After a 3 year pause, we were thrilled to re-ignite Sholay to celebrate June Pride. Seeing all your beautiful faces and dancing to desi beats together really felt like coming home. What a night!  Now…we’re gearing up for a truly special evening to celebrate the tail end of summer. Join us for an open air party at a fab new venue on Pier 16 in downtown Manhattan—Cobble Fish. Dance under the stars by the historical ships of

Posted: June 9th, 2023

Thank you Hindus for Human Rights and Muslims for Progressive Values teams for this congratulatory message and support! What a milestone for us to receive this recognition from organizations who share our vision for a more progressive and inclusive world.   Hindus for Human Rights and Muslims for Progressive Values extend our warmest congratulations to Sholay Events on your return to organizing after a three-year hiatus! As fellow advocates for

Posted: June 9th, 2023

After three years of uncertainty, NYC Pride is now finally mostly in-person this June with several events being hosted around town, including one featuring our own DJ Ashu Rai. Below are some of our picks. And thank you all for reaching out — while we don’t have any of our own Sholay events planned for Pride, stay tuned for updates!   JUNE 9 “B.Y.O.B: Bring Your Own Baggage.”  A gender

Posted: June 8th, 2022

We were happy to host the multi-talented Sri Rao at our Desilicious bash in 2017 to celebrate the launch of his fabulous cookbook, “Bollywood Kitchen”, pairing Bollywood films with home cooked desi recipes. Well, that book has now been turned into a show produced by Geffen Playhouse! Part cooking show, part memoir — join Sri as he adds some sizzle to your winter…think of it as the Food Network goes

Posted: January 5th, 2021

A documentary on the LGBT+ Sikh community, “Sab Rab De Bande (All are God’s children)” has launched its crowdfunding campaign.  Below is a recent interview with the Delhi based director/filmmaker Sukhdeep Singh on this latest project and you can donate here. Tell us a bit about yourself Sukhdeep. I founded Gaylaxy Magazine in 2010, at the age of 21 while I was finishing my B. Tech. Gaylaxy is an Indian LGBTQ e-magazine that

Posted: February 10th, 2020

Two weeks ago, we were lamenting the silence by major Bollywood stars on the enactment of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) by Prime Minister Modi and the BJP government (with the exception of a few outspoken actors, actresses and directors). This changed with last week’s storming of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) by members of Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), a right-wing student body linked to the BJP party who vandalized property and

Posted: January 12th, 2020

As we bid farewell to 2019 and the entire 2010s, we’d like to share some memorable moments from our Sholay parties along with events and milestones that have touched the Desi LGBTQI community in NYC and beyond. So Many Memorable Sholay Parties! We kicked off the 2010s right on New Year’s Eve.  Salaam Namaste Bollywood blowout bash rang in the decade with wall-to-wall cuteness, confetti and too much champagne! In August 2012, we

Posted: December 30th, 2019

“To raise your voice against something is a democratic right, people are raising their voices and I’m of view that there seems to be a certain amount of discrimination in what is happening”—Farhan Akhtar. While a growing number of actors, directors and producers in Bollywood have stood in solidarity with protesters and expressed concerns about the Indian government’s legislated attacks on pluralism, the industry has been conspicuously silent for the

Posted: December 29th, 2019