His words revolutionised young India from tracks of atheism to deism. His books enriched young Indian minds with the historical tenets of their religion, compelling them to draw strength from and take pride in their culture and tradition. Amish Tripathi, thus, is often described as the “Tolkien of India”.
An alumnus of the Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Calcutta, Amish worked in the financial services industry for 14 years before becoming an author and devoting his entire life to the quest of finding mythological answers. Now, in his desire to inform the western world of the legacy of Indian culture and tradition, Amish has taken over as the Director of The Nehru Centre in London since October 2019.
Established in 1992, as the cultural wing of the High Commission of India in the UK, Nehru Centre is India’s flagship cultural centre enabling greater engagement with the Indian diaspora settled in the UK. Ever since its inception, the institution has had a two-fold approach to enhance UK-India cultural ties and strengthen diplomatic channels. It has been a one-stop-shop for hosting premier classical musical sessions, dance performances, book launches and round tables that provoke thoughtful debate and discussion on current affairs. Now, Amish is tasked with enhancing the golden aura of the Nehru Centre. And many would keep their eyes peeled on how he replicates his influence on young Indian minds with British Indians.
Discussing his two-pronged approach for greater engagement with the diaspora, Amish said, “Nehru Centre has a wonderful golden legacy. But there was a growing perception that the programmes were appealing only to the elderly among the Indian diaspora. The 2nd & 3rd generation British Indians were not attending our sessions and coronavirus has only added more challenges. So, we have responded in two ways.
“To begin with, we have dramatically altered our programming structures. Whilst many of the older traditional events continue, we have also brought in a series of events with more panache, presenting traditional Indian culture in a modern avatar. From literary events to organising sessions on fusion performing arts, and celebrity-led-events.
“To increase our digital footprint and gain the attention of the “socially-active but socially-distanced” generation we have moved the production of all our events online. Style is an important quotient besides content in the virtual world. And I am glad to report that the results have been fantastic. Our programmes have attracted over 100,000 viewers from all over the UK. This is far superior to the maximum audiences we drew of around 120 people earlier which was primarily from Central London. Most importantly, our examination of Facebook analytics, have illustrated that we are now attracting younger audiences (including British Indian children), and even Britons of non-Indian origin. One of the challenges we are facing is that expectations have gone up. Many of our viewers are expecting bigger events, with more renowned celebrities. All of us at the Nehru Centre will work hard to ensure that we don't disappoint you.”
You can keep track of their new programmes at (https://www.nehrucentre.org.uk/), watch all programmes on Facebook (Nehru Centre London), YouTube (The Nehru Centre) and Twitter (@TheNehruCentre).
