Panel Discussions – Mist LGBTQ Foundation

Join us at Covid Vaccination and the LGBTQI Community - a live discussion between Shyam Konnur (Festival Director) and Dr. Sathish Kumar (Country Director - SAATHII) on answering the questions and doubts about taking COVID Vaccination while we are on other medication like ART, PrEP, Hormone Therapy, etc. and health issues like HIV, Hep-B, etc. The event is organised by Mist as part of Out & Loud - PIQFF 2021 in association with SAATHII.

Dr. A. Sathish Kumar, MD, is SAATHII's Country Director, and an ally who has extensive experience training healthcare providers on LGBTIQ-inclusive health care.

Date: 13.05.2021 Thursday
Time: 4:30 PM IST
Live on Facebook: @outloudpiqff @mistlgbt and Youtube: @mistlgbt

Join us for the Keynote address of Out & Loud - PIQFF 2021 by Devdutt Pattanaik on Making Diversity Work For You. The pandemic has taught us one essential thing, the need to take care of ourselves. With that, we hope that you will join us for this vital and enlightening session.

Devdutt Pattanaik writes on relevance of mythology in modern times. Trained in medicine, he worked for 15 years in the healthcare and pharma industries before he plunged full time into his passion. Author of 50 books and 1000 columns, several with bestsellers, he is known for his TED talks, his TV shows especially Devlok, and his innovative views on culture, leadership and Indian approach to management.

Date: 13.05.2021 Thursday
Time: 6 PM IST
Live on Facebook: @outloudpiqff @mistlgbt and Youtube: @mistlgbt

Join us on the 14th of May for a panel discussion on DEI Policies: Culture to Communities. Four decades ago, we started with equal rights for women, then came diversity, and then came inclusion. Today we look at an environment beyond Diversity and Inclusion...We look at an environment of Equity. Discussing Equity is this panel that looks at affinity groups, cultural inclusion and various other intangible things that makes Corporates of India and the world a great place to work.

Harish Panchabhai (Moderator) - Harish is a curious person, constantly finding ways to learn new things. He has been a degree hoarded in the past and after a brief stint in entertainment and insurance industry, he now works as a marketer in an IT multinational while promoting DEI both within the organisation and outside of it. His rather nomadic childhood (thanks to his father being an army officer). has made him passionate about DEI, cultures, languages, art and craft and dreams of having a home worth showing off in Architecture Digest.

Panel Members:

Prachi Rastogi - Diversity & Inclusion Leader APAC, IBM

Prachi Rastogi is the D&I leader for APAC. She has experience in human resources across healthcare, ITes, Private Equity and Technology industry. Her current role involves ensuring gender balance at executive roles, inclusion of LGBT+ community and an accessible environment for people with disabilities. She is Responsible to create a climate that fosters respect for differences, stimulates innovation, encourages collaboration, and allows employees to work productively in a culturally diverse environment.

Apart from her day job she facilitates Mindfulness sessions in the corporate world and educational institutes. She believes that collaboration amongst humans and increased awareness is what will help us survive and succeed in the coming times.

Dwight Cook - Co-founder, Working With Pride

Dwight Cook is a seasoned organizational transformation executive with experience spanning more than 25 years in five different companies. He has led over thirty organizational transformations in six different countries. He has built and expertise in how diversity and inclusion drive personal and organizational performance as well as how to build lasting organizational change. He is currently focused on building a leadership development program for early career minorities.

Param Kaur - Director - People Success, Publicis Sapient

Param is a traveller, car rallyist, inclusion champion, a passionate ally and an HR professional with 18+ years in Talent Management and Shared Services. As part of Publicis Sapient she also leads the Core BRG work for India with 6 tracks on Care Givers, Pride, eNable for PWD, VivaWomen, Mental Health and Generational Diversity. She also works towards social inclusion as a volunteer with a few NGOs on rural women empowerment and geriatric care for Senior care homes. Her motto is “speak up for and live the change every day”.

Date: 14.05.2021 Friday
Time: 6 PM IST
Live on Facebook: @outloudpiqff @mistlgbt and Youtube: @mistlgbt

Join us on the 15th of May for a Panel Discussion on Infinity in the world of 0s and 1s. Our world loves the concept of dividng yin from yang. It is a changing world but far from widely acknowledging the non binary on the spectrum. Dive in to the world of non binary folx, their challenges and achievements to get rid of 0s and 1s - the binary and make the difference raised to the power of infinity.

