The India Country Club for G100 Media Arts & Communication (G100-MAC India) takes off with onboarding its first set of 15 women leaders enroute to achieving G100-MAC's mandate to amplify women's voices and visibility, as well as elevate and improve the presentation and representation of women, while providing the thought leadership, engagement, resourcefulness and solutions toward enabling women's equality, empowerment, leadership and a better future for all.
About G100-MAC
G100 Media Arts & Communication is a global wing out of 100 wings at G100 - a global network of women and men using media arts and communication to impact the world. As Gatekeepers of information, we are on a mission to create a thriving support network, global opportunities and a collaborative ecosystem for women in different segments of media across the world - united in sisterhood, support and solidarity.
G100-MAC connects, recognizes, empowers and supports women in creative media, broadcast media, print media, news media, electronic media, digital or interactive media across domains like film, television, radio, print, literature, music, publishing, photography, digital entertainment and all media arts & communication segments.
G100-MAC Mission
As representatives of a vibrant, innovative and multi-disciplinary sector, G100 Media Arts & Communication (G100-MAC) brings together women leaders (supported by men) who are forward-thinkers from all areas of media arts and communication domains to explore a variety of issues that greatly impact women in the sector: from human rights, gender stereotyping and pay gap, to storytelling across platforms and empowering the next generation of women to emerge as creative and communication powerhouses.
G100-MAC welcomes creatives, communicators, entertainers and media practitioners who support the empowerment of women and believe in the values of care, concern, courage and commitment to humanity. The G100-MAC projects, campaigns, & events are designed to spark a broader, more transparent dialogue that focuses on current and emerging issues that have created barriers for women. Although the Media Arts and Communications sector is one of the most progressive and liberal industries, there is still a lot of gender bias, sexist misconduct, and a major under-representation of women in significant roles at the helm of leadership and decision making.
Together with the G100 Denim Club, which has representatives in each G100-MAC Country Club serving as Denim Partners, we seek to find creative answers to the challenges women face.
G100-MAC is deeply committed to supporting the advancement and growth of women in the media arts & communication sector through connection, coalition, collaboration and celebration, hence the inclusive and inspired attitude of positivity, passion and purpose towards the mandate.
G100-MAC India is led by Country Chair, Dr Swapna Abraham who was recently conferred with a Honorary Doctorate Degree in Music from Vinayaka Missions University for her world record in music.
Dr Swapna Abraham is a multiple world record holder, singer-songwriter, actor, author, interior designer, mentor, and marketing and branding enthusiast with her roots and formation in India and prime experience in the UAE. She is a multiple world record holder and award winner. Swapna has authored and produced 21 musical albums and performed extensively on the international gospel music platform. Holding 4 world records in singing and songwriting with the Golden Book of World Records, her book entailing the journey and lessons through the 1000-day world record journey is soon to be published.
Country Advisory Council
The Country Advisory Council (CAC) are advisory members (influential women) across different domains of media arts & communication in India working in dedicated country director roles with the Country Chair and the Country Denim Partner to build a thriving 100 member country club and amplify the vision and mandate of the sector. The CAC and members will advocate for women’s greater representation and gender parity across the sector, among other sector-specific initiatives influencing policy locally and globally.
The India Country Chair, Dr Swapna Abraham is supported by the Country Advisory Council (CAC) for India, which include inspiring and accomplished leaders like...
- Anupama Venkatesh (Country Director of Partnerships)
- Aparna Arora (Country Director of Communications)
- Daivata Chavan-Patil (Country Director of Strategy & Planning)
- Sunita Paul (Country Director of Operations)
- Madhulika Agrawal (Country Director of Content)
Anupama Venkatesh (Country Director of Partnerships) - is presently Head of Partnerships and Special Projects at the American India Foundation. A seasoned professional with over 21 years of experience in integrated brand solutions, business development, and digital & cultural transformation, Anupama is a passionate storyteller with a proven track record in forging strategic alliances across B2B and B2C sectors. Anupama has worked with several media conglomerates like NDTV, India Today, Network 18, Times Television Network and Hindustan Times. She held an integral role in NDTV’s key social initiatives such as ‘Save the Tiger’ and ‘Greenathon’ and drove the joint initiative ‘#WhyTheFarq’ between India Today and Oxfam on the inequality towards women.
