KARACHI: Academy award-winning filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy said fight for the people who mean the most to you and fight for the kind of world you want to live in. She made the remarks as keynote speaker at the 24th convocation of the Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture (IVS) Karachi. “When you lead the way, when you embody the change you want to see around you, others will follow you,” said Chinoy. Chinoy said that it is important to fight for what you believe in. “It will allow you to sleep better at night.” She said that, “even on your toughest days, even when you think you cannot do it, when you lie tired in bed at night, you’ll know in your heart that you are fighting for the world you want to bring up your children in… and that fight is worth it. Be the change you hope to see in the world”. IVS Executive Director Samina Raees Khan said that IVS hosted yet another international event when its campus became one of the partner venues of the inaugural Karachi Biennale 2017 in October, which had works of over 150 local and international artists displayed at 12 venues across Karachi. IVS Executive Committee Chairperson Dr Ishrat Hussain said in concluding remarks that the evolution of art and design profession over the past three decades has not been an entirely satisfactory one. “It has become too much about economic advantage and not enough about public responsibility. As a profession, we need to claim these core values. And it is up to you to do that, to make the choices that will make a difference.” Hussain said that IVS has always shown a persistent focus on issues of substance and significance. “All of these addresses [during the convocation] or at least the ones I remember; in one way or another, are about the power of ideas and the central, essential, place they hold at the core of being an IVS graduate.” He informed that there were 100 students who graduated this year and received a bachelor’s degree, of whom, 17 were from the Department of Architecture, 14 from the Department of Interior Design, 26 from the Department of Communication Design, 20 from the Department of Textile Design and 23 from the Department of Fine Art. This was the twenty-fourth graduating class of the faculties of design & fine art and the twenty-third graduating class of the faculty of architecture. Published in Daily Times, December 11th 2017.