Rajiv Mehrotra
Encyclopedia
Rajiv Mehrotra is an India
n writer, television producer-director and documentary film maker, is best known as the host the acclaimed host of one of India
's longest running talk show
s on public television, "In Conversation", that has been through several incarnations over more than twenty years, aired on the India’s National broadcaster, Doordarshan News Channel
, Saturdays at 9.30 pm. As a documentary film maker his films have won 18 national and more than 80 international awards. He has authored half a dozen books on spirituality, most notably Conversations with The Dalai Lama, Thakur - a biography of Sri Ramakrishna and Mind of The Guru. He is a close personal student 'chela' of HH The Dalai Lama and has been a student of the late Swami Ranganathananda, President of The Ramakrishna Mission and of the iconic Yoga teacher BKS Iyengar. He is a Trustee/Secretary of The Foundation for Universal Responsibility of His Holiness The Dalai Lama established with the Nobel Peace prize (www.furhhdl.org), Managing Trustee of The Public Service Broadcasting Trust (www.psbt.org) He is currently working on the official, national film on Swami Vivekananda to commemerate his 150 birth centenerary in 2013. This was commissioned by a National Committee chaired by The Prime Minister of India
, and St Edmund Hall, Oxford University and received his Master of Fine Arts
(MFA) in Film Direction from Columbia University
in 1981. While in school he twice won the Best Speakers Award at the National Public Schools Debating Competition, was editor of the School Magazine and a lead actor in school productions; at Stephen's he was Secretary of The Shakespeare Society, The English Literary Society and the Cine Club and Acting President of the Students Union; at Oxford University he directed several plays including Othello, Shrivings (Peter Shaffer), The Shrew (Marowitz) and Tughlaq (Girish Karnad) as a Director for the prestigious Oxford University Experimental Theatre Club at the professional Oxford Playhouse. At Columbia University he worked with the Oscar winning film director Milos Forman and won scholarships from the INLAKS Foundation & UNESCO.
on its youth programme at age 12, on television as the anchor of 'Youth Forum' at age 17 in 1970 and as a television journalist with India's National Broadcaster, Doordarshan
in 1980s where he also worked as a news anchor. Soon he switched to making television short films and documentaries, and started his in-depth talk show, In Conversation, which got him acclaim. According to TAM (Television Audience Meter) data it has had the highest viewership across all television news channels in India in its genre. The Programme also had the highest viewership across news channels when it was on air on the Doordarshan News Channel on Saturdays at 9.30 pm. It featured people ranging from several Heads of State from George Bush & Vaclav Havel to numerous Nobel Laureates, Baba Amte, Pt. Ravi Shankar, Lord Yehudi Menuhin, and The Dalai Lama, BKS Iyengar to Richard Gere, Zubin Mehta and Mahashweta Devi. It had been through several incarnations over more than twenty years. The programme is currently taking a break.
Rajiv Mehrotra has extensive and pioneering experience in virtually all aspects of television and radio production, as director, cinematographer
and editor. He has anchored a range of live and recorded programme genres in English from his early teens. He reported “live” as a news-anchor and served as a reporter for public television during the 1980s on assignments in India and abroad, in particular with Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.
From 2000, he has been Managing Trustee, Executive Producer and Commissioning Editor of The Public Service Broadcasting Trust (PSBT) that has produced more than 400 documentary films winning some 100 awards from 250 international film festival screenings. His films have won numerous international and eighteen national awards from the President of India
. He has directed films such as a ten part series for television on Sri Ramakrishna (The Great Swan), Angkor Vat (Axis Mundi), the places of Buddhist pilgrimage sites in India
(The Footsteps of the Buddha), the ‘Krishnamurthi Schools’ (Awakening of Intelligence), The Tabo Kye monastery (Sacral Legacy), on the Dalai Lama for PBS in the US (Ocean of Wisdom) etc.
