From the Lord Mayor’s Diwali reception to PwC’s “Bouncing Back” themed event, the British capital has been abuzz with myriad forms of celebrations around the Festival of Lights this week.
The City of London Corporation hosted its event at the historic Guildhall, complete with the lighting of lamps and a classical music and dance performance.
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“On the back of lengthy discussions at COP26, Diwali’s message has never been more important – that hope will overcome despair and that good will overcome evil,” said William Russell, the Lord Mayor of London.
“Our ties with India our crucial… India has committed to having 50 per cent of its energy be renewable by 2030, which is remarkable and I’m sure India will achieve that,” he said.
Not far away, at PwC London Embankment Place and further afield at PwC Manchester and virtually, the Diwali celebrations marked an exciting evening with live singing by the talented Saloni Boyina and incredible dancing by the London School of Bollywood.
Keynote speakers addressing the festivities included Jaspreet Singh Sukhja, First Secretary of Trade at the High Commission of India; Ben Higgin, PwC Executive Board Member, Head of Technology & Investments; Sunil Patel, PwC Chief Data Officer; Sarah Churchman OBE, PwC Chief Community, Inclusion and Wellbeing Officer; Arif Ahmad, PwC Partner and Chair of the PwC UK India Business Group; and Nilesh Solanki, PwC Hindu Network Founder.
Solanki (far left) was felicitated for founding the network 20 years ago. He now passes the baton on to a dynamic team led by Shanil Mehta, Krupa Patel, Payal Shah, Shreeya Majithia, Tamal Bhattacharya, Dip Lodhiya and Ayushi Gupta. The team will be supported by the new Steering Board of partners – Anish Patel, Deepti Vohra, Rahul Patel, Ganesh Ram, Avni Mashru – and supported by Solanki to grow the network over the next few years.
The event also marked Arif Ahmad launching the PwC India Interest Group, led by Nilesh Solanki and Parul Dattani, bringing together our networks and the British Indian diaspora.
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