Derek O'Brien (quizmaster)
Encyclopedia
Derek O'Brien is an India
n television personality and Member of Parliament. He hosts one of the longest-running game show
on Indian television
, Bournvita Quiz Contest
.
, India
to an Anglo-Indian
family. He went to St. Xavier's Collegiate School
in the city and St. Columba's School
in Delhi
, India. After two years in Scottish Church College, Kolkata
, he began his professional career as a journalist for Sportsworld
magazine, but soon shifted to advertising where he worked at Ogilvy
for eight years. His father Neil O' Brien is considered the pioneer of quizzing in India
.
. He won the award for Best Anchor of a Game/Quiz Show at the Hero Honda Indian Television Academy Awards in 2003. He conducts inter-school quiz contests not only India
, but also in United Arab Emirates
, Oman
, Kuwait
, Qatar
, Saudi Arabia
, Bahrain
, Bangladesh
, Pakistan
and Nepal
.
In addition to his television work, O'Brien has also authored several books published by Penguin Book India, as well as editing the Penguin India Reference Yearbook and the Bournvita Book of Knowledge.
He has his firm Derek O'Brien & Associates, help make "knowledge interesting", in their own words. They flaunt clients from some of the premier names like Cadbury India, Coca-Cola
India, The Economic Times
, The Times of India
, Idea Cellular
, Max New York Life
, NTPC
, Pearson Longman, Penguin Books
India.
Since 1991, his firm, Derek O'Brien & Associates has been researching and hosting "The Brand Equity Quiz", the country's longest corporate quiz show.
In 2008, he filmed a new quiz series in Pakistan
called Mind Grind.
, a party in West Bengal
,India. He is currently the vice-president of All India Trinamool Congress
In 2009 he was made the head of the Passenger Services Committee of the Indian Railways, under Railway and Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee
.
In July 2011, he was nominated for one of six seats in the Rajya Sabha
from West Bengal by the Trinamool Congress. He was sworn in as Member of Parliament on August 19, 2011.
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n television personality and Member of Parliament. He hosts one of the longest-running game show
Game show
A game show is a type of radio or television program in which members of the public, television personalities or celebrities, sometimes as part of a team, play a game which involves answering questions or solving puzzles usually for money and/or prizes...
on Indian television
Television in India
Television is one of the major mass media of India and is a huge industry and has thousands of programmes in all the states of India. The small screen has produced numerous celebrities of their own kind some even attaining national fame. TV soaps are extremely popular with housewives as well as...
, Bournvita Quiz Contest
Bournvita Quiz Contest
The Cadbury Bournvita Quiz Contest is an Indian quiz contest that began on April 12, 1972. Sponsored by Cadbury India, it is one of India's most famous quiz contests. Originally held live in cities across the country, it later became a radio show and then, in June 1992, a television show on Zee TV...
.
Early life and career
O'Brien was born in KolkataKolkata
Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
to an Anglo-Indian
Anglo-Indian
Anglo-Indians are people who have mixed Indian and British ancestry, or people of British descent born or living in India, now mainly historical in the latter sense. British residents in India used the term "Eurasians" for people of mixed European and Indian descent...
family. He went to St. Xavier's Collegiate School
St. Xavier's Collegiate School
St. Xavier's Collegiate School was established in 1860 in Kolkata, India by missionaries of the Society of Jesus. The school is named after St. Francis Xavier...
in the city and St. Columba's School
St. Columba's School
St. Columba's School, Delhi, India, was established in 1942, and is one of twelve English Medium schools of its kind conducted by the Indian Province of the Congregation of Christian Brothers which was founded by Blessed Edmund Rice, a Roman Catholic missionary and educationalist. It follows the...
in Delhi
Delhi
Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
, India. After two years in Scottish Church College, Kolkata
Kolkata
Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...
, he began his professional career as a journalist for Sportsworld
Sportsworld (magazine)
Sportsworld is a defunct Indian sports magazine that was published by the Ananda Bazar group from the 1970s to the 1990s. Published in Calcutta, the magazine was one of the two major English-language sports magazines in India, But it was sold to other. the other being Sportstar, published by The...
magazine, but soon shifted to advertising where he worked at Ogilvy
Ogilvy
Ogilvy is a name of people and fictional characters, as well as a Scottish clan . It may also refer to:In other uses:*Ogilvy , department store in Montreal, Canada*Ogilvy & Mather, advertising agency...
for eight years. His father Neil O' Brien is considered the pioneer of quizzing in India
Quizzing in India
Quizzing in India is quite popular, and has developed its own, unique flavour. Quizzing in India is different from American and British quizzing in that it is diverse, with different genres catering to different geographical regions, age groups, interests, etc....
.
Career
Today, he is the host of the longest running knowledge game show on television, the Bournvita Quiz ContestBournvita Quiz Contest
The Cadbury Bournvita Quiz Contest is an Indian quiz contest that began on April 12, 1972. Sponsored by Cadbury India, it is one of India's most famous quiz contests. Originally held live in cities across the country, it later became a radio show and then, in June 1992, a television show on Zee TV...
. He won the award for Best Anchor of a Game/Quiz Show at the Hero Honda Indian Television Academy Awards in 2003. He conducts inter-school quiz contests not only India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, but also in United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates, abbreviated as the UAE, or shortened to "the Emirates", is a state situated in the southeast of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia on the Persian Gulf, bordering Oman, and Saudi Arabia, and sharing sea borders with Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, and Iran.The UAE is a...
