​Join us for an unforgettable, invite-only Diwali celebration filled with music, dance, stunning decor, pop-ups from South Asian owned brands, mouthwatering food, and a chance to make meaningful connections. Get ready for an evening of glitz and glamour with curated leaders from various industries and towns across MA and 40+ partner brands! Prepare for a night of genuine connections, laughter, and vibrant celebrations!

​Expect an unforgettable evening:

​✨ A Delectable Dinner and Dessert – Savor a curated menu that pays homage to the rich tapestry of South Asian cuisine and 10 types of dessert

​🍹 Craft Cocktails, Mocktails and Chai – Enjoy a selection of Junglee, Akal Chai Rum and other speciality cocktails, Rupee beer, Naidu and Une Femme Wine, mocktails by Sanzo and Wild Wonder, 4 types of chai from Madhrasi Chai and South Indian filter coffee from Palak's Creations

​🎉 Choose your vibe – Our venue is designed for maximum enjoyment. We have rented out the entire building and there are 6 distinct spaces. Network in the spacious main hall, hit the dance floor, shop brands in the pop up studio, sit down to eat dinner in the dining area, peruse through the art exhibition or try the interactive installation

​💃 Dance the night away – Bring your best Bollywood moves to our 2k sq ft dedicated dance studio where the DJ will be spinning Bollywood hits; you'll feel like a star under the lights on a movie set!

​🎭 Captivating Performances – From electric violinists to tabla to classical dance, be enchanted by local talented artists showcasing the vibrant cultural heritage of the South Asian community

​🛍️ Pop-ups from South Asian Brands – Explore South Asian brands stationed throughout the venue from textiles and lamps to skincare, puzzles and jewelry

​👗 Dress Code: Indian formal or traditional wear encouraged. Our clothing partner, Navaa, is offering 15% off for guests of this event with code DIWALI 15. You can also use their styling concierge to get a custom fit just for you. Dress to impress!

​***Please note, on your credit card statement you may see "diwali edition" as the payment merchant name or "the Sasha edition"

​Thanks to our Partners

​Food Partners: Raagini Andover, Palak's Creations, Shubh Kitchen

​Beverage Partners: Rupee Beer, Naidu Wines, Junglee Craft Cocktails, Madhrasi Chai, Une Femme Wines, Akal Chai rum, WildWonder, Bevi, Sanzo

​Entertainment: Shriya Srinivasan (Anubhava Dance Company), Anjali Nath (Kathak Artist), DFD Academy, Pavani Anupindi (Strings by Pav), Upasak Mukherjee (Tabla), Michael Dwan Singh (Sarangi artist), Sapan Modi (Dhol), DJ Rohann

​Pop ups: Banyan and Birch, Sri Thumati, Maalicious, Kulture Khazana, Crafty Rx Mama, Curio Spice, Art exhibit curation by Ravjot Mehek Singh, Gaani Jewels, House of Timepass, Magnetic Saree Swap, VR installation by Shozab Raza

​Photography, Videography and Creative Partners: Vikram Valluri, Colors by Harry, Julian Walter Photography, Aam Creative, Foundry

​Event Producer and Event Chair

​Sasha Priya Hoffman, The Sasha Edition, Founder; Remus Capital, Partner

​Thanks to our Host Committee members who have helped curate our guest list

• ​Akhil Nigam, Fidelity Investments, SVP

• ​Alicia Tuslee, Moxie Scrubs, CEO

• ​Dave Buxton, First Citizens Wealth, Senior Managing Director

• ​David Chang, HuntClub, GM; TBD Angels, Co-founding Member

• ​Gaurav Singal, Harvard Medical School, Faculty; Physician

• ​Imran Sayeed, MIT, Faculty of Entrepreneurship and Innovation at MIT Sloan; Teach the World Foundation, Founder

• ​John Werner, Link Ventures, Managing Director

• ​Mohamad Ali, IBM, SVP & Head of IBM Consulting

• ​Raghav Gupta, Aktiia, CEO

• ​Ramesh Raskar, MIT Media Lab, Associate Director; C10 Labs, Co-Founder

• ​Rashima Shukla, PTC, Senior Staff Counsel

• ​Ravleen Kaur, NAVAA, Founder

• ​Sanjay Aggarwal, Finhive, Co-founder

• ​Sheena Melwani, Content Creator, Podcaster, Singer, Songwriter

• ​Sumeit Aggarwal, Finhive, Co-founder

• ​Vishal Sunak, Linksquares, CEO

• ​Yvonne Hao, Secretary of Economic Development, Commonwealth of MA

​FAQ

​What is the schedule for the evening?

• ​6:30PM: Doors open - please enter from our main entrance on Rogers Street and proceed to security check and registration

• ​6:30PM - 10:45PM: Bar, pop-up shops, art exhibition, interactive installation open

• ​6:30PM - 7:30PM: Appetizers

• ​7:20PM: Proceed to the Performance Hall for remarks by Secretary Yvonne Hao

• ​8:00PM: Sarangi show in the Performance Hall

• ​8:15PM onwards: Dancing in the Performance Hall

• ​7:45PM - 9:45PM: Dinner (you can eat at any time in any part of the venue, there is no assigned seating)

• ​8:00PM onwards: Dessert

• ​9:00PM: Bharatnatyam, Kathak and Bollywood Dance shows in the Performance Hall

• ​11:00PM: Event concludes (Grab a gift bag on your way out)

​How does security and registration work?

