LONDON, 31 MAY 2025: The annual India Week series of events, hosted by global advisory firm EPG, in conjunction with non-profit think tank Bridge India, concluded after hosting over 1,200 attendees from as far afield as Australia, Hong Kong and Canada. The series of events comes in the background of the much-anticipated resumption of discussions on the UK-India Free Trade Agreement.
Convenor of the events Pratik Dattani said: “There is remarkable appetite for the curation of conversations between India and the world that bring together talents from across disciplines. I am delighted that India Week could once again attract the most remarkably diverse set of voices from nearly a dozen countries.”
India Week 2025 started with the UK’s first official UK-India film Co-Production Market, presenting over 17 curated projects spanning documentaries and narrative features across diverse stages and budgets. Guests included director Gurinder Chadha OBE and Creative Director of the Sheffield DocFest Raul Niño Zambrano.
The film sector Drinks Reception welcomed more than 200 guests from Netflix, BBC and ITV, as well as global creatives and media figures including Taha Shah Badussha, Richie Mehta, Purab Kohli, Kulvinder Ghir and Mukesh Chhabra.
The joint Drinks Reception with the London Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s (LCCI) Asian Business Association (ABA), led by the hotelier Tony Matharu, came almost exactly 30 years of the ABA’s inception. The reception in Westminster was attended by nearly 200 guests including guests from Mauritius and India. Pradyot Manikya, Founder of the TIPRA Motha party from Tripura, spoke eloquently about the business opportunities available in a less-explored part of India.
Bridge India’s flagship Ideas for India conference brought together political, business and technology leaders from across the UK and India, including Working President of the BRS party from Telangana KT Rama Rao, Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha and Pradyot Manikya. The event was significant because it was the first major international India conference after the deadly Pahalgam attack and UK-India Free Trade Agreement was signed.
Sessions explored India’s role in a multi-polar world including former head of the Diplomatic Service Lord Simon MacDonald; a deep-dive into post-Pahalgam relations between India and Pakistan; doing business with India featuring the Chair of the Bar Council Barbara Mills KC as well as UK-India Business Council Board Member from Jupiter Asset Management Avinash Vazarani; founder stories from Indians going global; a discussion on India as a vishwaguru in the soft power of elections featuring co-founder of India’s most well-known political consultancy I-PAC Vinesh Chandel; and Shaunaka Rishi Das from the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies in conversation with Founder and Chairman of Wahed Inc Junaid Wahedna comparing sharia-compliant and dharma-compliant investment strategies.
The Black-tie Celebration Dinner was held in partnership with Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council. It featured traditional tribal dancers travelling especially from Tripura to perform an extraordinary showcase of traditional dance forms including Hojagiri, Mamita, and Garia, each filled with spirit, rhythm, and ancestral storytelling. They were introduced by the head of the Royal Family Pradyot Manikya.
The evening also featured BBC news presenter Rajini Vadiyanathan in conversation with former central government Minister and the then-youngest ever Lok Sabha MP Sachin Pilot, touching a range of topics from governance to Pahalgam and beyond.
For the second year, the evening featured three special Awards, presented to changemakers building the bridge between the UK and India. The Community Service Award was presented to Harshad Kothari for his work in tirelessly building communities behind the scenes and playing a pioneering role in founding a global community for East African Asians. The Contribution to Music Award went to sarod player Soumik Datta for his versatile ability across a range of styles including jazz, Indo-blues, drum’n’bass, and many more. The Contribution to Digital Innovation Award went to State Bank of India (UK) Limited because over the past year, the bank has made significant strides in making banking simpler, smarter, and more accessible for their customers, including the key milestone of enhancing their YONO SBI UK app.
The final event during India Week was the Khushwant Singh Literature Festival, featuring accomplished authors and screenwriters including Farrukh Dhondy, Francesca Kay, Imtiaz Dharker OBE and Keshava Guha. The next edition will be their flagship event in Kasauli in Himachal Pradesh.
Valued partners for India Week included Bridge India, the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council, LCCI, Integrity International Group, ReelN, UK India Business Council, PACT, Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies, Maharaja Drinks, Indri and others.
