On April 20, 2018 the India Initiative launched its second annual India Ideas Conference with a film screening of Riding on a Sunbeam, a film that captures the social, cultural, economic, and religious contradictions of modern-day India through the eyes of an American student visiting India for the first time and an Indian-American neuroscientist returning home from a trip around the world. The film was followed by a discussion with the film’s co-producer and co-anchor, Mauktik Kulkarni. Riding on a Sunbeam was inspired by his solo backpacking trip to 36 countries after completing a master’s degree in neuroscience from Johns Hopkins University.
The theme of the 2018 conference was “Empowering India,” and Mr. Kulkarni discussed the ways in which entrepreneurs and independent filmmakers have the power to change Bollywood. He also discussed the impact of media censorship on India’s economic growth.
Mauktik Kulkarni is an Indian-American neuroscientist, entrepreneur, and executive producer of Riding on a Sunbeam.