Mastercard’s Ajay Banga among four people felicitated.
American Bazaar Staff
NEW YORK: The American India Foundation (AIF) raised over $1.5 million at its annual Spring Gala in Manhattan, last week, attended by around 600 people.
Ajay Banga, President and CEO, MasterCard; Nobel Laureate Amart
ya Sen, Professor of Economics and Philosophy at Harvard University; and Radhika and Prannoy Roy, Executive Co-Chairpersons, NDTV, India, were felicitated for their outstanding dedication to supporting solutions to social issues across the globe, at the gala held at the Sheraton New York hotel. Radhika Roy was not present at the meet.
The gala was chaired by Chip Kaye, Co-President of Warburg Pincus LLC. Sheila Dharmajaran, Markets Reporter for Bloomberg Television, was the emcee for the evening, which also featured a silent auction that had interesting memorabilia like a cricket bat signed by actor Shahrukh Khan up for grabs.
The gala showcased AIF’s Market Aligned Skills Training (MAST) program in India, which provides underprivileged youth with skills training and access to formal employment opportunities, including persons with disability.
A panel discussion held with three of the honorees who were present, saw a wide range of topics being discussed, including, the future of ‘the India story’, changing role of nonprofits in India, how corporates such as MasterCard can leverage their expertise to further progress in India, and the challenges of tackling gender related topics in the media.
Rubeena, a beneficiary of AIF’s MAST program, and who later got critical acclaim as a singer on a popular TV show in India, was also an invitee at the gala, and sang for the audience.
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