Voices Within is a Business Creativity Workshop presented jointly by Bombay Jayashri, T. M Krishna (two leading exponents and sought after Carnatic Music vocalists) founders of Matrka and R. Sridhar , Innovation Coach and Partner, IDEAS-RS.

Voices within is India's first Coffee Table book on Carnatic Music and is a labour of love by Jayashri and Krishna. They present the life and times of seven Carnatic Music Giants in the book. They explain how the maestros not only made a mark for themselves but also changed the landscape of Carnatic Music forever. The workshop is based on this book published by Matrka, a trust dedicated to Carnatic Music, founded by Jayashri and Krishna.

Bold experiment The workshop is a bold experiment and a fresh new way of looking at one field and examining how it can influence another. The best thinkers – philosophers, artists, poets and scientists have done this all the time. The unusual connection is not about music and business- but practice of creativity and innovation in music and how it can influence business.

Lessons for business The workshop is a study of seven maestros who innovated in a highly tradition bound and conventional form of music and succeeded. It demonstrates their techniques and how they can help businesses in a fast changing world, where the biggest barrier to progress and growth is 'traditional mind sets'. The workshop shows how to retain core values that matter and innovate without compromise. Most importantly, it shows us how we can confront change, before it overtakes us.

Workshop Content The workshop will cover the following:

a. Paint the context of the Carnatic Music Scenario that went through a major period of change and turbulence in the early 20 th century. Trace the work of the seven maestros and how they innovated. This will be in the form of a concert-cum-lecture demonst1ration by Jayashri and Krishna (with proper accompaniments)

b. Draw from this a set of key principles. Demonstrate the relevance of these key principles to business in the current context of globalisation. This will be an interactive hands-on-workshop by R. Sridhar

Benefits What you get is a set of simple to use creative thinking techniques, which will help you come out with fresh and different solutions to your business challenges. Armed with these techniques you will never again have to face a 'mental block'. What is more, these techniques will help you ignite your imagination, and come out with fresh ideas on demand even under pressure.

Workshop Kit All participants get a copy of the coffee table book Voices Within, a Voices Within Business Creativity workbook and an interesting memento. The coffee table book will be a great addition to your collection. It could also be a wonderful gift to some one important to you.

No knowledge of music necessary The beauty of this workshop: You do not have to know anything about Carnatic Music. The workshop is all about the thinking principles that the seven maestros applied to make a mark, in a field considered very traditional and old fashioned. It assumes that participants are here because of the business creativity angle and not because of Carnatic music. Therefore the faculty assumes that participants have no prior knowledge of music, Carnatic or otherwise. It does not matter if you do not know music. What you need is a passion for your business, an ambition to make a mark and an open mind to look at new ideas.

Practical and down-to-earth As a result, you will find the workshop neither esoteric nor vague. It is carefully tailored to meet the needs of the practising managers of today. It recognises the fast changing trends in business and delivers relevant thinking techniques that the manager can put to practical use. In fact, all the thinking techniques will be demonstrated with a live business case in the workshop itself.

Workshop Faculty

Bombay Jayashri One of the most sought after Carnatic Music exponents, Jayashri brings to the table not only her creative skills as a musician but also her deep understanding of audiences and students. Her contribution to music extends to composing music for productions, experimenting with other forms of music, and teaching. She is continuously researching various aspects of Carnatic music with a view to unearthing treasures for the next generation. Widely traveled around the world and articulate, Jayashri is a convincing communicator. She has conducted workshops and lecture demonstrations at Monash,Australia, University of Kwazulunatal,South africa and University of Botswana , Gaborne.

She is a co-founder of Matrka dedicated to Carnatic Music and presenting it in all its glory.

T M Krishna Krishna brings boundless energy and enthusiasm to his Carnatic Music performances as a singer of distinction. His fan following is wide spread and cuts across all ages and indeed countries. He prides himself in being a 'classicist' and is passionate about preserving and presenting the core values of Carnatic Music. When he is not singing or traveling, Krishna spends time unearthing unknown talent, researching and documenting old composers and their compositions, teaching and conducting workshops for corporates. Krishna has conducted lecture demonstrations at Harvard, Wesleyan University and IIT, Chennai.

