An Interview with Salion Edward, Event Manager, Media Director for The Chief Minister Of Puducherry

An event manager for 13 years now, our guest speaker started his career in the event industry back in 2007 when he began taking classes at the team.i institute. Salion Edward has till date worked at various event companies namely RAMS, DNA and Wizcraft as an employee as well as a freelancer.

Salion has also worked with Sports TV Channels mainly Ten sports, Zee Sports, Star Sports and is today the Media Director for The Chief Minister Of Puducherry. His committed work and dedicated service over the many years of his career, has boosted him as one of the most experienced and versatile event planners today.

His Story

When Salion found himself repeating a year in college, he decided to make a change and pursue a career that most interested him. As an introverted and rather shy young boy, Salion was clueless about the field of event management before joining team.i and being introduced to the director, who not only helped him overcome his initial hesitation but also instilled in him the confidence and curiosity to put himself out there.

It was a whole new fresh chapter and one that till date remains to be one of the greatest journeys of his life. Salion is thankful for the teachings and practical experiences he was able to gain during his time at team.i, where he managed to pick up on the tricks and techniques taught by some of the most experienced faculty in the field.

This is where it all began for him and that helped build his personality as an event professional, giving him the opportunity to identify his strengths and weaknesses.
He goes on to tell us about a few of the many projects that he was given the opportunity to work on including the Scorpions Humanity Tour.

Each of the events helped boost his confidence and left a huge impact on his mindset. He talks about a time when he managed to help sort out a conflict that broke out between a few members of the crew and the takeaway from each of these experiences helping him grow as a professional and establish himself in the industry.

Not long after his time at team.i, Salion went on to work with three highly reputed event companies in the country, two of which were ad agencies, along with freelancing as well. However, there came a time when he felt that he had reached a saturation point working for big organizations and wanted to step out and do something on his own.

His time working for these organizations however, opened up his reach, introducing him to various promising platforms where he found himself getting more involved in sporting events. Salion went on to be a part of the ICL and the IPL, along with Sachin’s book launch and other events of this nature.

Over the years Salion has learned a lot and is excited for the journey that still continues.
Since moving to Pondicherry to start his own company, a media focused company, Salion is also working full fledged for an outsourced person along with the CM of the state.

2020 And His Take On The Pandemic

Salion has been fortunate enough to not have his work get affected much as a result of the pandemic given his association working with the government of Pondicherry.

Over the course of the last few months, Salion and his team have been busy working on creating and promoting campaigns to spread awareness about the safety measures to be taken. In fact, he found himself to be quite busy for the greater portion of the time when the rest of the country was in lockdown. He has also been learning graphic designing and upskilling himself with the latest technological advancements.

2021 And His Plans For The New Year

‘Boom’ is the word Salion uses to describe what he hopes the new year will encompass. Strongly of the opinion that the new normal is not here to stay long, he sees this time as one where everybody got the opportunity to stop, think, plan and go further, thereby helping them be better prepared for the future.

Salion believes that if our basics are right and we are strong enough to face the changing times, then there is nothing to fear. “The pandemic has been going on for almost a year now and we’ve managed to make it this far. There is no doubt about us making it much further in the months to come.”

Parting Thoughts
“Being a student of team.i, I’ve always been honoured to address the students and be able to share my experience with them. My advice to all you aspiring event planners is to get your basics right and make the most of your time at team.i, given that you are learning from some of the best and most experienced teachers in the industry today. Learn to best use theoretical and practical knowledge together and be brave enough to make mistakes as it proves to be the most efficient teacher. Most important of all, do not give up. Being an event planner is all about being a team player, working in good spirit to put up a good show. Work on becoming a good team player and leader and you will be a good event planner. Lastly, keep pushing and make the most of the opportunities that come your way.”

It was wonderful to have Salion join us for the session where he shared with us his journey in the industry thus far and his hopes for the future. We thank him for his time and shared knowledge and wish him the very best for the future.

In case you missed out on being a part of the live session, head on over to our Instagram page to watch the recording.