Fashioning the Future: A Fundraiser Event
Dec 7, 2009 Fashion, Fund Raiser, Social Hour
Event: Fashioning the Future: A Fundraiser Event
Date: Friday December 4, 2009
Venue: Junior League of Houston
It was snowing in Houston on Friday but that did slow down fashion enthusiasts from attending a fundraiser luncheon hosted by Pratham USA. About 200 women with a fashionable attitude and zen for the cause gathered at the Junior League of Houston. Pratham is a non-profit organization that helps underprivileged children in India with pre-school and primary education.
Fashion and glam looks were provided by SAKS FIFTH AVENUE /DOLCE & GABBANA.
Over a seated luncheon, Marie Goradia emceed the event, while the Pratham Houston President Sonu Anand made a brief speech about the charity work Pratham has been doing for the past years here in the States and in India. Followed by some fall looks and evening party dresses by Prada, DKNY, Rachel Roy and other prominent designers.
Tags: Fashion, Pratham, Rachel Roy
South Asian Chamber of Commerce 2009 Gala Kick-off
Oct 6, 2009 Fund Raiser, Reception, Social Hour
Event: Reception For South Asian Chamber of Commerce Gala
Date: September 30, 2009
Venue: Toyota Center, Lexus Lounge, Houston, Texas
Report: Ruchi Mukherjee
The South Asian Chamber of Commerce invited Houstonians to kick-off the gala festivities on Wednesday September 30, 2009. This exclusive reception was hosted by the Chambers’ platinum sponsors the Houston Rockets, showcasing the success of the Chamber and the benefits of supporting their 2009 upcoming gala.
In spite of it being in the middle of the week the event witnessed a good crowd with gala sponsors and special guests of the SACC Board, who were joined by Houston Rockets executives and power dancers. “The reception was quite successful as we manged to mix and mingle and sell many more tables for our upcoming gala,” says SACC gala co-chair Munira Panjwani.
The South Asian Chamber of Commerce is celebrating its 16th Annual Gala on October 29, 2009 with Ali Velshi, CNN’s Senior Business Correspondent, at the Westin Oaks Galleria. The gala is themed to celebrate the Art of Business, Media and Politics.
SACC top sponsors include Houston Rockets, Continental Airlines, Richmond Printing Qatar Airways, Rupani Foundation, Apex Group, Wallis State Bank, Mega Energy, Bollywood Shows 4 U, Outreach Strategists, Lone Star Petroleum, Impex and George Willy are just to name a few. SACC also appreciates the dedication of its media sponsors, who will all be honored by CNN’s Ali Velshi at the media VIP reception.
For table sponsorships and tickets, please contact Soofia at Soofia@sacchouston.com or 832-660-2952 or visit www.sacchouston.com.
Celebrating Indian Film Festival of Houston
Sep 29, 2009 Bollywood, Celebration, Film, Fund Raiser, Gala, Non-Profit, Social Hour
Event: Indian Film Festival of Houston Closing Night Gala
Venue: Intercontinental Hotel, Houston, Texas
Date: September 26, 2009
Report: Ruchi Mukherjee
Photography: Ajay Sarpeshkar
Houston finally concluded a week long celebration of Indian cinema with a celebrity gala held at the Intercontinental Hotel, Houston,
Ruchi M with Actress Manisha Koirala
Texas on September 26, 2009. After ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ made a mark at the Oscars, Houston based film maker Sutapa Gosh felt that the time was right to give Houstonians a taste of Indian cinema. The film festival kicked-off with a reception party at Hotel Sorella Citycenter and showcased a few selected Indian films at Studio Movie Grill from September 21-25, 2009.
The Indian Film Festival of Houston is a non-profit organization devoted to creating a greater appreciation of Indian cinema and culture by show casing quality films. The First Annual Indian Film Festival of Houston brought the best films made in different regional languages. A feast including ten feature-length movies, short films and documentaries. Screenings included Smile Pinki, an award-winning documentary about an impoverished girl whose life is changed by free surgery, bengali film ‘Janala’, Deepti Naval’s ‘Do paise ki dhoop Chaar aane ki baarish’ and Student Academy Awards Winner ‘Kavi’ by Gregg Helvey.
Gregg Helvey winner of the film Kavi
The festival was enjoyed by an international audience that featured question and answer sessions with directors, cast and the audience.
Friday evening saw the biggest crowds as Deepti Naval, Manisha Koirala and others showed up at Studio Movie Grill. The week wrapped with a star studded red carpet high profile celebrity gala which had 400 plus in attendance. The main highlight of the evening were the fashion statements of the guests at the gala.
Dr. Carolyn Farb’s mauve attire ‘lehenga’ (an Indian outfit) was quite a show stopper. Joanne King Herring who as usual never failed to impress with her warm personality and exotic costume. Dressed in gold, Joanne not only turned many heads but honored the theme of the celebrity gala. However, the very beautiful bollywood actress Manisha Koirala who charmed the guests with her personality did little with her outfit and looks. “It seems like she just rolled out of bed” says an onlooker. Deepti did maintain her directorial personality with a classy Indian saree.
