Vanessa Serrano was conferred upon with Honorary Doctorate (Honoris Causa) in recognition of outstanding contribution to Entrepreneurship, Business & Innovation
Entrepreneur & Businesswoman: First Vice President, Grupo TMM; Founder, Dassami and Zertu, Mexico
Vanessa Serrano is First Vice President of Grupo TMM headquartered in Mexico. Among Mexico’s largest logistics and transportation companies, it has four operating divisions: maritime, logistics services, warehousing services, and ports and terminal management, with facilities and operations throughout Mexico. Vanessa is also the founder of the famous wellness digital platform, Zertu that is dedicated to transforming and touching people’s lives with spiritual awakening. She is also founder of the food company Dassami.
Ashish Bhasin was conferred upon with Honorary Doctorate (Honoris Causa) in recognition of outstanding contribution to Advertising & Media Industry
Chairman & CEO, Dentsu Aegis Network South Asia, India
Ashish Bhasin is a well-known personality in the Advertising & Media industry in Asia Pacific, for the past 30 years. He is presently Chairman & CEO Dentsu Aegis Network South Asia. He is also a member of the Dentsu Aegis Network Asia Pacific Executive Board.
He has built the Dentsu Aegis Network in India from a 50 member team to a 3500 member powerhouse, now the 2nd largest Advertising and Marketing Communications Group in India, overturning for the first time the existing ranking, which has historically been in place for over 80 years.
Prior to this Ashish successfully led and set up several of Lintas India’s (IPG) businesses and also had the global role of Executive Vice President, Lowe Worldwide and Asia Regional Director for Integrated Marketing.
Ashish was recently named Network Head of the Year – Media Ace Awards 2018. He has received the Campaign Asia – South Asia Agency Head of the Year award for 3 consecutive years – 2017, 2016 and 2015 and was selected as MXM’s Media Person of the Year- 2016. He has been awarded the 2015 IAA Leadership Award for Media Agency Head of the Year and was the Exchange4Media – Hallmark Chairman of the Year 2015. He is also the recipient of the Business Excellence Awards for Media CEO of the Year – India & Chairman of the Year – India 2013, 2014 and 2015, at UK’s Business Excellence Awards. He has received the Indira Super Achiever Award 2003 and was also adjudged “Media Marketer of the Year” at the Brief Media Awards and was the Dentsu Aegis Network Star Performer of the Year 2017.
He has served as the Head of Jury for the Asia Pacific Effie Awards 2017 and has served on several global juries including Cannes Lion 2016, Cannes Lion 2007, Dubai Lynx 2008, Festival of Media Global 2013 at Montreux and Asia’s Most Promising Brands and Leaders 2013 in Dubai.
Ashish serves or has served on most industry bodies in India, including as President AAAI, Chairman MRUC, Chairman Goafest 2017 & 2018, Co-Chairman AAAI – IBF committee 2010 – 2018, Board Member-Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC), Chairman Media Abbys 2012 & 2013 and former Chairman – Readership Studies Council of India. He is also the Founding Chairman of the Sydenham Institute of Management’s Alumni Association, amongst others.
Kulmeet Bawa was conferred upon with Honorary Doctorate (Honoris Causa) in recognition of outstanding contribution to Business Innovation & Leadership
Chief Operating Officer and President JAPAC at Resulticks
Kulmeet Bawa is responsible for global strategy and is leading the business growth at Resulticks, a game changer in data-driven, AI enabled customer engagement.
He was earlier the Vice President and Managing Director for Adobe South Asia, helping organisations in their digital transformation journeys. Prior to this, he was heading the Government and Healthcare business at Microsoft before which Kulmeet spent several years at Sun Microsystems in a variety of leadership roles.
A graduate of the Indian School of Business and an alumni of the National Defence Academy, he spent more than 12 years with the Indian Armoured Corps prior to joining the corporate world in 2002. Seeking greater challenges, his mid-career move into the corporate world was founded on the belief that extraordinary success is brought about by extraordinary leadership.
Bhuvan Lall was conferred upon with Honorary Doctorate (Honoris Causa) in recognition of outstanding contribution to Creative Entrepreneurship, Documentary Research & Film Production
Film Producer Creative Entrepreneur Author & Motivational Speaker
Award winning Filmmaker, International Entrepreneur, Film Journalist and now a published Author, BhuvanLall embodies global cultural exploration and entrepreneurial spirit that characterize the media and entertainment sector at its best.
Lall has enjoyed a wide range of top-level decision making exposure and risk-taking experience in the creative and corporate sector of the dynamic global media and entertainment business in Hollywood as well as in India over three decades.
Cinematic arts, spirituality and world history are Lall’s passions and he has built a full life and a successful career at their intersection.
At 22, Lall launched his first enterprise, Dream Factory, a documentary film company, at 34 as Executive Director of the Indian Broadcasting Foundation; he established the largest trade organization in the media and entertainment sector of India and was the President of Spice Group, an Indian multi billion-dollar multi national for 6 years.
Presently, Lall is the Executive Chairman of LALL Entertainment – Animation, Broadcasting & Cinema, a privately held global entertainment company launched at the Cannes film festival 2003. The company is focused on strategic investments in world-class intellectual properties & in producing “Global content with an Indian soul”. Lall is the Producer of feature films, TV shows, documentary films and global events around the world in New York, London, Singapore, Delhi, Bombay, Goa, Berlin, Cannes and Beverly Hills.
