Nadia Samdani
{{Short description|British born Bangladeshi businesswoman}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Nadia Samdani
| native_name = নাদিয়া সামদানি
| native_name_lang = bn
| honorific_suffix = {{post-nominals|country=GBR|size=100%|MBE}}
| image = Nadia Samdani portrait.jpg
| caption = Samdani in 2017
| other_names = Nadia Khalil Choudhury
| occupation = Art collector, businessperson
| spouse = Rajeeb Samdani
| nationality = British-Bangladeshi
}}
Nadia Samdani {{post-nominals|country=GBR|size=100%|MBE}} ({{nee|Khalil Choudhury}}) is a British born Bangladeshi businesswoman, art collector, and philanthropist. She is involved in developing platforms for art and culture in Bangladesh.{{Cite web |url=https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-7-women-making-art-diverse |title=How These 7 Women Are Making the Art World More Diverse |first=Anna Louie |last=Sussman |date=9 March 2020 |website=Artsy}} Along with her husband Rajeeb Samdani, she is the co-founder of Samdani Art Foundation and its headline event the Dhaka Art Summit, which she also leads as its director.{{Cite web |url=https://www.samdani.com.bd/our-team |title=Our Team |website=Samdani Art Foundation}}{{cite web |url=https://www.dhakaartsummit.org/das-team-1 |title=DAS Team |website=Dhaka Art Summit}} She serves as the Vice President of the Alliance Française de Dhaka.{{Cite web |url=https://afdhaka.org/executive_committee_and_constitution.php |title=Executive Committee & Constitution |website=Alliance Française de Dhaka}}
In 2022, Samdani was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in Queen's Birthday Honours for services to global art philanthropy and supporting the arts in South Asia and the UK.{{Cite news |title=British-Bangladeshi Nadia Samdani, an art patron, receives MBE in Queen’s Birthday Honours |url=https://bdnews24.com/people/british-bangladeshi-nadia-samdani-an-art-patron-receives-mbe-in-queens-birthday-honours |access-date=2023-08-13 |work=bdnews24.com |language=en}} In 2023, she was awarded the Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (Knight of the Order of the Arts and Letters) by the French government.{{cite news|url=https://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/306941/nadia-samdani-awarded-with-order-of-arts-and|title=Nadia Samdani awarded with Order of Arts and Letters by French Ministry of Culture|date=2023-03-16|access-date=2023-08-12|work=Dhaka Tribune}}
Background
Samdani's family moved to Dhaka from the UK in the late 1980s.{{Cite web |title=My Dhaka: Nadia Samdani |url=https://www.artbasel.com/stories/dhaka-nadia-samdani-bangladesh |access-date=2023-08-13 |website=Art Basel |language=en}}
Career
Nadia is a founding committee member of Tate's South Asian Acquisition Committee and is also a member of Tate's International Council.{{cite magazine |url=http://www.dhakacourier.com.bd/rajeeb-and-nadia-samdani-among-top-art-collectors-in-the-world/ |title=Rajeeb and Nadia Samdani among top art collectors in the world |magazine=Dhaka Courier}} She is a founding member of the Harvard University Lakshmi Mittal South Asia Institute's Arts Advisory Council and a member of the Alserkal Avenue Programming Committee in Dubai and also serves on the advisory council of the art fair Art Dubai.{{cite web |url=http://www.artdubai.ae/committees/ |title=Committees |website=Art Dubai |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190620095751/http://www.artdubai.ae/committees/ |archive-date=2019-06-20}}{{cite web |url=https://mittalsouthasiainstitute.harvard.edu/2015/12/sai-forms-arts-advisory-council/ |title=Founding members form South Asian Arts Council |website=The Lakshmi Mittal and Family South Asia Institute, Harvard University |date=9 December 2015}} She presented the work of the foundation at museums and art fairs such as the Royal Ontario Museum, Art Basel, and Frieze Art Fair.