Pretty in Mauve Carolyn Farb
Others present at the gala were Pop singer and India’s best playback singer Sonu Nigam, and model/television actor Mohammed Iqbal Khan.
Proceeds from the festival and gala will benefit the Indian Film Festival of Houston and MediSend International, that supports under resourced hospitals in developing countries with a multi-dimentional approach to improving community health.
Indo American Charity Foundation Gala
Sep 23, 2009 Fund Raiser, Gala, Non-Profit, Social Hour
Event: Indo American Charity Foundation Gala
Venue: Intercontinental Hotel, Houston, Texas
Date: Saturday September 19, 2009
Report: Ruchi Mukherjee
Politics, entertainment, great fashion and a scrumptious meal, the 2009 Indo American Charity Foundation “Seduction of the Monsoon” themed gala had it all. Keynote speaker Varun Gandhi can be held responsible for drawing a good crowd. However, what got it going was the entertaining bollywood monsoon seduction style dance performances and the little chocolate goodies presented on the tables by Madhavi Gokhale of Desserts ‘n’ More.
Varun Gandhi, son of Menaka Gandhi and late Sanjay Gandhi, spoke at the occasion on various topics from India’s poverty to India’s entrepreneurial skills. “India is not a poor country but a poorly managed country,” said Varun.
He was quite impressed with the organization and the support that Indians living abroad provided for their country India.
Founded in 1988 by a group of Houstonians of Indian origin, IACF has developed into a highly respected, multi-faceted endeavor to help those in need of health, education and human services. IACF serves as a conduit between philanthropists and organizations such as UNICEF, Casa De Esperanza, YMCA, Daya, Indian Doctors Association Clinic, and Child Advocates of Fort Bend, to name a few.
Club 24 Celebrates an Evening of Philanthropy
Jun 16, 2009 Fund Raiser, Social Hour
Event: Club 24 Celebrates an Evening of Philanthropy
Venue: Raj and Jugal Malani Residence
Date: April 2009
Club 24 is an Indo-American organization in Houston, which fosters a tradition of building bridges with mainstream organizations in Houston as well as participating with major organizations to develop programs of need and significance to the Indo-American community in Houston. This year, Club 24 made cash awards ranging from $2,000 to $5,000 to several organizations: Rotary Club of Memorial, St. John’s School, Lighthouse for the Blind, Kids Meal of Houston, Literacy Advance of Houston, and Pratham.
It was a fun filled evening with a philanthropic mission, as individuals donated checks to organizations including DAYA for women in need, Akal Vidyalaya a non-profit organization that deals with literacy in India and Houston PBS.
Tags: Club 24
Bayou City Art Festival, Spring Happy Hour
Jun 1, 2009 Arts, Celebration, Fine Arts, Fund Raiser
Event: Bayou City Art Festival, Spring Happy Hour
Venue: Capital One Building, Houston, Texas
Date: May 27, 2009
The Board of Art Colony Association (ACA) and Capital One Bank City President Annella Metoyer hosted a celebratory “Double Rewards” evening May 27, to present Nonprofit Partner appreciation payments totaling a record-breaking $129,501! And, for the first time ever, the Festival honored each organization’s “Top Ten Volunteers.” 
The event, which filled Capital One Bank Plaza’s Main Lobby with Festival fans, food, cocktails and music, was abuzz with accolades, including official thank you’s from Houston City Council Member-At-Large Peter Brown. ACA Board President Joe Pogge presented appreciation checks to the Nonprofit Partners, which brought the Art Colony’s overall contributions to NPP organizations, the City and its parks department to $2.5 million over the past 38 years.
Bayou City Art Festival Memorial Park 2009 Nonprofit Partners include Art League Houston, Bering Omega Community Services, City ArtWorks, 
DiverseWorks, Downtown YMCA, Houston Center for Contemporary Craft, Houston Center for Photography, Lawndale Art Center, MECA, Memorial Park Conservancy, Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Orange Show Center for Visionary Art, Several Dancers Core, SNAP, SPARK and TALA.
Tags: Bayou City Art Festival
Pastries Against Poverty
Apr 1, 2009 Business, Education, Fund Raiser, Youth
Event: Pastries Against Poverty
Venue: Rice University, Houston
Date: March 17, 2009
Jalebees, chocolate cake and cheesecake were catered at a Rice University banquet hall as the Owl Microfinance group hosted an event called Pastries Against Poverty, a dessert and silent auction event. The main agenda of the event was to help entrepreneurs worldwide lift themselves from poverty.
The speakers for the evening were Janie Barrera of ACCION and Cristal Montanez-Baylor of the Hashoo Foundation. The event was well organized by the students who were also quite thrilled by the presence of Mayor Bill White.