Aparna Arora (Country Director of Communications) - is a Communication Fellow & Corporate Affairs professional with over twenty years of experience, across Tech (Facebook & ByteDance), FMCG (Mars Inc.), Retail (Walmart), Entertainment (HBO, CNN and Cartoon Network), and Non-Profit (Save the Children & World Bank) in India, S. Asia and SEA. Working with diverse industries has equipped her with strong experience in Communications. Born and brought up in New Delhi (India), where she did her post-graduation in Public Relations after graduating from Delhi University. She is a science communications fellow from Cornell University. A travel enthusiast, who is excited about spiritual wellbeing, cultural diversity, food, and the performing arts.
Daivata Chavan-Patil (Country Director of Strategy & Planning) - is a Media Educator, Film Producer, Writer and Speaker currently associated as a faculty member with the Department of Communication and Journalism, University of Mumbai. She is also associated with Onjal Arts Productions as Creative Producer since 2016. She produced a Marathi feature film ‘Barayan’ that theatrically released in Jan 2018 all over Maharashtra and was very well received by the audience. Currently associated with Africa Asia Global Scholars Network, UK, as Assistant Director, Research and Technical. She is the Maharashtra State President for Women's Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry for the Information and Broadcasting Council on Honorary posts. She is also on the Executive Board of Public Relations Society of India, Mumbai Chapter.
Sunita Paul (Country Director of Operations) - is an award-winning publisher, entrepreneur, organiser, author & editor from the City of Joy, Kolkata, West Bengal, India. She is the Managing Director of AABS Publishing House and CEO of AABS Events and Entertainment, Sunita is also the Editor-in-chief of Reader’s Choice Magazine and organizer of many events of high repute. A poet, novelist, short story writer, painter and motivational speaker who is a widely published author in USA and India. In 2017, Sunita was the recipient of the Literary Nobel Laureate conferred by the World Nations Writer's Organization, Kazakhstan and was on the board of directors of Atunispoetry.com and is the editor of many anthologies of international repute.
Madhulika Agrawal (Country Director of Content) - is a media professional for 22 years, who’s passionate about content & its impact. A Literature graduate from Miranda House, with PG courses in Journalism & Filmmaking, and a Masters degree in Communications Policy from London, Madhulika has donned a gamut of challenging roles across the Indian Media Industry. Starting her journey as a News producer with Star, she later used her creative & analytical skills to later launch Fox Traveller Channel & relaunch the Nat Geo Channel in India. From TV she switched to Radio, where she headed programming and then joined the India Today Network as Creative Head to set up their brand solutions team. Here she conceptualised and executed various content properties across TV, Digital & on-ground for different brands.
The Country Members
G100-MAC country members together with the advisory members form the '100 member power circle' in their country, an influential group of women who work together as co-creators and custodians of the culture, commitment and empowering endeavours towards the G100-MAC mandate.
The G100-MAC India country club has inducted some eminent members into its fold like...
- Deepti Pillay Sivan
- Anshu Varshney
- Padmini Ravi
- Amrita S. Nair
- Krithika Ram
- Trina Dutt
- Mae Mariyam Thomas
- Kainaz Jussawalla
- Sohini Roychowdhury
Deepti Pillay Sivan - an Indian film actress, film director and businesswoman based in Kerala, India. She is known for her lead role as Mohanlal's daughter in the movie Kalippattam and as a heroine in the movie Moonilonnu directed by K. K. Haridas. She is currently the business head of Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd and previously, she was the station head of Red FM 93.5. She is also known for directing the film documentary Decoding Shankar about Shankar Mahadevan which got nominated at Indian Panorama-2018.
Anshu Varshney - an Indian actress and model who was crowned Mrs. India Runner Up in 2018. Anshu is known for her portrayal of the character "Charu" in the web series, Metal hood. She has worked in many short films, feature films and TV serials. She has also acted and featured in more than 65 commercials - Dabur, Dettol, HDFC, Everest, Cadbury, Philips and Odomas etc, and several Government ads. She is a motivational speaker.
