The Pratham USA NYC Gala Featuring Trevor Noah & Fareed Zakaria
Empire was proud to partner with Pratham USA to produce their annual NYC Gala at Cipriani Wall Street. Over 600 guests gathered together to support Pratham’s mission in improving access to quality learning opportunities for children and young people across India and beyond. We were delighted to see the Pratham NY Tri-State Chapter raise a record breaking total on the night.
Guests were invited to a cocktail reception at 48 Wall Street where they dined on delicious South Asian cuisine by Buhkara Grill. Then they were escorted across the street lined with a red carpet and a dhol player graciously welcoming them to a seated dinner and program at Cipriani Wall Street.
The program featured remarks by Chairman of Pratham USA, Deepak Raj; CEO of Pratham Education Foundation India, Dr. Rukmini Banerji; and Pratham USA CEO and Global Executive, Manisha Bharti. The highlight of the evening was when Host of The Daily Show, Trevor Noah, held an incredible, inspirational and enlightening conversation with Pratham Board member and CNN Host, Fareed Zakaria.
Pratham Board Director, Ila Paliwal and Indian-American comedian, Anish Shah, kicked off a lively pledge drive followed by a successful auction with auctioneer Mark Turner.
DJ Rehka, who was the trendsetter who established Basement Bhangra, turned the volume up with a high energy set that had everyone on the dance floor with Bhangra, international hip-hop and drum beats. It was a wonderful night of sharing, learning and giving, where thousands of children and young people’s lives will be changed through learning with Pratham’s programs.
Working closely with Pratham USA, Empire served as the overall event producer, managing elements including venue, catering, program development and technical production. Empire is a leading producer of fundraising events and has been proud to serve leading not-for-profit organizations and foundations for nearly three decades.
For more information on Pratham, please visit https://prathamusa.org/
Guests received their first taste of technological innovation at registration, where they were welcomed by name on a reactive LED screen installation covering the full width of the entry wall. A large lunch café was created with a décor scheme that incorporated custom-built, ceiling-high steel LED frames draped with foliage to create smaller, intimate restaurant-style spaces that displayed both technology and nature.
A series of breakout sessions presented content targeted to attendees’ varied interests, while imagery displayed throughout the venue showcased real-life applications of how products designed to empower developers help to unleash the power of data and reimagine possibilities that will improve our world.
Every element of Microsoft Connect(); from registration, breakfast and keynote, to lunch and evening cocktails, were custom-designed to communicate exacting brand messaging and to deliver a high-touch guest experience to this important audience. The keynote and breakout sessions were livestreamed through an onsite studio built for this purpose and content was watched online by millions around the world.
Empire is proud to collaborate with Microsoft on this annual, top-tier business communication event.
To view excerpts of Connect(); 2017, please visit https://www.microsoft.com/connectevent
