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A Night of Art, Partnership, and Community at Houston Grand Opera
By Somdatta Basu
HOUSTON — The Indo-American Chamber of Commerce of Greater Houston (IACCGH) opened its 2025 calendar with an evening that blended civic pride and world-class performance at the Houston Grand Opera, bringing together business leaders, students, and friends of the arts for a backstage reception and full-dress rehearsal of Hänsel & Gretel.
Welcoming guests, founding secretary and executive director Jagdip Ahluwalia reaffirmed the Chamber’s inclusive mission. “We are a 26-year-old organization and proud to be serving the Houston community,” he said, inviting the Board to the podium and thanking the Consulate General of India in Houston for its sustained support. “Their encouragement of initiatives that promote leadership, cultural exchange, and community engagement has mattered for 26 years.”
Jagdip situated the evening within the Chamber’s NOWGEN Initiative series, which spotlights next-generation leadership through arts, culture, and experiential learning. Previous programs included a behind-the-scenes ballet rehearsal, an event at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston highlighting its India gallery, and a networking evening at Michelin-recognized Musaafer. Upcoming ideas range from a return to the ballet to a learning visit at the Houston Zoo.
Turning to the host venue, Jagdip thanked Houston Grand Opera’s leadership and partners who made the evening possible.
Taking the stage, HGO’s Chief Executive Officer Khori Dastoor thanked the co-hosts and underscored the city’s creative ambition. “A world-class city is not just about industry or economic power,” she said. “It’s also about cultural capital, creative infrastructure—and yes—world-class art.”
Dastoor highlighted HGO’s reach: approximately 1,100 artists and staff engaged annually; more than 300 events serving 250,000 people across 12 counties; and performances staged not only downtown, but also in churches, schools, libraries, parks, and neighborhoods—“meeting people where they are and inviting them to discover opera.”
She described a global talent pipeline through the Butler Studio, with current artists from Korea, China, Georgia, and Malaysia, and noted major collaborations with orchestras and opera houses in London and Sydney, including work developed with the Royal Opera House. Previewing the season, she pointed to productions ranging from Silent Night and The Barber of Seville to a staged Mozart arrangement of Handel’s Messiah—adding a light reminder about the rehearsal setting: “That doesn’t mean you can jump on stage and try to participate,” she quipped.
The evening’s most talked-about moment came with Dastoor’s preview of a world premiere planned for next year: an unscripted opera centered on Lord Krishna, developed with partners in the United Kingdom. Teaching a full chorus to sing in Sanskrit will be “a challenge,” she smiled, inviting the community’s support to fill the house for what she called “an incredible global event.”
Offering greetings on India’s Republic Day, Consul General D. C. Manjunath praised the spirit of co-hosting and the Chamber’s growth in “stature, outreach, programming, and impact.” He described the NOWGEN Initiative as a thoughtful bridge—“for art and culture, for roots, and for the next generation who will carry forward ties between countries as they succeed in their fields here.”
Jagdip closed with a reflection on the Chamber’s early days—born, he joked, when Houston had “all cowboys and no Indians,” many leaders and few followers—until the Consulate provided the catalytic center that aligned community efforts. Today, he said, IACCGH deliberately maps community needs each year and builds programs with sister chambers and associations so that its events “reflect the community we live in.”
The evening concluded with mementos—elephants with raised trunks for luck—presented to Houston Grand Opera leaders by the Chamber. Past president Malisha Patel was recognized for her service, and Rajiv Bhavsar was welcomed back to complete the presidential term beginning February 1.
“If tonight is a success,” Jagdip said, “it’s because partners like Houston Grand Opera and the Consulate make it possible—and because Houston shows up for art, for business, and for each other.”
Pic Credit: Bijay Dixit