The HPS Role Model Talks series is designed to help Class 9 & 10 students gain clarity and confidence as they prepare to choose their academic streams. Through sessions led by distinguished HPS alumni, students will gain real-world insights into different fields, understand what various subjects can lead to, and begin exploring their own strengths and aspirations.
The purpose of this talk is to help you understand potential academic streams and career pathways so you can make informed decisions after Class 10. This is the first in a series of talks that will take place throughout the year across multiple domains.
This registration allows you to sign up for one session in the upcoming edition. Seats are limited, and each session displays real-time slot availability, helping you choose wisely.
Each student may register only once for this edition of Role Model Talks. Please think carefully and select the session that truly interests you.
This is a valuable opportunity to explore subject streams, hear from real professionals, and understand what different careers genuinely involve. Choose a session that genuinely excites you.
Session Date: 07 January 2026 (Wednesday)
Time: 02:00 PM – 03:00 PM
Note: Students are requested to carry a book and pen to make notes and participate in activities being conducted.
Kishore Krishnamurthy is a renowned wedding and documentary photographer, based in Hyderabad. He is from the Class of 2007 from HPS Begumpet and took the Commerce with Business Maths stream for his 11th/12th. Post his 12th, he studied Economics & Politics at the University of Essex in England, worked as an Oil Trader in London before moving back to India to start his creative journey.
Over the past 15 years, he has shot for several prominent movie posters, celebrities, and documented many important local stories. His work has been exhibited globally and is regularly featured in the media. He finds art in every day life and believes it is important to accurately the capture the world around us and preserve it for the futre.
From Hyderabad to US, France, Colombia and Singapore, Gopi's journey spans four continents, 3 degrees and multiple languages. He started his career in Hyderabad creating over 1500 jobs, before moving to Latin America for social work and learning Spanish. He then hopped over to Singapore to analyze supply chains for Fortune 100 companies, followed by another stint in Latin America to digitize operations. He returned home to take an entrepreneurial leap to build LeanSpoon - a nutrition startup.
Today at Microsoft, he transforms operations using AI and analytics, while working on his next start-up.
His journey highlights that there's no single "correct" route - just adventures waiting to be chosen.
Guinness World Record holder for creating the maximum number of simultaneous live holograms for Narendra Modi’s 2012 campaign, Mani Shankar is the inventor of the Mobile Holographic Unit and the creator of the world’s first mobile holographic campaign. He was also the first to produce life-size Augmented Reality experiences for product launches, pioneering immersive storytelling long before it became mainstream.
A visionary filmmaker now exploring the frontier of AI-integrated cinema, Mani is developing films that merge AI-generated actors with live performers, redefining the boundaries of storytelling and technology.
He has led image-building campaigns for Prime Minister P. V. Narasimha Rao, political campaigns for Narendra Modi, and several Chief Ministers across India. Over his career, he has created more than 2,000 ad films, short films, and music videos for major brands including Coca-Cola and Larsen & Toubro.
In Bollywood, Mani has written and directed six feature films, collaborating with acclaimed actors such as Sanjay Dutt, Ajay Devgn, Irrfan Khan, Kangana Ranaut, Suniel Shetty, and Om Puri. His work spans over 10,000 holographic rallies worldwide, blending creativity, technology, and narrative innovation.
Today, Mani is passionate about harnessing the power of storytelling in daily life—how the principles of cinematic narrative can inspire, influence, and transform the way we communicate, lead, and connect.
Shujath Bin Ali is the Chief Legal Officer at Fourth Partner Energy, India’s leading renewable energy platform. With 24 years of experience across pharma, IT, professional services, manufacturing, energy, environment, and sustainability sectors, he leads the legal, compliance, governance, and risk functions while advising on strategic matters, regulatory frameworks, and policy advocacy. Previously, he served as Global General Counsel & Chief Compliance Officer at KKR-backed Re Sustainability Ltd., and has held senior leadership roles at PAREXEL, International Paper, and Deloitte US–India. A Commerce and Law graduate, he is a Fellow Member of the Institute of Company Secretaries of India and has completed executive programs at Harvard University, ISB Hyderabad, and NLSIU Bengaluru. Recognized among India’s Top 100 General Counsels by Legal 500 and Business World, and awarded multiple industry honors, Shujath is an active thought leader on ethics, ESG, governance, AI, and legal technology.