Mehrotra manages, as the Honorary Secretary/Trustee, The Foundation for Universal Responsibility of His Holiness The Dalai Lama, Trustee of the Norbulingka Institute of Tibetan Culture
, the Navdanya Trust. He is President of The Media Foundation that administers the Chameli Devi Awards for Journalism and a media watch dog website The Hoot (www.hoot.com) He has been a close personal student of His Holiness The Dalai for nearly thirty years.
Mehrotra has twice addressed plenary sessions at ‘The World Economic Forum
’ at Davos
and was nominated a ‘Global Leader for Tomorrow’ by them. He has served as a Judge for The Templeton Prize for Religion
, on the Governing Council of the Sri Aurobindo Society
, The Film and Television Institute of India
(FTII) and as the Chairman of the Jury of the 50th anniversary Indian National Film Awards for Non-feature films.
Rajiv Mehrotra has been on the Steering Committees of the Planning Commission of the Government of India to recommend policy & strategies for Information & Broadcasting, Information Technology etc, The committee on Bridging The Digital Divide, The Organising Committee of the Mumbai International Film Festival
and is a nominated member of the Core Group of the Press Council of India etc. He served on the high powered committees set up by the Government of India on TRP's (Television Rating Points) and to advise the Government on restructuring the National Film Awards.
Mehrotra has published several books including The Mind of The Guru, Understanding The Dalai Lama, The Essential Dalai Lama, "Thakur" a biography of Sri Ramakrishna all by Penguin/ Viking
, The Open Frame Reader - on the Indian documentary was published by Rupa. Recently published is a new revised and expanded edition of The Mind of The Guru by Hay House and due early next year, is a book on creativity: The Spirit of The Muse, 2009 also saw the publication of "In My Own Words" by H.H. The Dalai Lama edited by Rajiv Mehrotra and "Conversations with The Dalai Lama on Life, Living & Happiness" both by Hay House, USA. He is working on a spiritual biography of His Holiness The Dalai Lama
with his wife, Meenakshi Gopinath, who is the Principal of the prestigious Lady Shri Ram College for Women, Delhi University.
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 writer, television producer-director and documentary film maker, is best known as the host the acclaimed host of one of 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...
's longest running talk show
Talk show
A talk show or chat show is a television program or radio program where one person discuss various topics put forth by a talk show host....
s on public television, "In Conversation", that has been through several incarnations over more than twenty years, aired on the India’s National broadcaster, Doordarshan News Channel
DoorDarshan
Doordarshan is an Indian public service broadcaster, a division of Prasar Bharati. It is one of the largest broadcasting organizations in India in terms of the infrastructure of studios and transmitters. Recently, it has also started Digital Terrestrial Transmitters. On September 15, 2009,...
, Saturdays at 9.30 pm. As a documentary film maker his films have won 18 national and more than 80 international awards. He has authored half a dozen books on spirituality, most notably Conversations with The Dalai Lama, Thakur - a biography of Sri Ramakrishna and Mind of The Guru. He is a close personal student 'chela' of HH The Dalai Lama and has been a student of the late Swami Ranganathananda, President of The Ramakrishna Mission and of the iconic Yoga teacher BKS Iyengar. He is a Trustee/Secretary of The Foundation for Universal Responsibility of His Holiness The Dalai Lama established with the Nobel Peace prize (www.furhhdl.org), Managing Trustee of The Public Service Broadcasting Trust (www.psbt.org) He is currently working on the official, national film on Swami Vivekananda to commemerate his 150 birth centenerary in 2013. This was commissioned by a National Committee chaired by The Prime Minister of India
Early life and education
Rajiv studied at La Martiniere Boys School, Calcutta, St. Stephen's College, DelhiSt. Stephen's College, Delhi
St. Stephen's College is a constituent college of the University of Delhi located in Delhi, India. The college admits both undergraduates and post-graduates, and awards degrees under the purview of the University. Famous for its rich history and many traditions, St...
, and St Edmund Hall, Oxford University and received his Master of Fine Arts
Master of Fine Arts
A Master of Fine Arts is a graduate degree typically requiring 2–3 years of postgraduate study beyond the bachelor's degree , although the term of study will vary by country or by university. The MFA is usually awarded in visual arts, creative writing, filmmaking, dance, or theatre/performing arts...
