The Seva at Scale Show

Kiran Shah MBE: The World’s Shortest Stuntman Who Worked on Lord of the Rings, Star Wars & More | E29

Kiran Shah MBE is an actor, stunt performer, and published poet with one of the most distinctive careers in international film. Known as the world’s shortest professional stuntman, he has worked on over 40 major films, including being featured highest grossing movies in history like Titanic, The Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Hobbit, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, and The Chronicles of Narnia. Kiran has served both as a scale double and stunt double for leading actors, contributing to some of the most technically complex scenes in cinema. Born in Nairobi and raised between India and the UK, Kiran’s path into film was shaped by persistence and adaptability. In 2009, he was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) for his contributions to the film industry and advocacy for people with dwarfism. In this episode of Seva at Scale, Josh Roy speaks with Kiran about the realities of working in global cinema, collaborating with the likes of Tom Cruise and Leonardo DiCaprio, the physical and emotional discipline involved in stunt performance, and the challenges of representation in entertainment. The conversation also explores Kiran’s work as a poet, his thoughts on storytelling, and how he’s navigated the industry on his own terms. Kiran offers a clear, honest reflection on his experiences, without framing them as extraordinary - but simply as part of a career built through consistency and craft. A true epitome of defying the odds! Josh and Kiran discuss the relationship between visibility and agency, and how small decisions can shape long term impact. This episode provides a thoughtful look at a life spent contributing behind the scenes - and in the spotlight - with clarity, patience, and intention. Hosted by Josh Roy, Seva at Scale, though primarily a business podcast, continues its mission to share grounded conversations with successful people in entrepreneurship, arts, and culture, building positively impactful work across disciplines. Hope you enjoy!

Theodore Grether-Murray: How I Consulted for Billion Dollar Companies at 15! I E28

Theodore Grether-Murray (also known as the 'Battery Man') is a high school student obsessed with the future of sustainable energy. At the age of 15 he started working in a top electrochemistry lab focusing on lithium-ion battery research. He then interned at CertCenterCanada, an aviation company, working on Hybrid Electric Planes and Wind Turbine sensors. This then led him to work with Longbow Capital where he reviewed 5 to 20 million dollar deals with some of the most innovative climate tech companies in the world. Just recently he came back from Uganda, working on installing mini-grids in the rural Northern Regions. Achievement: Theodore started an AI pharmacy startup that got 200 pharmacies to work with him. He also consulted for billion-dollar companies such as Shell, SwitchHealth and CIBC. He's now working on Sonda, a company that is focused on reducing noise pollution in the seas. Both The Knowledge Society and Villars Institute students, join Josh Roy and today's guest Theodore Grether-Murray as they have an unconventional discussion what's on the table when it comes to youth innovation and making a positive impact at scale! .. Topics: · The meaning of battery-tech to you · What inspired you to start your journey? · What are your productivity tips/mindsets? · What is your advice for future change-makers? · Building in public And more!.. Here's Theo's highlight action item I took away: Under-promise and over-deliver. “As ambitious people, we wanna deliver the most amazing work ever, right? I give myself no room for mistakes and I don’t do that because of course I make a mistake, I’m human or one day is bad. And as a result, I hurt my trust with a lot of different people who would’ve given me more opportunities if I hadn’t hurt their trust. Don’t set too high expectations. At one point, if you can’t deliver on it and if you’re just wishfully thinking that you can, it’s going to ruin your reputation with a lot of people. So, set lower expectation goals and absolutely do well on those goals and crush them beyond people’s expectations. Don’t set huge goals and then not end up delivering them.” We hope you find value in our discussion and learn useful information! — Theodore: LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/theodore-grether-murray/ 🎥 Directed and Edited by Josh 🗓️ Recorded on September 8th, 2024

Neil Mitra: 20-year old Founder of Mitra Biotechnologies who Raised Pre-Seed in Deep Tech | E27

Neil Mitra based in Vancouver, Canada, is the Founder and CEO of Mitra Biotechnologies, a company developing nanomaterial-integrated biosensors aimed at democratizing healthcare diagnostics. In 2022, while working in the Netherlands, Neil raised a pre-seed funding round for Mitra Biotechnologies. This funding was led by Cory Levy, Pareto Holdings, and Alchemist Accelerator. By the end of 2022, Mitra Biotechnologies aimed to complete their pre-seed financing, partner with hospitals, and begin patient testing. Neil is also a Presidential Scholar at the University of British Columbia, pursuing a degree in Biomedical Engineering. He has been recognized as a Global Teen Leader by the We Are Family Foundation for his contributions to healthcare innovation. Additionally, he is a member of the Masason Foundation by billionaire Masayoshi Son, which supports young innovators. Episode Recording date: 21st August, 2024

Atharva Rao: Working in AI and Receiving Grants | E26

Atharva Rao is a high school student (going into Stanford University) who has worked on TradeSynth, an autoML app for anyone to upload a dataset and download a machine learning model trained on their data. For this app, he was accepted to League of Innovators, Canada's top pre-seed accelerator. Currently, he is building a robot arm to destem leaves after becoming interested in hardware and the deep tech space. TradeSynth was selected to receive a $1000 grant from the Rideau Hall foundation, RHF is a non-partisan national charitable organization that amplifies and supports the past, present and future impact of Canada’s Governor General, and seeks to engage all Canadians in the core elements of Canadian democracy. This app also allowed Atharva to be accepted into League of Innovators, a national startup accelerator focused on developing young entrepreneurs at scale. 2 time Ingenious+ Regional Award winner ($1000 grant each time) 1517 Medici Fund Grant for robot arm ($1000). Join Josh Roy and Atharva Rao as they discuss entrepreneurship from a youth perspective!

Special Episode: Roundtable Discussion with 5 Students from The Knowledge Society accelerator Give Their Thoughts on the Future | E25

Tune in to listen to Rhea Mehra, Minh Nguyen, Neeor Alam, Youssef Kusibati, and Josh Roy (the host)!