Siddharth Velakacharla retired as a General Partner of Indus Capital Partners, a premier multi billion dollar hedge fund investment management firm headquartered in New York. Earlier, he helped build and structure the sale of Neonyoyo, an early-stage software company, to Interwoven, a Nasdaq-listed Silicon Valley based firm. He has over 25 years of investment experience managing equity portfolios at leading investment firms and entrepreneurial roles in finance and tech startups. Over the course of his career, he has engaged with hundreds of CEOs, founders, and management teams to evaluate business strategy and long-term value creation. Sid holds an MBA from the Ross School of Business, University of Michigan, and a mechanical engineering degree from Osmania University.
Dr. Anuj Kapadiya is a one of the renowned Cardiologist and has an experience of 18 years in this field. He established Primary Angioplasty program in Osmania General Hospital during his Fellowship days in Cardiology. He worked as Cath lab Director for Care Hospital. In Care Hospital, the radial primary Angioplasty was established by Dr. Anuj Kapadiya. He also established TAVR programme in Care Hospitals and AIG Hospitals with is team.
Dr. Anuj Kapadiya has been part of training senior electrophysiologists from America and worldwide in the technique of septal puncture.
Ekta Bahl is a Partner at Samvad Partners and serves as the Partner-in-Charge of the firm’s Hyderabad office. She is a seasoned corporate and commercial lawyer with extensive experience in corporate restructuring, insolvency, private equity, and mergers and acquisitions. Ekta has advised clients across a wide range of sectors, including healthcare and life sciences, information technology, and infrastructure, with a particular focus on roads and power projects. She has also worked closely with social sector enterprises and start-ups, providing strategic legal support.
Ekta graduated from the National Law School of India University, Bengaluru, in 1997. She is a qualified mediator, having completed advanced mediation and negotiation training in India and Singapore, and is empanelled with multiple national mediation bodies. In addition, she acts as an external advisor on workplace anti-harassment matters and regularly conducts training on conflict management and compliance. Ekta is an active member of TiE Hyderabad, CII-IWN, and FTCCI, and has been widely recognised by Chambers Asia-Pacific and Legal 500 for her professional excellence.
Srikant Rajasekharuni is the Founder and Director of Redmatter Integrated Marketing, a full-funnel marketing and growth agency based in Hyderabad. He holds an MBA from MICA (Mudra Institute of Communications, Ahmedabad) with a specialization in Branding and Advertising, and a BTech in Information Technology from VNRVJIET.
Before pursuing his MBA, Srikant began his career as a game developer and was part of the team that worked on India’s first PlayStation 2 and PlayStation 3 games, giving him early exposure to technology, creativity, and product thinking. Over the last decade, he has worked across FMCG, real estate, healthcare, education, media, and technology, helping brands scale through integrated strategy, branding, and digital marketing.
An alumnus of Hyderabad Public School, Srikant is deeply committed to mentoring students and building platforms like the World is My Oyster program to help young people gain real-world exposure and make informed career choices.
C. Rammanohar Reddy has been a journalist for close to 40 years since beginning his career in 1988 in Deccan Herald, Bangalore. Thereafter he worked for more than a decade with The Hindu, mainly in Madras/Chennai (1993-2003) but also briefly in Hyderabad (2003- 2004). In both publications he was writing commentary (editorials, edit page articles and feature articles) and had columns on the Indian and world economy. He also conceptualized and began new sections in both newspapers.
While his work was mainly in writing commentary, he also reported from the field – both nationally and internationally. National reporting included reporting on rural and environmental affairs, and international reporting included reporting on affairs of international organisations like the UN, World Bank, IMF, WTO and the FAO from centres in North and South America, Europe, Africa and East Asia.
In 2004, he was appointed Editor of the Economic and Political Weekly, Mumbai, a prestigious Indian and global publication on the social sciences. He was only the third editor in its 50-year history. He was editor of EPW for more than a decade, during which time he oversaw a transition to the digital age, widened readership and strengthened its finances.
In 2019, he became the Founder-Editor of The India Forum (www.theindiaforum.in), a digital journal-magazine on contemporary issues. In a little over 5 years, The India Forum has established itself as a leading, independent digital commentary publication, which is published by a charity, Vichar Trust.