{{cite magazine |url=http://artasiapacific.com/Magazine/Almanac2013 |title=ArtAsiaPacific: Almanac2013 |magazine=ArtAsiaPacific}}{{cite news |url=https://www.livemint.com/Leisure/9xY5KUtETFmE4TPKqhaj4L/Collecting-Art-Is-Deeply-Personal.html |title=Collecting Art Is Deeply Personal |first=Nadia |last=Samdani |date=22 February 2013 |work=livemint.com}}{{cite news |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/news-detail-268590 |title=Nadia Samdani participates in Speaker's Forum, India Art Fair |date=11 February 2013 |work=The Daily Star}}{{cite web |url=http://www.larryslist.com/artmarket/features/highlights-from-the-second-edition-of-the-private-museum-conference/ |title=Highlights from the Second Edition of the Private Museum Conference |website=Larry's List}}{{cite web |url=http://events.berkeley.edu/index.php/calendar/sn/sseas.html?event_ID=116608&date=2018-04-27 |title=South Asian Art - Past, Present, Future |website=events.berkeley.edu}}{{Cite magazine |url=https://artreview.com/artist/nadia-rajeeb-samdani-diana-campbell-betancourt/?year=2020 |title=Nadia & Rajeeb Samdani, Diana Campbell Betancourt |magazine=ArtReview}}
Her art collection has been recognized since 2015 on the Artnews Top 200 collectors listing{{Cite magazine |date=10 September 2017 |title=Nadia and Rajeeb Samdani |url=https://www.artnews.com/art-collectors/top-200-profiles/nadia-and-rajeeb-samdani/ |access-date=8 October 2020 |magazine=ARTnews |language=en-US}} – one of the sole South Asian collections to receive this recognition.{{Cite magazine |url=https://www.artnews.com/art-news/news/shaping-art-2020s-1202674913/3/ |title=Who Will Shape the Art World in 2020?: ARTnews Presents 'The Deciders' |date=14 January 2020 |magazine=ARTnews}}{{Cite magazine |url=https://artreview.com/artist/nadia-rajeeb-samdani-diana-campbell-betancourt/ |title=Nadia & Rajeeb Samdani, Diana Campbell Betancourt |magazine=ArtReview}} The Samdani collection is featured in international news publications including Hong Kong Tatler.{{Cite web |url=https://www.tatlerasia.com/homes/home-tours/art-collectors-nadia-and-rajeeb-samdani-dhaka-interview |title=Inside Art-Collecting Couple Nadia and Rajeeb Samdani's Impressive Home in Dhaka |first=Oliver |last=Giles |website=Tatler Asia}}
=Business=
Samdani is director of Golden Harvest Group, a conglomerate in Bangladesh active in information technology, commodities, logistics, food processing, agriculture, dairy, aviation, insurance, banking, infrastructure development and real estate. She is the chairperson of Braintrain Studio, a subsidiary of Golden Harvest which is active in architecture and interior design consultancy in Bangladesh. She is also a director of the Khalil Group.{{Cite web |url=https://www.marketscreener.com/business-leaders/Nadia-Khalil-Choudhury-0CV6H7-E/biography/ |title=Nadia Khalil Choudhury - Biography |website=marketscreener.com}}
Honours, awards and recognition
- Knight of the Order of the Arts and Letters (2023){{Cite news |url=https://images.thedailystar.net/entertainment/theatre-arts/news/nadia-samdani-presented-the-order-arts-and-letters-french-cultural-ministry-3272721/ |title=Nadia Samdani presented the Order of Arts and Letters by French cultural ministry |work=The Daily Star |location=Dhaka |date=23 July 2023}}
- Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) (2022){{London Gazette|issue=63714|supp=y|page=B28|date=1 June 2022}}
- “Woman of Inspiration Award” by the Bangladesh chapter of Junior Chamber International (JCI) (2020){{Cite news |url=https://thefinancialexpress.com.bd/trade/jci-bangladesh-awards-nine-women-leaders-of-country-1583828204 |title=JCI Bangladesh awards nine women leaders of country |work=The Financial Express |location=Dhaka |date=10 March 2020}}
- “Women of the Decade in Arts Leadership” by the Women Economic Forum (2018){{Cite web |url=https://www.wef.org.in/wef-awards-2018/ |title=About WEF Awards 2018 |website=Women Economic Forum |date=10 July 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210415044619/https://www.wef.org.in/wef-awards-2018/ |archive-date=2021-04-15}}
- Montblanc de la Culture Arts Patronage award by Montblanc Cultural Foundation (2017){{cite magazine |last=Shaikh |first=Ayesha |date=17 September 2017 |title=Montblanc De La Culture Arts Patronage Award Presented In Dubai |url=https://www.harpersbazaararabia.com/art/news/montblanc-de-la-culture-arts-patronage-award-presented-in-dubai |magazine=Harper's Bazaar Arabia}}
- 2015 to 2020 Top 200 collectors listing bby ARTnews (2015–2020)
References
{{Reflist}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Samdani, Nadia}}
Category:Bangladeshi women in business
Category:Bangladeshi art collectors
Category:Bangladeshi Members of the Order of the British Empire
Category:Place of birth missing (living people)
Category:Date of birth missing (living people)