American literature is not only alive but immortal.’"
Summary
Young's thesis is that all arguments postulating the death of the novel are fallacious. Young goes back through literary history to show that F. Scott Fitzgerald, John Barth, Roland Barthes, Norman Mailer, Ambrose Bierce and others were incorrect when they claimed, at various times, that the literary novel was dead. Not only did literary novels continue to be published long after these writers announced the death of the novel, but many of the same writers, including Barth and Mailer, continued to publish literary novels—often to great acclaim—decades after arguing that continuing to do so was impossible.
Young also argues that new technologies such as radio, silent movies, talking movies, television, and the Internet have failed to destroy the novel, a genre which today enjoys higher sales than ever. With the advent of each of these new technologies, literary pessimists declared the death of the novel, and were wrong each and every time.
Critical reception
Rachel King, writing in "Good Reading Starts Here", said "I love the historical perspective Robert Clark Young emphasizes in his 'The Death of the Death of the Novel.' I've read about the death of the novel in essays from Barth to Birkerts, but Young has a compelling argument: although people have been predicting the novel's death for hundreds of years, somehow it keeps on flourishing. And it will continue to flourish, for reasons you will have to read yourself."
The Summerset Review agreed that "‘The Death of the Death of the Novel,’ by Robert Clark Young, sheds positive light on the health of the literary world, and is a comfort to read. The author argues that ‘the Internet and iPods and DVDs are not responsible for turning book publishing into a money loser,’ and that ‘American literature is not only alive but immortal.’"