​All guests will pass through a metal detector and bag check on arrival and then proceed to check-in. Please bring your ID and be prepared with your luma QR code. All ID's must match the name you registered with and the spouses name you provided us in advance where applicable.

​Bags and Coats

​Please do not bring any large bags as there is no where to put it. There is a coat check but if you are taking rideshare to the venue and will not be walking, we suggest you skip the coat so you can avoid the line at coat check on the way in and out.

​What is the set up of the space?

• ​Main hall: This is where you'll find the main bar, rupee beer, Akal chai rum's station, Bevi water dispenser, chai cart, appetizers, dinner, dessert, and the photo stations

• ​Dinner seating: Near the entrance there is a 100-person dining area to sit and eat. You can also eat on any of the high tops around the entire venue

• ​Performance Hall / Dance Floor: The 2k sq foot dance hall at the end of the venue is where all performances and speeches will take place as well as dancing

• ​Pop-up Shops: We have a variety of brands doing a shopping pop up - stop by the studio near the main photo booth to check out home goods, clothing, jewelry, games and more

• ​Coat check: Middle of the main space under the stairs

• ​Interactive Installation: A dynamic exploration of South Asian culture and colors through an immersive, interactive device

• ​Art Exhibition: Upstairs you'll find a curated art exhibition entitled "Aage Ki Roshni” (the light of the future)

​What should I wear?

​Be glam! We encourage you to embrace Indian formal wear that you can dance in. Consider donning a lehenga, anarkali, sharara, gharara set for ladies and kurta or sherwani for men. If you don't have any Indian clothing, feel free to wear full length dresses (colorful) and men can wear suits! We highly recommend wearing flats or really comfy shoes. There is not much seating outside of the dining area so you'll be doing a lot of standing and dancing.

​What is the menu?

​There are both dairy free and gluten free options and everything will be labeled.

• ​Apps from Raagini Restaurant: Tandoori prawns, haryana chicken kebab, beetroot tikki, samosa chaat, avocado mango chaat

• ​Dinner from Raagini Restaurant: Palak paneer, veggie tawa, mushroom chili, chicken tikka masala, basil coconut Haddock, peas puloa, plain paratha, garlic naan, raita, salad

• ​Dessert: Rabri and rose barfi from Monica's Mithai Cafe And Bar, rose pistachio thandai cake, ras malai cake, coconut cookies, almond cookies, motichoor cheesecake from Palak's Creations, saffron n spice bundt cakes, diya cookies and date nut truffles from Shubh Kitchen

​What kinds of drinks will you be serving?

• ​Welcome drinks: Virgin mojito, thandai

• ​Main bar: at the main bar we'll have a full bar and speciality cocktails

• ​Naidu wines: South Asian, female-owned Naidu wines is serving a selection of pinot noir, rose and viognier

• ​Une Femme Wine: Women-made sparkling white wine

• ​Rupee Beer: Named Best Beer For World Food

• ​Junglee craft canned cocktails

• ​Rum: Akal Chai rum will be hosting a Rum station with speciality cocktails like a neghrumi, chai Aperol and rum tastings

• ​Bevi: Still, sparkling and flavored water

• ​WildWonder: Prebiotic+probiotic sparkling drink (was on shark tank)

• ​Sanzo: Asian-inspired sparkling water

• ​Madhrasi Chai: Saffron, rose, unsweetened masala chai, golden milk

• ​Palak's Creations Indian filter coffee

​Who are the pop up vendors?

• ​Banyan and Birch - home decor linens inspired by Indian textiles heritage

• ​Crafty Rx Mama - Hand crafted apparel and light boxes

• ​Curio Spice - Curio Spice specializes in sustainably produced spices, sourced locally and from around the world

• ​Gaani Jewels - South Asian jewelry

• ​House of Timepass - Card game, Desi Chaat. 2 teams, 1500 words and Hours Of Fun

• ​Kulture Khazana - Books, toys, kits, crafts, puzzles and online story albums for kids to explore south asian culture

• ​Maalicious - Unique, statement jewelry

• ​Magnetic Saree Swap - Wardrobe wooden doll play set

• ​Sri Thumati - Cyanotype lamps

• ​Interactive installation by Shozab Raza

• ​Art exhibition curation by Ravjot Mehek Singh

​Parking / Transportation

​We encourage taking rideshare to the venue. The venue is a 9-minute walk from the Kendall / MIT subway stop and parking is available in numerous garages around Kendall square. There is limited street parking but there are some spots in surrounding blocks. If you use Spot hero, you can prepay for parking in nearby garages for as little as $8

​What type of people can I expect to meet?

​In an effort to maximize diversity, we've invited industry leaders from tech, finance, biotech, pharma, healthcare IT, hospitals, real estate, academia, non-profits, consulting, F&B, media, startups, and the arts. Most guests will be at the SVP, C-suite, Partner level or equivalent.

​Are there any additional costs on site?

​If you’d like to purchase a physical item from one of our pop-up vendors, that will be available for an additional cost.

​Why is this several weeks after Diwali?

​In an effort not to conflict with other Diwali Celebrations from large Indian organizations across MA and for scheduling reasons for some of our hosts and guests, we arrived on this date. We hope you'll close out your season of celebration with us!

​What is the ticket policy?

​Tickets are non-refundable and non-transferable. This is an invite-only event. Please note that all vendors, hosts members, guests of honor and partners are subject to change. Unless the event is cancelled, there will be no refunds. Performances, speakers, guest and all vendors are subject to change. This will be a great night and we look forward to seeing you!