Rammanohar Reddy did his under-graduate degree in Physics from Madras University, then a post-graduate diploma in management from the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta, before switching to Economics with a PhD from the Centre for Development Studies, Thiruvananthapuram, associated with the Jawaharlal Nehru University.
Yashovardhan Shetty is a designer who builds things at the intersection of physical computing and AI. He’s currently working at a startup alongside researchers from MIT and NVIDIA to develop AI systems for wildfire prevention in the U.S.
He prefers simple, straightforward explanations and focuses on using the right medium—whether that’s VR for fishing cat conservation, improving passenger flow for the Delhi Metro Rail, or crafting archival systems for The Hyderabad Public School. To him, design is about the whole experience, from the technical bits to how a person actually uses it. Whether he's teaching at IIT Jodhpur or building new hardware, his goal is to make interactions with technology "tangible" and useful in the real world.
Talking through my journey from the editor of the school newsletter to becoming a professional photographer; the importance of Economics in school and my degree; how that knowledge helped in building a business; the difficult tasks of juggling creative ideas, and professional duties; the value of building strong bonds in school; the skills needed in the creative field, career prospects, who it is for and how to excel
During this session I will introduce the basics of AI and applications of AI - conceptually. Followed by a discussion on the key skills needed to thrive in this new world.
We then continue into a workshop to identify one's strengths to recognize career choices, and walk away with approaches to independently explore how AI could amplify or disrupt your choices.
This session introduces students to the world of corporate law, governance, ethics, ESG, and compliance, exploring how legal and ethical frameworks shape businesses across industries such as energy, technology, sustainability, pharma, and manufacturing. Shujath will demystify what legal professionals actually do inside global organizations, how corporate governance works, and why ethics and compliance are becoming central to modern business leadership. He will also highlight emerging areas such as sustainability law, AI and legal technology, risk management, regulatory advisory, and dispute resolution. Students will gain clarity on academic pathways leading to legal careers, skills needed for success, and the wide range of roles available beyond courtroom practice.
Siddharth’s session will introduce students to the world of global finance, investing, and entrepreneurship through the lens of real experience across Asia and the US. He will explain how financial markets work, what investment managers actually do, and how businesses are evaluated for long-term success. Students will gain an understanding of the academic pathways that lead to finance—such as MPC, Commerce, and Business Studies—as well as the mindset, skills, and habits essential for a career in this field. Sid will also share insights from advising founders, evaluating companies, and building a tech startup that was acquired by a Nasdaq-listed company. The talk aims to give students clarity on careers in finance, business strategy, and entrepreneurship.
In this session, Dr. Anuj Kapadiya will unpack what it truly means to work in cardiology — a field that blends deep medical knowledge with life-saving interventions. He will explain common and advanced procedures (like angioplasty, structural-heart interventions, and TAVR), what daily life looks like for a cardiologist, and why early academic choices (in biology, science, or related streams) matter.
Beyond technical insight, Dr. Kapadiya will reflect on his own journey: the challenges, responsibilities, continuous learning, and the personal qualities — empathy, discipline, resilience — that shape a successful doctor. He will also offer advice on preparing for a career in medicine: what students can explore now, what high-school subjects help, and how to decide if this demanding yet rewarding path suits their personality and aspirations.
The world of work is changing rapidly. Traditional career paths and fixed job roles are evolving, and the future will increasingly reward people who can think independently, create value, and solve real problems. In this session, Srikant Rajasekharuni explores entrepreneurship not just as starting a company, but as a mindset that will define the future of employment.
Drawing from his journey across technology, game development, branding, and building a marketing agency from the ground up, Srikant will help students understand what entrepreneurship truly means. He will explain how entrepreneurial thinking applies not only to founders, but also to professionals in technology, marketing, design, finance, healthcare, and beyond. Students will learn why skills such as creativity, problem-solving, communication, adaptability, and ownership matter more than ever.
The session will also address common myths around entrepreneurship, the role of academic streams in shaping entrepreneurial careers, and how students can begin developing this mindset early, regardless of whether they eventually start a business or work within an organization.
This talk is designed to help students see careers differently, understand how value is created in the real world, and recognise that the future belongs to those who can build opportunities, not just wait for them.