(MFA) in Film Direction from Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
in 1981. While in school he twice won the Best Speakers Award at the National Public Schools Debating Competition, was editor of the School Magazine and a lead actor in school productions; at Stephen's he was Secretary of The Shakespeare Society, The English Literary Society and the Cine Club and Acting President of the Students Union; at Oxford University he directed several plays including Othello, Shrivings (Peter Shaffer), The Shrew (Marowitz) and Tughlaq (Girish Karnad) as a Director for the prestigious Oxford University Experimental Theatre Club at the professional Oxford Playhouse. At Columbia University he worked with the Oscar winning film director Milos Forman and won scholarships from the INLAKS Foundation & UNESCO.
Career
He started his career in broadcasting on All India RadioAll India Radio
All India Radio , officially known since 1956 as Akashvani , is the radio broadcaster of India and a division of Prasar Bharati. Established in 1936, it is the sister service of Prasar Bharati's Doordarshan, the national television broadcaster. All India Radio is one of the largest radio networks...
on its youth programme at age 12, on television as the anchor of 'Youth Forum' at age 17 in 1970 and as a television journalist with India's National Broadcaster, Doordarshan
DoorDarshan
Doordarshan is an Indian public service broadcaster, a division of Prasar Bharati. It is one of the largest broadcasting organizations in India in terms of the infrastructure of studios and transmitters. Recently, it has also started Digital Terrestrial Transmitters. On September 15, 2009,...
in 1980s where he also worked as a news anchor. Soon he switched to making television short films and documentaries, and started his in-depth talk show, In Conversation, which got him acclaim. According to TAM (Television Audience Meter) data it has had the highest viewership across all television news channels in India in its genre. The Programme also had the highest viewership across news channels when it was on air on the Doordarshan News Channel on Saturdays at 9.30 pm. It featured people ranging from several Heads of State from George Bush & Vaclav Havel to numerous Nobel Laureates, Baba Amte, Pt. Ravi Shankar, Lord Yehudi Menuhin, and The Dalai Lama, BKS Iyengar to Richard Gere, Zubin Mehta and Mahashweta Devi. It had been through several incarnations over more than twenty years. The programme is currently taking a break.
Rajiv Mehrotra has extensive and pioneering experience in virtually all aspects of television and radio production, as director, cinematographer
Cinematographer
A cinematographer is one photographing with a motion picture camera . The title is generally equivalent to director of photography , used to designate a chief over the camera and lighting crews working on a film, responsible for achieving artistic and technical decisions related to the image...
and editor. He has anchored a range of live and recorded programme genres in English from his early teens. He reported “live” as a news-anchor and served as a reporter for public television during the 1980s on assignments in India and abroad, in particular with Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.
From 2000, he has been Managing Trustee, Executive Producer and Commissioning Editor of The Public Service Broadcasting Trust (PSBT) that has produced more than 400 documentary films winning some 100 awards from 250 international film festival screenings. His films have won numerous international and eighteen national awards from the President of India
President of India
The President of India is the head of state and first citizen of India, as well as the Supreme Commander of the Indian Armed Forces. President of India is also the formal head of all the three branches of Indian Democracy - Legislature, Executive and Judiciary...
. He has directed films such as a ten part series for television on Sri Ramakrishna (The Great Swan), Angkor Vat (Axis Mundi), the places of Buddhist pilgrimage sites in India
Buddhist pilgrimage sites in India
In religion and spirituality, a pilgrimage is a long journey or search of great moral significance. Sometimes, it is a journey to a sacred place or shrine of importance to a person's beliefs and faith. Members of every major religion participate in pilgrimages...
(The Footsteps of the Buddha), the ‘Krishnamurthi Schools’ (Awakening of Intelligence), The Tabo Kye monastery (Sacral Legacy), on the Dalai Lama for PBS in the US (Ocean of Wisdom) etc.
