May 27 2025 to May 27 2025 6:30 p.m.

Where

Bangalore International Centre

7 4th Main Rd, Stage 2, Domlur 560071

Event Description

A writer, activist, policymaker, and advocate for justice, Syeda Hameed has spent her life listening to the voices from the margins and carrying their stories into the corridors of power. From her early work as a human rights advocate to her years as a Member of the National Commission for Women and the Planning Commission of India, she has been a campaigner for gender equity, communal harmony, and social justice. Her journeys have taken her from villages across India to the Wagah border, where she lit candles for peace between India and Pakistan, year after year.

Born into a family steeped in cultural and intellectual legacy, her father was the noted educationist Khwaja Ghulamus Saiyidain and her uncle the legendary writer and filmmaker Khwaja Ahmed Abbas, Syeda Hameed’s life has been shaped by both privilege and purpose. She has translated and edited the works of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, as well as literary greats like Ghalib, Faiz, Hali, and Sarmad Shaheed, bringing their voices into contemporary discourse with clarity and grace.

In her latest book, A Drop in The Ocean : The Story of My Life, Syeda offers a personal narrative, tracing her journey through moments of joy, struggle, and transformation. Beginning with the story she published at the age of nine, sparked by a moment of childhood exclusion for bearing a Muslim name, it is a memoir that speaks to identity, resilience, and the lifelong pursuit of peace.

The session will begin with a talk by Syeda Hameed, followed by a conversation with political commentator and co-founder of Shakti and Citizens for Bengaluru, Tara Krishnaswamy. A Q&A with the audience will follow.

Speakers

Syeda Saiyidain Hameed
Author & Activist
Syeda Saiyidain Hameed is a women’s rights activist, educationist and writer. She is a former member of the Planning Commission of India. Her publications include Islamic Seal on India’s Independence: Abul Kalam Azad—A Fresh Look (1998) and Dr Zakir Husain: Teacher Who Became President (2000). In 2007, the Government of India conferred the Padma Shri on Hameed.

Tara Krishnaswamy
Political Consultant, Gender & Civic Activist
Tara Krishnaswamy is a political consultant, gender and civic activist and a Cannes Gold winner for campaigns. She is co-founder of citizens collectives Political Shakti for women’s political representation and Citizens for Bengaluru for decentralised urban governance and sustainable mobility. Her campaign team won the Cannes Social Impact Gold and 2 Silvers for the Bihar election campaign.

She is on the advisory board of Indian School of Democracy and Indus Action. She is an author in the anthology, Her Right to Equality (Penguin, India) and in national newspapers. She teaches political mobilisation and public policy and is a TEDx speaker. She is a techie by background with two decades experience in US multinationals. She used to head the Asia Pacific partnerships for Oracle, has US patents and publications in her name.