HinduPACT Gala Dec 2020
HinduPACT Gala May 2022
In a diverse society like the United States, “identity politics” is an inevitable outcome of grassroots activism. But the challenges we face today, to paraphrase MLK, can be solved best, “not by the color of our skin but by the content of our character”.
Join us on Sunday, May 1, 2022 for our fundraiser Gala to hear our speakers talk about “Value Based Politics: the Hindu way” and what it means to transcend the faultlines of color to evolve a politics based on the ethos of humane values, diversity and equality.
Our Speakers
Vivek Ramaswamy is a New York Times bestselling author and a successful entrepreneur who has founded multiple successful enterprises. A first-generation American, he is the founder and executive chairman of Roivant Sciences, a new type of biopharmaceutical company focused on the application of technology to drug development. He founded Roivant in 2014 and led the largest biotech IPOs of 2015 and 2016, eventually culminating in successful clinical trials in multiple disease areas that led to FDA-approved products.
Mr. Ramaswamy was born and raised in southwest Ohio. He graduated summa cum laude in Biology from Harvard in 2007 and began his career as a successful biotech investor at a prominent hedge fund. Mr. Ramaswamy continued to work as an investor while earning his law degree at Yale.
Mr. Ramaswamy was featured on the cover of Forbes magazine in 2015 for his work in drug development. In 2020 he emerged as a prominent commentator on stakeholder capitalism, free speech, and woke culture. He has authored numerous articles and op-eds, which have appeared in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, National Review, Newsweek, and Harvard Business Review.
Mr. Ramaswamy serves on the board of directors of the Philanthropy Roundtable, the Foundation for Research on Equal Opportunity, and St. Xavier High School.
Zainab Zeb Khan chairs the Muslim American Leadership Alliance. Born in Chicago to immigrants from Pakistan and Afghanistan, Khan became a community activist after eye-opening experiences counseling survivors of domestic violence and organizing exhibitions for international female artists facing repression. A former Senior Clinician, she co-curated the International Museum of Women’s exhibition “Muslimah: Muslim Women’s Arts and Voices.” She has served as a United Nations Delegate on the Commission on the Status of Women since 2013, and she is a member of Picture Motion’s Impact Advisory Board and the Executive Board of the American Pakistan Foundation. An acclaimed visual artist, she was honored with the inaugural UNICEF Next Generation Chicago Humanitarian Award, as well as the 2020 Silver Stevie Award for Female Executive of the Year in the non-profit sector. She has published in Oral History Review about MALA’s “Muslim American Journeys” program recording Muslim American oral histories.
Robert Lancia was born in Providence, Rhode Island. He was a chaplain in the U.S. Navy, serving from 1987 to 2004. Lancia received a bachelor’s degree from Rhode Island College in 1976 and other degrees from Andover Newton Theological School in 1991 and United Theological Seminary in 2000. He has been affiliated with Disabled American Veterans, Veterans of Foreign Wars, and Military Officers Association of America.
Event Details:
Date: Sunday May 1, 2022
Time: 4:00 PM Eastern, 1:00 PM Pacific
Registration: Click here to register
HinduPACT Gala May 2022
Please register for HinduPACT Gala today:
When: May 1, 2022 04:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Topic: HinduPACT Gala – Value Based Politics the Hindu Way
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
Additional Details Coming Soon…
HinduPACT Gala Program Press Release
Hindu Advocacy in America – Towards a Strong American Hindu Voice in the Public Square
To kick-off its 2021 policy research and advocacy initiatives, HinduPACT organized a fundraiser gala on Saturday, December 19, 2020. Conducted virtually on several online platforms, it was headlined by an anticipated keynote by Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard, US House of Representatives, and included four prominent American Hindu panelists: Dr. Rik Mehta, Ms. Vindhya Adapa, Dr. Raj Vedam, and Pandit Roopnauth Sharma. Unfortunately, Rep. Gabbard had to cancel her appearance at the last minute, and the proceedings nevertheless continued with background information eloquently provided by Dr. Ajay Shah and Utsav Chakrabarti, HinduPACT Convener and Executive Director, respectively.