He is a co-founder of Matrka.

Track record Jayashri's and Krishna's reputations are built around understanding audiences and delighting them. They understand the demands of their audience, their preferences and have a finger on the pulse of their fast changing tastes and diminishing attention spans.

They can tell us a lot about the practice of creativity & innovation within a tightly defined framework of music (freedom of a tightly defined strategy). Their extensive research into music, composers and maestros give us deep insights into how one can innovate even in an apparently traditional and conventional field and appeal to an ever-changing audience across the globe. They make these insights come alive with their concert cum lecture demonstration.

They have put in considerable effort into making this workshop relevant, interesting and entertaining. Sridhar builds the bridge with business and makes it relevant to business.

R. Sridhar Sridhar is an advertising, direct marketing, and brand marketing professional. After 25 long years with Ogilvy & Mather India(where he was a Director) Sridhar moved out in 2000. IDEAS-RS is his professional consulting firm dedicated to promoting Innovation and Creativity in Business. As part of his consulting work, Sridhar has facilitated over 300 Business Creativity workshops for a variety of clients in India and abroad. Clients value his ability to bring Simplicity, Clarity, Rigour and Enjoyment into the thinking process.

Sridhar is a keen student of Carnatic Music as much as he is passionate about business innovation. In the book Voices Within he finds a treasure trove of ideas on creativity, which will be relevant to business.

Limited registrations We are limiting the number of participants to just 100 in view of the exclusive nature of the workshop and its contents. This is to ensure a proper creative climate and interactivity. One good reason to register early.

Rare Event Jayashri, Krishna and Sridhar have a busy schedule in the second half of 2007. As a result the next Voices Within - Business Creativity Workshop is unlikely to happen before March 2008. Therefore the June 1st workshop will be the only one this year. A good reason not to miss it.

Register today and save Rs 600 Please register before May 20, 2007 fee for the workshop and pay only Rs 5050 per participant, inclusive of service tax. (It is Rs 5650 after May 20, 2007)

All cheques to be drawn in favour of IDEAS-RS and mailed to IDEAS-RS, 57, Bharat Tirtha CHS, Sion Trombay road, Chembur, Mumbai 400 071.

Venue & Date The workshop is scheduled for Friday, June 1, 2007 from 9:30am to 3:00pm at the Grand Hyatt, Off Western Express Highway, Santa Cruz(East),Mumbai 400 055. Registrations start at 9:00 am

Contact R. Sridhar on 98201 83752 or 022 2520 9313

---

List of Companies That Participated in the Voices within Business creativity Workshop on June 1st at the Grand Hyatt in Mumbai

Akshara Software, Asian Paints, Bates, BIG927FM, Birla Sunlife, BPCL, Castrol,CISCO, Colgate Palmolive, Dainik Bhaskar, Dignity Foundation, FCB Ulka, Godrej Sara Lee, HDFC, Hungama, Hutch, ICICI Prudential, iContract, IFA Bangalore, ILFS India, Indus League, Bangalore J&J, JWT Delhi, JWT Mumbai, Kamani Oils, Landor,Law & Kenneth, Lowe, Lowe Media, Mahindra & Mahindra, Mahindra Finance, Mahindra Insurance Broking, Marketgate Consulting, McCann, Mudra, Ogilvy Mumbai, Omis India, Pepsi Foods Delhi, Philips, Pink & White, PRS Permacel, Quantum, Redington, Reliance Petroleum, Rutmarg, Saatchi & Saatchi, Shoppers Stop, Soulitude, Tata Motors, The Hindu, Thermax, TVS Motors, Wadhwan Group, Zydus Cadila

We had MDs, CEOs, Executive Directors, Vice Presidents & General Managers participating in the workshop.

Cutting across industries, categories

As you can see we have FMCG, IT, Service, Banking, Capital Goods, Engineering, Automobile, Advertising & Media & Market research companies. Functions are general management, finance, marketing, planning, creative & R&D.