Mehrotra manages, as the Honorary Secretary/Trustee, The Foundation for Universal Responsibility of His Holiness The Dalai Lama, Trustee of the Norbulingka Institute of Tibetan Culture
Norbulingka Institute
The Norbulingka Institute was founded in 1988 by the present 14th Dalai Lama at Sidhpur, near Dharamsala, India. The institute is dedicated to the preservation of the Tibetan language and cultural heritage.-Etymology:...
, the Navdanya Trust. He is President of The Media Foundation that administers the Chameli Devi Awards for Journalism and a media watch dog website The Hoot (www.hoot.com) He has been a close personal student of His Holiness The Dalai for nearly thirty years.
Mehrotra has twice addressed plenary sessions at ‘The World Economic Forum
World Economic Forum
The World Economic Forum is a Swiss non-profit foundation, based in Cologny, Geneva, best known for its annual meeting in Davos, a mountain resort in Graubünden, in the eastern Alps region of Switzerland....
’ at Davos
Davos
Davos is a municipality in the district of Prättigau/Davos in the canton of Graubünden, Switzerland. It has a permanent population of 11,248 . Davos is located on the Landwasser River, in the Swiss Alps, between the Plessur and Albula Range...
and was nominated a ‘Global Leader for Tomorrow’ by them. He has served as a Judge for The Templeton Prize for Religion
Templeton Prize
The Templeton Prize is an annual award presented by the Templeton Foundation. Established in 1972, it is awarded to a living person who, in the estimation of the judges, "has made an exceptional contribution to affirming life's spiritual dimension, whether through insight, discovery, or practical...
, on the Governing Council of the Sri Aurobindo Society
Sri Aurobindo Ashram
The Sri Aurobindo Ashram was founded by Sri Aurobindo on the 24 November 1926 . At the time there were no more than 24 disciples in the Ashram...
, The Film and Television Institute of India
Film and Television Institute of India
Film and Television Institute of India , is an autonomous Institute under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Govt. of India. It is fully aided by Central Government of India. It is situated in the premises of the erstwhile Prabhat Film Company in Pune, India...
(FTII) and as the Chairman of the Jury of the 50th anniversary Indian National Film Awards for Non-feature films.
Rajiv Mehrotra has been on the Steering Committees of the Planning Commission of the Government of India to recommend policy & strategies for Information & Broadcasting, Information Technology etc, The committee on Bridging The Digital Divide, The Organising Committee of the Mumbai International Film Festival
Mumbai International Film Festival
Mumbai International Film Festival for Documentary, Short and Animation Films , is a festival organised in the city of Mumbai by the 'Film Division', Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Govt. of India. It has been organised since 1990, and focuses on documentary, short and animation...
and is a nominated member of the Core Group of the Press Council of India etc. He served on the high powered committees set up by the Government of India on TRP's (Television Rating Points) and to advise the Government on restructuring the National Film Awards.
Mehrotra has published several books including The Mind of The Guru, Understanding The Dalai Lama, The Essential Dalai Lama, "Thakur" a biography of Sri Ramakrishna all by Penguin/ Viking
Viking Press
Viking Press is an American publishing company owned by the Penguin Group, which has owned the company since 1975. It was founded in New York City on March 1, 1925, by Harold K. Guinzburg and George S. Oppenheim...
, The Open Frame Reader - on the Indian documentary was published by Rupa. Recently published is a new revised and expanded edition of The Mind of The Guru by Hay House and due early next year, is a book on creativity: The Spirit of The Muse, 2009 also saw the publication of "In My Own Words" by H.H. The Dalai Lama edited by Rajiv Mehrotra and "Conversations with The Dalai Lama on Life, Living & Happiness" both by Hay House, USA. He is working on a spiritual biography of His Holiness The Dalai Lama
Dalai Lama
The Dalai Lama is a high lama in the Gelug or "Yellow Hat" branch of Tibetan Buddhism. The name is a combination of the Mongolian word далай meaning "Ocean" and the Tibetan word bla-ma meaning "teacher"...
Personal life
Mehrotra lives in DelhiDelhi
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...
with his wife, Meenakshi Gopinath, who is the Principal of the prestigious Lady Shri Ram College for Women, Delhi University.