Student Reviews
"Pal-Chaudhuri’s workshop powerfully modeled how... individuals can reveal and upturn their own biases as well as counter-colonize the lens through which they see the world." - Michael Harrington, Graduate Student, Humanities Council, Princeton University, NJ, 2021.
Humanities Council presents "Changing Focus with Indrani Pal-Chaudhuri" and Organizing Stories
"Indrani Pal-Chaudhury is one of the most remarkable speakers I have ever heard... It is hard to come by someone who holds so much integrity and purity after working years in an industry that can be toxic. Lots of her points struck out to me and made me think in a different way. She is truly an inspiration to me as I consider myself a blank canvas, but with her input and experiences, I have been able to paint my ideas better. I am truly grateful!" - HQ, Parsons School of Design, NY, 2021.
"I really appreciated and enjoyed Indrani Pal-Chaudhuri's talk... I learn the best when I can apply what we learn in class to real-life examples and situations, and Indrani allowed me to do exactly that. It really puts theory into practice and I found it very valuable and interesting. Thank you so much for giving us that opportunity." - ME, Anthropology, Michigan State University, MI, 2022.
"[Indrani] makes the viewers reflect on questioning oneself and the society, justice, hope, history and myths. What’s really great about her is her ability to pick out aspects that allow for emotions to be brought up in the viewers... She is also one of the strongest influences when it comes to the LGBTQ+ rights, taking a stand for people of color and speaking out towards environmental sustainability... that influence the decisions that shape our society." - VT, Parsons, NY 2019.
"[She] has achieved so much in such little time, I’ve gained much in return... The biggest takeaway was her explanation of how there isn’t a need to have the most expensive and advanced equipment to execute projects because it’s the idea and vision... the reliance on self-resourcefulness is far more valuable... How important it is to understand the business aspect of your creative career because it is an issue that can throw creatives off track if they are unaware... These are all lessons I’ll practice and keep in mind in the future." - AT, Parsons School of Design, NY, 2021.
"Indrani Pal Chaudhuri was a very intriguing personality... She was very straightforward and humbly answered all of the questions that were put to her... It seemed that she wanted to give the students all that she could so that they could become better at their own artistic and entrepreneurial skills. One thing that really stuck with me was that when she was asked what was her greatest success, she replied that it was her ability to inspire. This means a lot to me because person who has achieved a lot is usually measuring their success by their material gains such as the amount of money that they have and the houses and cars that they have bought but this lady was more inspired by the young people she inspired into becoming more caring individuals who wanted to help the less fortunate around them." - K, Parsons School of Design, NY, 2021.
"I was so inspired by Indrani; she is someone who cares for the world around her almost more than for herself... Which started to make me think about what more I could have done through my own creative work that could also benefit others?... She also mentioned to always research and listen to the communities around you (or who you are designing for/with) and to grow through collaboration with trust. Indrani was an amazing guest." - SB, Parsons School of Design, 2019
"Indrani Pal-Chaudhuri has carved out a role between the glamorous world of fashion and social good. By leveraging celebrity for social justice (empowerment, environmental rights, LGBT rights, etc.) she wants to change the way people see things... Indrani was particularly interested in commodification and how in the age of social media we're all selling ourselves." - GP, Parsons School of Design, 2019.
"Thank you for...the event last night on anti-racism and social justice. I thought it was a very insightful, beneficial event and I really enjoyed it!" - Valentina Urrea, Political Science Pre-Law, Michigan State University, MI, 2022.
"I really enjoyed listening to Indrani... Not only was she humble about all of her incredible work, she spoke about it so passionately it made me feel so excited to get my career going. I loved how she encouraged us to take big risks... and that it can be scary... got me thinking!... I loved hearing about her process... and i am so intrigued to hear more!" - ED, Photography, Parsons School of Design, NY, 2021.
"Foremost I thought Indrani was incredibly interesting... how selfless and determined she is. Moreover, I thought she was a good storyteller... She also was very patient and answered every question with a lot of details and gave advice as if we were her friends she was talking to." - TS, Parsons School of Design, NY, 2021.
"I realized just how much great advice we got from her... She seemed to be filled with so much knowledge and experience at quite a young age for a successful artist... She spoke a lot about fear, and how you cannot let fear overshadow what you want to do... Ms. Indrani was a very very interesting creative person... I felt that I was able to relate to her... a really really inspiring artist." - AT, Parsons School of Design, NY, 2021.
"I liked how Indrani told us all the opportunities have risks and we should not be afraid... We should find challenges and embrace them, and eventually, the difficulties will allow us to discover ourselves we have not known before. Students should not focus so much on getting an “A” but [on] finding who they are." - DK, Parsons School of Design, NY, 2021.
"Stories that Indrani shared were truly inspirational and were very motivating to me... After meeting with Indrani Pal Chadhury I took the time to look back at myself... I realized my weakness was that I fear taking the challenges and I fear of the negative result would come out... I was able to learn what to improve my weakness and challenged myself how I could take this weakness and change it into one of my strength. - JK, Parsons School of Design, NY, 2021.
"I really liked how she showed us her work and went into depth about the story behind what she was photographing and displaying, and the message she was trying to convey as an artist.
"I found her advice regarding creativity to be very helpful, and it was advice that stuck with me. I especially liked the values and messages that she portrayed through her art, and how she remained very mindful and respectful of any subjects or cultures... I think is very important in many industries beyond photography." - MK, Parsons School of Design, NY, 2021.
"I found Indrani’s comments on commodification interesting. How celebrities aren’t necessarily famous because of who they are but who they represent...transforming into these symbols... This is a real methodical, curated approach to industry... Is every celebrity or brand perhaps just a surrogate for our own seemingly unreachable goals or dreams?" - CK, Parsons School of Design, NY, 2019.