District 41, Toastmasters International recently organised an international conference on public speaking and leadership at Le Meridien, Gurgaon from 16-18 May, 2025. This 3-day annual event hosted by was titled as Oration2025 and it witnessed over 200 public speakers and leaders participating from all over the Northern India and Nepal.
The event formally began on Friday with an Ethnic themed fun evening and impactful leadership sessions. Conference convener Anant Katyayni, DTM delved into the legacy of Toastmasters International and its massive footprint across 146 countries on this glorious occasion. Toastmasters is a 101 year old immensely popular global platform dedicated to improving leadership & communication skills. It works on the cornerstones of mentorship, community support and a hands-on approach benefitting more than 8 million individuals over last century and more than 5000 active members at present in District 41 alone.
Mr. Craig Valentine (world champion of public speaking, 1999), Dr. Neerja Pande (former dean, IIM Lucknow, Noida campus) and Ms. Jaswant Kaur (CS, gender equality activist) graced the event with Keynote addresses over three days. This event also saw the transition of the incoming leadership team beginning with District Director elect and current Program Quality Director Gaurav Chaudhary formally installed along with his elected officers for the program year 2025-26.
District 41 Director Moon Pradhan, DTM opined about the remarkable relevance of this year’s theme - Conquering Chaos, with the recent geo-political events of the sub-continent.
The pinnacle of this event were the two most anticipated speech contests. Ms. Sampada Regmi was crowned as the new Table Topics champion, while Ms. Sanskriti Acharya took home the title of International Speech Contest winner for district level.
The 200+ participants included entrepreneurs, coaches, business owners, content creators, social activists, C-suite leaders, and corporate executives across BFSI, IT, Education, Manufacturing, Civil, HR and various other domains. The event formally concluded on Sunday with a networking lunch and group photograph with a promise to meet again next year in another city.
