Dubai is host to a three-day business, academic and cultural event, to celebrate the global prowess of the Purvanchal region of Eastern India, from 22 – 24 August. There are more than half a million people from the Eastern part of India who live and work in the UAE. The highest number of Indian expats in the UAE are from the state of Kerala, followed by the Eastern region of India.
The three-day event will celebrate the successes of the extremely talented people from the Purvanchal region which encompasses the eastern end of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand, three states in India. Here, Hindi-Urdu-Maithli and Bhojpuri are spoken. Indians from this belt have made their mark in every field globally, and is now honouring some of their prominent citizens.
This event, Bihari Connect Global Summit 2019 is organized by Heart and Soul Events, and supported by Purvanchal Pravasi Milan (PPM).
Here in the UAE, this engagement is steered by Mr. Saikat Kumar, CEO of Almasah Capital Management Ltd DIFC, President of PPM, Owner of Heart & Soul Events, entrepreneur, and philanthropist with deep roots in the regional banking industry, with a proven track record in asset management, private equities, investment banking, and wealth management.
The business summit on the first day will see over 1,000 delegates from 20 countries attend the event. The chief guest for the summit is Shri.Vipul, Consul General of India, accompanied by special guest of honour, Mr. Arjun Singh, a member of the Indian parliament. Other dignitaries includ Mr. Udeshwar Singh, Chairman Bihari Connect, UK – Mr. Saiyad Shahin Alam, Convenor, PPM, UAE –Mr. Manoj Singh, Executive Member PPM, Dr. Sanjay Sinha, Chairman of Frontline Group.
Speaking about the event Mr. Saikat Kumar, commented “With more than half a million people from Eastern India, living and working in the UAE, bringing a global summit to spotlight and helping the Purvanchal community was a service that I now wanted to do. Not to mention creating a bridge for mutual business opportunities with Eastern India, here in the UAE, and globally as well. Today, if you look at highly successful local, regional and global businesses you will find most of them have senior decision makers who are from the Purvanchal region of India.”
Music and film are also big industries in Purvanchal, and the popularity of the singers and actors are at an all-time high. At the cultural event, many of the leading singers and actors like Kanak Pandey, an actress for Bollywood and Bhojpuri films will take to the stage to entertain the attendees. The all-day extravaganza includes, concerts and dances, including performances by traditional Bhojpuri folk singers like Deepak Tripathi, who has previously performed with Hollywood actors as well Mohan Rathore.
The awards night, is also part of the cultural program. Successes of business leaders and outstanding individual will also be recognised.
On the third day the academic conference is a platform to recognise scholars making a mark in the field of art and literature. The keynote will be delivered by Professor Shiva Shankar Singh from the State University in California. Other speakers were Mr. Chandra Bhusan Rai – ex chairman Bhojpuri Academy Govt of Bihar, Mr Shivaji Singh- Chairman Purvanchal Ekta Manch, Delhi, including Emirati poet Dr. Shihab Ghanem.
“These three days will see our community in all its glory and a fantastic platform for us to foster successful business ventures between the UAE and Purvanchal regions of Eastern India. As global business leaders we have a duty to help our community back home develop further, and what better way than to foster positive growth with the UAE,” added Kumar.
The Business Summit is taking place in Grand Excelsior Hotel Dubai from 3 pm onwards on 22 August, whereas the cultural event is taking place at Sheikh Rashid Auditorium from 6pm onwards on the 23 of August. The academic conference on the third and final day is taking place at the Grand Excelsior Hotel, Dubai from 2 pm onwards.