Manabika (They/Them) (Moderator) – Manabika is a non-binary queer person. They are a researcher in Pune with a public interest oriented advocacy group. They have been part of the Out & Loud – Pune International Queer Film Festival team for the past 3 years- focusing on content writing, and film selection. They are interested in understanding queerness in India at the intersection of language, geographical location, and caste.

Panel Members:

Mx. Ria Sharma (They/Them) – TEDx Speaker, Educator and Human Rights Youth Activist

Mx. Ria Sharma who is on a journey to spread awareness about LGBT+ issues, raise voice against any form of injustice and inspire people to be their true self. They have been sharing their story on media platforms, seminars in educational institutions and at storytelling events. They have produced stories like Splitends and Girl with a beard which touches topics like gender incongruence and struggles that a gender fluid person has with their body. Ria’s vision is to educate as many people as possible about tabooed topics like mental health ,gender, sex, sexuality and expression. They envision a better world where identities are to give oneself a sense of self but not a reason for being discriminated against.

Ameya Hemmady (He/She/They) – Performing Artist

Ameya is a performing artist withwith many years of experience in the entertainment industry. Having worked in Mumbai for several years, they are now based in Pune and freelance as a choreographer and creative content writer. Their current artistic expression/vision centres around blurring the binary, gender non-conformity, and showcasing performance beyond gender.

Rishi (They/Them) – Transgender Rights Activist

I am a transgender rights activist and I work with Mist in Pune. I help create safe spaces, spread awareness and sensitise people.

Date: 15.05.2021 Saturday
Time: 6 PM IST
Live on Facebook: @outloudpiqff @mistlgbt and Youtube: @mistlgbt

Join us on the 16th of May for a Panel Discussion on India on OTT - Windows to the closets. OTT platforms across the web, have attracted audiences not only due to their flexibility and convenience but also because they break the barriers that mainstream viewership sets for films with experimental and unfiltered content. Hence, we discuss how OTT platforms have paved the way for the cinematic representation that queer viewers wanted for years and its future as it comes under the glare of censorship bodies in India.

Manveen Kaur – Manveen is a Teach For India Alumni, who works actively with Out & Loud – Pune International Queer Film Festival as the Social Media Manager and Panel Discussion Co-Curator.

Panel Members:

Mihir (He/Him/His) – Director, Out Of Syllabus - Gender Identity

With Over 7+ years of experience in the creative industry, Mihir Lele started his career with the viral All India Bakchod (AIB) sketch Indian Mario, that he visualised and animated. A graduate in Animation Film Design from the National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad, India's premier design school, Lele joined AIB (India's biggest YouTube comedy channel) in 2013 as their design lead, and has since worked on all the sketches and events produced under their banner. In 2017, he quit AIB to pursue projects independently in the capacity of a design head and animation and screenplay director. Since then, he has worked on over 15 comedy specials and 2 web-series with Amazon Prime Video and supervised design and animated graphics for clients like Cred, YouTube, Netflix India, Flipkart TV and independent YouTube creators such as Tanmay Bhat, Dhruv Rathee, etc.)

Sridhar Rangayan (He/Him/His) – Film Maker & Festival Director - Kashish

Sridhar Rangayan is Award winning filmmaker and festival director of KASHISH Mumbai International Queer Film Festival

Karn Gupta (He/Him/His) – Executive Producer, Disney + Hotstar

Karn is a storyteller at heart; a perfect blend of creative, technical and managerial skills. The young, award-winning film maker believes in the power of storytelling for bringing characters of all shades together in the most gripping narratives. He has experience in directing, producing and marketing content for various platforms including theatrical, TV, digital & OTT. Karn’s recent work on Disney+ hotstar is AARYA with Sushmita Sen which won numerous awards. Karn was born in Jaipur, Rajasthan and is now settled in Mumbai, India with his dog KOKO!

Date: 16.05.2021 Sunday
Time: 6 PM IST
Live on Facebook: @outloudpiqff @mistlgbt and Youtube: @mistlgbt