(From left): Harit Talwar, Co-Chair, AIF Global Board; Michael Miebach, CEO, Mastercard; Falguni Nayar, Founder & CEO, Nykaa; and Nishant Pandey, CEO, AIF. (Photo: AIF)

The American India Foundation’s (AIF) New York Chapter hosted its annual gala to a sold-out crowd of 700 guests at Cipriani Wall Street, May 14. The evening spotlighted AIF’s vibrant Indian-diaspora led community, as well as its multidimensional programming in India to empower women and girls with health, education, and livelihood opportunities. Whether helping women secure jobs, attain financial literacy, stay healthy through pregnancy and motherhood, or embark on careers in STEM, AIF partners with the government at the central, state, and local levels to implement programs that support women and girls at every point in their journey.

Honoring the professional and philanthropic achievements of Michael Miebach, CEO of Mastercard, and Falguni Nayar, Founder and CEO of Nykaa, and hosted by the brilliant and hilarious Zarna Garg, the night brought together leaders, innovators, founders, and trailblazers across industries to celebrate AIF’s 23 years of impact, raising over $4.2 million to support AIF’s transformative work.

“AIF is so proud to have Mastercard and Nykaa as our honorees this year–Michael and Falguni are true exemplars of inspirational, passionate leaders who advance AIF’s mission to drive sustainable, social and economic change. We are ever grateful for their partnership and to the generosity of all our supporters, corporate and government partners, donors, and friends, thanks to whom, AIF has reached 18.88 million lives across 35 states and union territories of India,” said CEO Nishant Pandey.

“The partnership between AIF and Mastercard has already made a difference in the lives of more than 220,000 Indian students as we brought Mastercard’s flagship STEM education program to India. Now we’re expanding our commitment with a new goal of working together to bring Girls4Tech to 500,000 girls across India by 2027. It’s how we turn ideas into action and plans into progress,” said Michael Miebach, as he accepted the award.

Falguni Nayar, Founder and CEO of Nykaa said, “India is the world’s fifth largest economy, on its way to being the third largest in the coming decade–yet the female literacy rate is more than 15 percentage points lower than the male literacy rate. In an effort to equalize opportunities and empower girls with confidence to follow their dreams–today I am proud to announce a 3-year association between AIF and Nykaa that will equip more girls with the resources to follow their true passion into STEM education.”

Through powerful videos and stirring speeches, attendees saw how AIF enables women and girls to lead healthy, dignified, and fulfilled lives. They met Ravina from Rewari, Haryana, who, despite daily struggles with Thalassemia, was able to secure a remote job as a Customer Support Executive thanks to AIF’s livelihoods skills training and job placement support. They saw how Sweety, a government school student in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, gained a newfound confidence and love for robotics through AIF’s Digital Equalizer STEM programming. As the only girl with a group of 9 boys competing in a government-led Hackathon–which they won–she’s inspiring young girls in her community to follow in her footsteps.

The 2024 New York Gala was the highest-grossing gala in AIF’s history, raising over $4.2 million thanks to the generosity of its donors, including presenting sponsors Goldman Sachs Gives, Mastercard, and Salesforce.

Interested readers can learn more AIF at: American India Foundation.