The event was anchored and hosted by Preity Üpala, a former investment banker and Miss India International, who now is a media entrepreneur in Hollywood, CA, a geo-political commentator, columnist, and director of The Omnia Institute.
The program began with a Sri Ganésh stuti, mellifluously sung by Ms. Geetikka Kulkarni, a renowned playback singer (of Bajirao Mastani and other movies fame). The urgent need for partnerships for American Hindus to promote Hindu voices and perspectives in the political and cultural landscape of USA was articulated by Ankur Patel, HinduPACT Director for Partnerships, along with introductory remarks. This was followed by felicitations by Dr. Abhaya Asthana, President of Vishwa Hindu Parishad of America (VHPA), and Dr. Ved P. Nanda, John Evans Distinguished University Professor and Thompson G. Marsh Professor of Law, University of Denver. Dr. Jai Bansal, HinduPACT Executive Director – Education, and former Chief Scientific Officer and Distinguished Fellow at Argonne National Laboratory, provided a brief on Hindu diaspora in USA, the structure of HinduPACT, its current and proposed activities, and financial (donations and/or endowments) needs.
A very engaging and thought-provoking panel discussion, moderated by Ms. Rakhi Israni, HinduPACT Executive Director – Legal, ensued. It articulated the broad theme of advocating a strong American Hindu voice in the public space that encompasses political, cultural, and educational arenas. Dr. Raj Vedam, Co-Founder of Indian History Awareness and Research think-tank (Houston, TX) and Director of Arsha Vidya Satsanga, emphasized the necessity of advancing Hindu narratives that are contextualized in their original Puranic traditions. The urgency for countering the distorted colonial and leftist descriptions was also expressed. The latter engender flagrant Hinduphobia and outright demeaning of Hindu values and cultural identities. These views were further advanced by Pundit Roopnauth Sharma, President of the Hindu Federation, Ontario, Canada, and Ms. Vindhya Adapa, Attorney Advisor – US Dept of Treasury and Formerly Asst. General Counsel for HIAS. Ms. Adapa also espoused the need of forming partnerships with other diasporas in order to build broader advocacy coalitions. Dr. Rik Mehta, Biotech entrepreneur, Healthcare policy expert, former USFDA staffer, and first American Hindu 2020 Republican nominee for U.S. Senate in New Jersey, echoed similar comments for advancing Hindu points of view in its multi-faceted domains. The question and answer session that followed evoked a very engaging and thought-provoking exchange between the moderator, panelists, and viewers.
Earnest appeals for donations to endow the HinduPACT initiatives were made by Smt. Renu Gupta, HinduPACT Executive Director for Chapter Development, and Smt. Vishakha Manek, Healthcare entrepreneur, prominent social worker, and a clinical Registered Nurse. The pressing need for funding the policy research and Hindu issues advocacy in USA cannot be overstated, and donations can be made at the following URL: https://hindupact.org/.
In his concluding remarks, Utsav Chakrabarti narrated an emotive personal journey of Hindu discrimination, grossly distorted depiction of Hindu views, and Hinduphobia, which guided his path to engagement with HinduPACT. The program was interlaced with melodious musical interludes provided by Ms. Geetikka Kulkarni, and ended with a lovely Ghoomer song and the rendition of Albela Sajan song in both Hindi and Telegu.
The estimated virtual audience of the gala was 5,000 viewers over the diverse Zoom, Facebook, and YouTube internet platforms. Furthermore, the program was streamed (either live or via a dedicated link) by the following media partners: Diya TV (https://diyatvusa.com/), Tag TV (https://www.tagtv.info/), and Bharat FM (https://bharatfm.com/).
HinduPACT Gala 2020 Program
Watch the HinduPACT Gala 2020, an engaging advocacy program with prominent speakers highligting Hindus in the American Public space