Padmini Ravi is a performer, teacher and choreographer who has been on a journey in dance for over 5 decades. Padmini is also the founder and director of Padmini Ravi Dance Academy and serves as an exponent and teacher of Bharathanatyam, the ancient South Indian classical dance.Padmini Ravi is a recipient of the Karnataka Sangeetha Nritya Academy Award as well as the State Rajyotsava Award.
Amrita S. Nair is a published writer, columnist, author and an Advocate at the Bombay High Court, working as an Associate at Parinam Law. As the founder of The Silent Sexism Project and the Intersectional Feminist Magazine, she understands well the insidious ways in which discrimination and denied access to resources affects communities across the country.
Krithika Ram is an award-winning speaker & leader in the development sector with more than 15 years of experience, presently serving as Coach-Operations & Donor Management in Feminist Approach to Technology (FAT) addressing the gender gap in technology. Earlier on, Krithika headed the India programs for WEConnect International, a US-based non-profit working with large US corporations and women-owned businesses to promote supplier diversity across the globe.
Trina Dutt is a singer/songwriter won the 'Kawai Rolling Trophy for Outstanding Musician and has performed in musical productions such as CATS (2014) and Lucky Stiff (2019).Trina has a Diploma in Pop Vocals from the London College of Music (LCM) and a Diploma in Music Theatre (LCM) and also won the National Interschool Talent Contest 'Voice of Viva' in its 7th edition.
Mae Mariyam Thomas is a presenter, journalist, podcast producer, and audio content/production consultant with over 15 years of experience in radio and podcasting. She’s most well-known for being the host of India’s first indie music podcast Maed in India which was selected by Apple as one of the Best Podcasts of 2018 in India. In 2019, she was chosen by GQ magazine for their 50 Most Influential Young Indians and her podcast 'Maed in India' is a 2021 Webby Award Honoree.
Kainaz Jussawalla is an author, columnist, celebrity talk show host and the winner of three awards - “The Shiksha Ratna”, the “Asian Literary Society Author Award” and the “Fuzia Woman Achievers Award” for excellence in social media. Over the years, she has written extensively for various newspapers and magazines including Savvy and The Times Of India.
Sohini Roychowdhury is a classical dancer (Bharatanatyam), choreographer, movement director, producer, speaker, author, dance therapist, and professor of Natyashastra. She is the founder of Sohinimoksha World Dance & Communication in Madrid, Berlin, Kolkata, New York and Sohinimoksha Artes de La India in Madrid, Spain enriching lives through art, music and dance. Sohini has been called “a revolutionary in the world of music and dance” by the Hindustan Times and “remaking history in the footsteps of Uday Shankar” by the Times of India.
Anamika Dutta is a TEDx Speaker, Researcher, Podcaster, Spoken Word Artist, Writer and an alumna of the University of Mumbai with her core being in mass communication and journalism. Her Podcast Spoken Word by Anamika, where she performs Spoken Word poetry, focuses on healing through poetry and storytelling; it's currently available on more than twenty platforms, including Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, iHeartRadio, and Pandora.
In a statement by the G100-MAC India Country Chair, Dr Swapna Abraham...
G100 Media Arts & Communications, India Country Club takes flight to place women where they rightly need to be - alongside their male counterparts, to give women what is due to them in professional recognition, encouragement and support, and to make a tangible difference as a collective, working towards these universal ideals. We take pride in our sister members and directors and look forward to ascending great heights in our mission and the task ahead of us.
In a comment by the G100-MAC Global Chair, Dr Alex Okoroji...
I'm very proud of G100-MAC India and so happy to welcome these amazing talented women into the media arts & communication wing. I believe that coming together is the start of great things and I applaud my soul sister, Dr Swapna Abraham for her leadership in identifying likeminded women of impact for our G100 wing, who are making a difference in the world.
Global Chair, Dr Alex Okoroji also said...
I also want to thank all the wonderfully talented soul sisters who have accepted to join hands and hearts with us in G100-MAC to build a thriving and empowering sector for women in India and globally. We have a very important role to play in redefining the narrative about women and their positive contributions to society. On behalf of our G100 president & founder, Dr Harbeen Arora Rai, I welcome each sister, and I'm certain that together, we will surely achieve our vision and mandate.