Resilience for the City of Pearls
Hyderabad was founded in 1591 and now runs on IT, pharma and biotech. Paris brings The Grit Code to the teams in HITEC City and beyond.
Golconda diamonds to global tech
Muhammad Quli Qutb Shah founded Hyderabad in 1591. Known for pearls and the Golconda diamonds, it is now the capital of Telangana and a UNESCO Creative City of Gastronomy.
About 1,500 IT and IT-enabled services companies employ more than 628,000 people, and IT exports reached ₹1,45,522 crore (about US$19.7 billion) in 2021. Microsoft, Apple, Amazon and Google are among the global companies here.
HITEC City, inaugurated by Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in November 1998, began with Cyber Towers and grew into the Cyberabad district. Pharma and biotech make the city a life-sciences hub too.
Who Paris speaks to in Hyderabad
Global capability centres
Keynotes for engineering and delivery teams.
Pharma and biotech
Persistence for long research and approval cycles.
Founders and investors
Talks on setbacks, pivots and keeping going.
Universities and business schools
Sessions for students and faculty.
Where Hyderabad meets
Corporate events in Hyderabad mostly take place on the tech campuses of HITEC City and Gachibowli and in the big hotel ballrooms.
- HITEC City – the technology district around Cyber Towers, home to many company campuses and auditoriums
- Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium – the city’s international cricket ground
- Numaish – the annual All India Industrial Exhibition held in the city
Keynote, workshop or virtual
The Grit Code keynote (45–60 min) · Grit Deconstruction workshop (90 min to half day) · virtual keynote (30–45 min) · event host and MC. Compare formats →
Why audiences believe him
5 days, 21 hours, 51 minutes
The time it took Paris to run 7 marathons on 7 continents: Antarctica, Cape Town, Perth, Dubai, Madrid, Fortaleza and Miami.
More than £150,000 raised
For marine conservation, by rowing 4,800 km across the Pacific in 2023.
See the Bengaluru page for India’s other tech capital, or watch the Pacific row film. Keynote speaker Bengaluru · 39 days at sea: the Pacific row film · The Grit Code keynote
How a booking works
Available for in-person events in Hyderabad, or virtually in your local time zone.
Organisers typically book speakers about three months ahead, so get in touch early to secure your date.
Paris presents in English, which is widely used in Indian business. Organisers can add Telugu, Hindi or Urdu interpretation if the audience would benefit.
See also keynote speaker in India, or browse all keynote speaker locations.
Hyderabad’s economy and who the talk is for
Hyderabad has a population of about 9,191,000 (2025 figure, Wikidata), which makes it a substantial market for conferences, leadership events and company gatherings.
Companies headquartered in Hyderabad include Natco Pharma (pharmaceutical company), Dr. Reddy's Laboratories (pharmaceutical industry), Bharat Dynamics Limited (arms industry), Aurobindo Pharma (pharmaceutical industry), Heritage Foods (agribusiness) and Cyient (conglomerate).
Manufacturing and engineering (Dr. Reddy's Laboratories, Bharat Dynamics Limited and Aurobindo Pharma). Manufacturing and engineering audiences value process. The Grit Code breaks grit into habits that can be practised on a production line or a project site, using the discipline of a 4,800 km ocean row as the example.
Healthcare and life sciences (Natco Pharma). Healthcare and life-sciences teams deal with high stakes and long hours. Paris’s talk on endurance, teamwork and purpose suits clinical leadership events and staff recognition days.
Students, graduates and faculty
Hyderabad’s universities, including Osmania University, Maulana Azad National Urdu University and English and Foreign Languages University, make it a strong market for student, graduate and alumni events. Paris speaks to young audiences about effort, setbacks and choosing hard goals, and to faculty about building resilient teams.
Typical formats include welcome weeks, graduation events, entrepreneurship programmes and alumni dinners. University keynote speaker →
How a Grit Code session works
- Before the event, Paris speaks with the organiser about the audience and the outcome they want.
- On the day, the 45–60 minute Grit Code keynote mixes adventure film, stories and practical tools.
- Afterwards, teams can go deeper with a Grit Deconstruction workshop of 90 minutes to half a day.
The content is shaped around Hyderabad organisations and their goals, so the room hears examples that match its own challenges. Paris presents as an adventurer and CEO of Blazing Sand Studios, not as a theorist.
Where the talk fits in Hyderabad
These are typical Hyderabad events for The Grit Code:
- Annual company conferences and town halls.
- Change and transformation programmes, including AI adoption.
- Safety, wellbeing and performance days for operations teams.
- Charity dinners and community events, which Paris knows well as an ambassador for Gulf for Good.
Credentials at a glance
- In 2023 he rowed 4,800 km across the Pacific with three teammates, raising more than £150,000 for marine conservation.
- His TV shows have been distributed in 123 countries, and Guy in Dubai has 22 million views.
- He ran 7 marathons on 7 continents in 5 days, 21 hours and 51 minutes.
- He is the CEO of Blazing Sand Studios, an AI video production company.
Common questions
Can I book Paris Norriss as a keynote speaker in Hyderabad?
Yes. Paris takes Hyderabad bookings for keynotes, workshops and hosting, live or virtual.
Does Paris speak at technology and global capability centre events?
Yes. He tailors The Grit Code to engineering and delivery teams on a briefing call.
Will the talk be in English?
Yes. Paris speaks in English, and organisers can arrange Telugu, Hindi or Urdu interpretation for mixed audiences.
Which Hyderabad industries is The Grit Code suited to?
The keynote is tailored to each sector. In Hyderabad it suits manufacturing and engineering and healthcare and life sciences audiences in particular, along with leadership teams, sales kick-offs and all-hands meetings in any industry.
Does Paris speak at universities in Hyderabad?
Yes. He speaks to students, graduates and staff, for example at institutions such as Osmania University and Maulana Azad National Urdu University, on grit as a learnable skill.
Is there a workshop option for teams in Hyderabad?
Yes. The Grit Deconstruction workshop runs from 90 minutes to half a day and turns the keynote’s ideas into team habits and actions.
Can the keynote be delivered online for teams in Hyderabad?
Yes. A 30–45 minute virtual version is available for remote or hybrid audiences, delivered in your local time zone.
Who has Paris spoken for?
Past clients include Nokia, DHL, Kraft Heinz, IHG, Dubai Airports, Expo 2020, COP28 and the UN Tourism General Assembly.
More about Paris: About · The Grit Code · TV shows · Contact