Lall created and organized the multi million-dollar ‘India Splendor 2007’ festival. It was the largest privately funded film and multicultural event in Indo US history. On the 5th anniversary of September 11th, Lall hosted His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Zen master ThichNath Hahn at a special event ‘World peace through Cinema’, in Los Angeles.
BhuvanLall is also the biographer of Subhas Chandra Bose and his book ‘The Man India Missed The Most’ was launched on the 120th birth anniversary of Netaji on January 23rd, 2017 at the India International Centre. Book available on Amazon and Flipkart.
A much sought after speaker since the publication of his first book Lall ignites the passion in the audiences speaking about the heroes of the Indian freedom movement from LalaHarDayal to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. His domain area covers the entire European colonial period from the first sighting of India by the fleet of Vasco Da Gama in May 1498 to the end of European imperialism in India in December 1961.
S.P. Ganeshan was conferred upon with Honorary Doctorate (Honoris Causa) in recognition of outstanding contribution to Environment and Renewable Energy
Board member & Director – Technology & Operations, CLEAN EFFENTECH PRIVATE LIMITED (CEF) & CEF GROUP COMPANIES, India
Well-known renewable energy / energy & Environment professional
34+ years of experience with strong techno commercial acumen, in Renewable energy, power and project business including 15+ years in business development, sales & marketing and contract management for domestic & overseas projects. 12+ years in project management, testing & commissioning of boiler, power plant and systems and 5+ years in erection and manufacturing of power equipments and piping.
- Lifetime professional involvement in Energy, Renewable Energy & Environment projects.
- Established energy conversion technologies from all type of renewable resources and industrial waste.
- Demonstrated exposure in domestic & international bidding, sales & marketing of power projects and high value industrial products for Private corporate sector, IPPs & Public utilities
- JV / Association formation and associated with multinational companies.
- Ensured timely & quality commissioning of boilers and power projects. Achieved market leadership position and customer satisfaction
- Established SOP / manuals for boilers with Oil & Gas, BFG, Bagasse, Coal, Lignite, Rice husk, Biomass.
- Experienced in CFBC / AFBC, Oil, Gas, BFG, Waste heat, material handling systems, Rotary equipment like boiler feed water pumps, fans, feeders, motors & turbines and power plant balance of the plant equipment’s
- Experienced in handling with waste to energy projects including MSW and agricultural waste.
- Handled various domestic & international technical and project consultants
Minu Bakshi was conferred upon with Honorary Doctorate (Honoris Causa) in recognition of outstanding contribution to Arts and Literature
Poet, Singer, Linguist & Author, India
Minu Bakshi is a multifaceted and versatile individual. A singer with years of Hindustani classical musical training, a professor of Spanish language at the prestigious Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, an accredited Spanish language interpreter for the Indian Government and a Vice Chairperson of the NGO Savera (a society for the uplifting of underprivileged women and children) & the Chairperson of the UK Asian Film Festival, London. These are some of the activities for which Minu Bakshi is known and recognized.
Minu did her schooling from St. Thomas School, Delhi and then B. Sc. from Miranda House, Delhi University at which point she realized her real love lay in languages at which she was naturally gifted. So began her journey in the world of Spanish language and she studied it for six years completing her M. A and M. Phil from Jawaharlal Nehru University later proceeding to Spain to further enhance her knowledge in the language at the ‘Universidad Complutense de Madrid’. Her expertise is in the art of interpretation and she has been working as an interpreter for the President and the Prime Minister of India at various occasions for twenty or more years. She has been teaching at the JNU for almost 40 years. Recently, she was conferred the “Order of Isabella la Catolica” by the Spanish Government for her services towards promotion of Spain and its culture. This is the 2nd Highest Order given to a foreigner by the King of Spain.
That she was gifted with an aureate voice was recognized when Minu was just a youngster. However it was a concert by Begum Akhtar which was one of the defining moments of her life. She knew then that if there was anything she wanted, it was to sing . She became one of Begum Akhtars most talented and devoted acolytes. Following her assiduously from concert to concert Minu imbibed not only the fundamentals of Ghazal gayaki but also began to appreciate the nuances and beauty of Urdu and Urdu poetry. This was to have a huge impact on her later.
Commander Abhilash Tomy was conferred upon with Honorary Doctorate (Honoris Causa) in recognition of outstanding contribution to Indian Navy as one of the India’s most accomplished sailors
Indian Navy
Commander Abhilash Tomy, KC from the Indian Navy is one of India’s most prominent and accomplished sailors. In 2013, he became the first Indian to complete a non-stop circumnavigation of the world done solo under sail. A pilot in the Indian Navy, he has had the advantage, just as French sailing legend Eric Tabarly did, of spending much of his career sailing for his Country. Abhilash has covered 52,000 miles under sail while in the Navy including the solo non-stop circumnavigation. In 2018, he participated in the historic Golden Globe Race wherein given the extremely rough weather and sea conditions, he survived a major crisis and was rescued by a global search effort. Despite suffering severe back injury and surviving on iced tea in the most dire conditions, Cdr. Tomy is unfazed in this enthusiasm for sailing and the seas. He has been awarded the Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award, the Kirti Chakra for valour and courageous action and Mac Gregor medal.