, Oman
Oman
Oman , officially called the Sultanate of Oman , is an Arab state in southwest Asia on the southeast coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by the United Arab Emirates to the northwest, Saudi Arabia to the west, and Yemen to the southwest. The coast is formed by the Arabian Sea on the...
, Kuwait
Kuwait
The State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the...
, Qatar
Qatar
Qatar , also known as the State of Qatar or locally Dawlat Qaṭar, is a sovereign Arab state, located in the Middle East, occupying the small Qatar Peninsula on the northeasterly coast of the much larger Arabian Peninsula. Its sole land border is with Saudi Arabia to the south, with the rest of its...
, Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
, Bahrain
Bahrain
' , officially the Kingdom of Bahrain , is a small island state near the western shores of the Persian Gulf. It is ruled by the Al Khalifa royal family. The population in 2010 stood at 1,214,705, including 235,108 non-nationals. Formerly an emirate, Bahrain was declared a kingdom in 2002.Bahrain is...
, Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
, Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
and Nepal
Nepal
Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
.
In addition to his television work, O'Brien has also authored several books published by Penguin Book India, as well as editing the Penguin India Reference Yearbook and the Bournvita Book of Knowledge.
He has his firm Derek O'Brien & Associates, help make "knowledge interesting", in their own words. They flaunt clients from some of the premier names like Cadbury India, Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola is a carbonated soft drink sold in stores, restaurants, and vending machines in more than 200 countries. It is produced by The Coca-Cola Company of Atlanta, Georgia, and is often referred to simply as Coke...
India, The Economic Times
The Economic Times
The Economic Times is an English-language Indian daily newspaper published by the Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd.. The Economic Times was started in 1961. It is the most popular and widely read financial daily in India, read by more than 8 lakh people...
, The Times of India
The Times of India
The Times of India is an Indian English-language daily newspaper. TOI has the largest circulation among all English-language newspaper in the world, across all formats . It is owned and managed by Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd...
, Idea Cellular
Idea cellular
Idea Cellular, usually referred to as Idea, is an Indian wireless telecom company based in Mumbai, India. Idea is the 3rd largest mobile services operator in India, in revenue terms, and recorded of over 98.4 million customers as of August 2011....
, Max New York Life
Max New York Life
Saravana Max New York Life Insurance Company Ltd. is a joint venture between Max India Ltd., one of India’s leading multi-business corporations and New York Life Enterprises, a business unit of New York Life, a Fortune 100 company...
, NTPC
NTPC
NTPC may refer to:* Nam Theun 2 Power Company* National Thermal Power Corporation, in India* Northwest Territories Power Corporation...
, Pearson Longman, Penguin Books
Penguin Books
Penguin Books is a publisher founded in 1935 by Sir Allen Lane and V.K. Krishna Menon. Penguin revolutionised publishing in the 1930s through its high quality, inexpensive paperbacks, sold through Woolworths and other high street stores for sixpence. Penguin's success demonstrated that large...
India.
Since 1991, his firm, Derek O'Brien & Associates has been researching and hosting "The Brand Equity Quiz", the country's longest corporate quiz show.
In 2008, he filmed a new quiz series in Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
called Mind Grind.
Political Career
In 2004, he joined the All India Trinamool CongressAll India Trinamool Congress
The All India Trinamool Congress is a state political party in West Bengal. Founded in 1 January 1998, the party is led by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. Trinamool Congress is currently the second largest member of the ruling United Progressive Alliance coalition...
, a party in West Bengal
West Bengal
West Bengal is a state in the eastern region of India and is the nation's fourth-most populous. It is also the seventh-most populous sub-national entity in the world, with over 91 million inhabitants. A major agricultural producer, West Bengal is the sixth-largest contributor to India's GDP...
,India. He is currently the vice-president of All India Trinamool Congress
All India Trinamool Congress
The All India Trinamool Congress is a state political party in West Bengal. Founded in 1 January 1998, the party is led by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. Trinamool Congress is currently the second largest member of the ruling United Progressive Alliance coalition...
In 2009 he was made the head of the Passenger Services Committee of the Indian Railways, under Railway and Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee
Mamata Banerjee
Mamata Banerjee is the 11th and current chief minister of the Indian state of West Bengal. She is the first woman to hold the office. Banerjee founded All India Trinamool Congress in 1997 and became chairperson, after separating from the Indian National Congress...
.
In July 2011, he was nominated for one of six seats in the Rajya Sabha
Rajya Sabha
The Rajya Sabha or Council of States is the upper house of the Parliament of India. Rajya means "state," and Sabha means "assembly hall" in Sanskrit. Membership is limited to 250 members, 12 of whom are chosen by the President of India for their expertise in specific fields of art, literature,...
from West Bengal by the Trinamool Congress. He was sworn in as Member of Parliament on August 19, 2011.
Personal life
He has two younger brothers, Andy O'Brien, who lives in Perth and Barry O'Brien who lives in Kolkata. Derek has a daughter, Aanya, who is 15. Derek is married to Dr. Tonuca Basu, MD who lives in Brooklyn, New York. O'Brien is the CEO of Derek O'Brien & Associates. The organisation is based in Kolkata.External links
- Derek O'Brien & Associates Pvt. Ltd. (O'Brien's production company)