Washington: The 23rd India Conference at Harvard, a major student-led global forum examining India’s rise across business, policy and culture, will bring together leading voices from sport, politics and the creative industries in Boston next month, with Olympic champion P.V. Sindhu, parliamentarian Shashi Tharoor and designer Manish Malhotra among its headline speakers.
Scheduled for February 14 and 15, 2026, the annual conference will be held jointly at Harvard Business School and Harvard Kennedy School, continuing a tradition of more than two decades of student-driven engagement on India’s evolving global role, a media release said.
Olympic medalist and world champion badminton player P.V. Sindhu will take part in a moderated panel exploring the evolution of India’s sports ecosystem and the link between elite performance, leadership and national identity.
The session will align with the conference theme, “The India We Imagine,” highlighting how sporting excellence and professional management shape India’s international sporting image.
Sindhu, a two-time Olympic medalist and the first Indian to win gold at the Badminton World Championships, has emerged as one of the country’s most recognisable sporting figures.
Her appearance will include a discussion alongside Satyam Trivedi, chief executive of GMR Sports, focusing on how athletes and sports leaders together project India’s cultural confidence and global ambition.
The conference will also feature a keynote address by Shashi Tharoor, Member of Parliament and chairman of India’s Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs.
A former United Nations under-secretary-general and a widely read public intellectual, Tharoor will anchor the conference theme through the lens of India’s constitutional ideals, democratic traditions and international engagement.
Organisers said Tharoor’s participation reflects the conference’s emphasis on serious civic and intellectual debate, examining how ideas of India are articulated, challenged and carried forward by institutions and citizens. His address is expected to draw on decades of experience in diplomacy, politics and writing on India’s place in the world.
Adding a cultural dimension, acclaimed fashion designer Manish Malhotra will speak on how fashion, film and creative entrepreneurship shape India’s global cultural identity.
His session will be moderated by Simi Shah, founder and chief executive of South Asian Trailblazers, and will explore how creativity and cultural confidence contribute to a vision of India that is globally engaged while remaining rooted in indigenous traditions.
Now in its 23rd year, the India Conference at Harvard is among the largest and most influential student-led India-focused conferences in the United States. Organised by a team of around 100 students from across Harvard University, it brings together policymakers, entrepreneurs, cultural figures and thought leaders for dialogue on India’s role in global affairs.
This year’s programme will feature more than 70 speakers over two days, including a fireside chat with actor Priyanka Chopra, a policy hackathon conducted with the governments of Jammu and Kashmir and GDi Partners on climate risk and sustainability, and a startup pitch competition offering over $20,000 in prizes.
The India Conference has, over the years, served as a platform for connecting India’s emerging leaders and global influencers, reflecting the country’s expanding footprint in international business, governance and culture, while providing a space for students to shape conversations on India’s future through dialogue and debate.
(IANS)
