Consul General Sandeep Chakravorty takes the stage to honor Darley and the other women during the special International Women’s Day event.
Darley was honored and presented on International Women’s Day at the Consulate General of India alongside acclaimed Bollywood Actress and Producer Neetu Chandra, First Lady of the Consulate General of India Taruna Chakravorty and other great female visionaries. The night was organized by the Consulate General of India and Federation of Indian Associations (FIA) of the tri-state area of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut, one of the largest umbrella organizations in the Indian community with over 500,000 Asian-Indian members. Since 1981, FIA has hosted the popular, annual India Day Parade in New York City. Women’s Day Honorees- Entrepreneurs and Visionaries!
The night kicked off on New York’s Upper East Side at the stately Consulate, a mansion which dates back to 1903 when it was built for Ms. Carrie Astor as a private residence. Guests mingled downstairs for drinks and traditional Indian appetizers, before heading upstairs for the presentations and ceremony.
First Lady of the Consulate General of India Taruna Chakravorty took the stage as the first honoree and spoke about the challenges and rewards of her life as a diplomat, including her many personal accomplishments. Bollywood actress, producer and production house owner Neetu Chandra next took the stage to speak about her early life in Patna, Bihar and rise to fame, giving a heartfelt take on being a women in the industry and her move to Hollywood. Darley was up next, speaking about the unique way she started her “Equitrekking” and “Travels with Darley” TV series and businesses, as well as some of the personal challenges that have caused her to view everyday as a gift.
Sheetal Trivedi, a travel entrepreneur and a co-founder of TripExplorer.com, Rina Shah of AUM Dance Creations and Sukhminder Kaur, who runs Quick Freight Factors, were also honored. Kaur spoke about her challenges in breaking into a male dominated industry and how she’s turned her company into an all-female led enterprise.
Bollywood actress and producer Neetu Chandra, Tamara Don of the “Travels with Darley” team and Darley enjoying the after party.
During this star-studded night, the Indian community and honored guests from the New York, New Jersey and Connecticut regions celebrated women in general and, in particular, women who own businesses and innovative enterprises.