Tags: Rice University
Children’s Museum of Houston presents Parents and Families Luncheon
Mar 4, 2009 Arts, Fund Raiser, Non-Profit
Event: Children’s Museum of Houston presents Parents and Families Luncheon
Venue: Hilton Post Oak, Houston, Texas
Date: Febuary 23, 2009
The Children’s Museum of Houston presented the 2009 Parents and Families Luncheon featuring Katherine Center and her new book ‘Everyone is Beautiful’.
The book is about love, marriage and chocolate. In her interview she mentions how she felt the world is coming together via books, movies and music referring to the recent success of Slumdog Millionaire.
Tags: Everyone is Beautiful
Believe in Zero
Feb 12, 2009 Fund Raiser, Non-Profit, Reception
Event: Welcome Reception for Caryl M Stern President/CEO of the US Fund for UNICEF
Venue: At the home of Nidhika and Prashant Mehta in Houston, Texas
Date: January 29, 2009
Each day, 25,000 children die from preventable and treatable causes. UNICEF works to do whatever it takes to bring that number down to zero. Therefore the evening was themed ‘Believe in Zero’. A fun cocktail evening was hosted by Nidhika and Prashant Mehta to introduce the program.
Comments by: (in order of appearance)
- Caryl M Stern
- Nidhika Mehta
- Marie Goradia
- Kiran Gupta
Tags: Believe in Zero, UNICEF
The Women’s Home Rose Gala Kick-off Event
Jan 20, 2009 Fund Raiser, Gala, Non-Profit, Outreach
Event: The Women’s Home Rose Gala Kick-off Event
Venue: Abrahams Oriental Rugs, Post Oak Boulevard, Houston
On Tuesday, January 13, 2009 the elite gathered at the Abrahams Oriental Rugs store Post Oak location for the kick-off party for The Women’s Home Rose gala. The gala will be held on January 30, 2009 at the Hilton Americas Downtown Houston.
The Women’s Home is a multi-ethnic, non-denominational, non-profit United Way agency. Founded in Houston in 1957, The Home’s reputation has grown alongside its facilities in both size and stature.
Omana and Sam Abraham hosted the event and also offer a gala special on their rugs up until January 30, 2009. One can receive a 40% discount off the list price of rugs at Abraham’s Oriental Rugs
in the Galleria with 5% off your purchase benefiting The Women’s Home.
Present at the gathering were Prashant and Nidhika Mehta, Shawn Broussard from Health and Fitness Magazine, Elizabeth Abraham, socialite Yuki Rogers and many others.
Tags: Abrahams, Rose Gala, The Women's Home
Arts of India Gallery | Museum Of Fine Arts
Jan 15, 2009 Fine Arts, Fund Raiser
Event: Museum Of Fine Arts, Arts of India Gallery
Venue: Indika Restaurant, Houston, Texas
Date: Monday, Jan 12, 2009
Peter C. Marzio, Director of the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston and Anita Jaisinghani, Chef and owner of Indika Restaurant invited the elite crowd in Houston, about one hundred plus for a reception celebrating plans for the Arts of India Gallery in MFAH.
They had a great turnout and guests enjoyed scrumptious appetizers prepared by Indika. The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston is expanding the representation of Asian art at the institution. The Arts of India gallery will open May 15, 2009 displaying Indian painting, sculpture, and photography spanning over 2,500 years of cultural history.
Founded in 1900, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, is the largest art museum in America south of Chicago, west of Washington DC, and east of Los Angeles.
Tags: Art, India, Museum Of Fine Arts
Indo American Charity Foundation Gala
Nov 3, 2008 Fund Raiser, Gala, Non-Profit
Event: Indo American Charity Foundation Gala
Venue: JW Marriot, Galleria, Houston
Date: Sunday November 2, 2008
Both Indian and American women once again got a chance to dress up in their exuberant sarees and had a good time with the who’s who of Houston. About 600 people gathered at the JW Marriot, Galleria, Houston, Texas to raise some money for The Indo American Charity Foundation on Sunday November 2, 2008.
Miya Shay of Houston’s ABC Channel 13 was the emcee for the event. The evening was also honored by Mayor Bill White along with his wife Andrea White.
The Auction was the attraction for that evening. Abrahams’ Rug bagged all the attention. While Kartik Trivedi enthralled the gathering with his piano and art work that he donated for the auction.
People seemed to be having a good time at the gala either networking, catching up with friends, or just being generous. Mani Subramanium handed over the new presidency of the Indo American Charity Foundation to Rachel Varghese.
Photos courtesy: Ajay Sarpeshkar
With some entertainment like dancing, singing and auctioning the event gathered $230,000. But for the new President of IACF this was not it. “The foundation is now 20 years old and has been established as a non-profit organization. We have to now establish an impact with the community and my goal at present is to look around for preventive programs,” says Rachel Varghese.
