Mango Bites 🥭

If you’re new here, welcome to Mango Bites - a newsletter featuring incredible Desi professional events happening in NYC. Reply and say hi!

Who else has been freezing their a** off this month? 🥶 

I’m incredibly bullish on the India opportunity. With a massive and rapidly expanding consumer market driven by a surging middle class, increasing digital adoption across all segments of society, and one of the youngest major economies in the world (median age: 28), India is positioning itself as a global powerhouse. Add to that major initiatives in manufacturing and tech adoption, and it’s clear why India is one of the most exciting economies on the world stage.

If you share this excitement or are interested in Indian markets, we’ve got something special for you. On Feb 12, we’re teaming up with Samosa Capital (subscribe to their newsletter, btw!) to bring you an exclusive speaker and networking event.

Our keynote speaker, Dr. Viral Acharya, former Deputy Governor of the Reserve Bank of India, played a pivotal role in shaping India’s financial system and monetary policy during his tenure (2017–2019). Expect insightful discussions, great company, and my favorite part - food and drinks included with your ticket! 🍛🍹

🎟️ Sign up here to reserve your spot! Just for this weekend, use MANGO131 for $20 off tickets. If you miss that, no worries—MANGO2K25 still gets you $5 off. See you there! 🚀

Upcoming Mango Events 🎇

Register on the links below!

• Samosa Capital x Mango: Future of India (2/12) - An expert speaker event featuring former RBI Deputy Governor Viral Acharya, and networking for those interested in Indian business and markets (food and drink provided!)

  • Use MANGO131 for $20 off just through this weekend!

• Mango x NYCB2B: South Asians in Startups - A Panel and Mixer (3/13) - Celebrating South Asian excellence in New York’s startup ecosystem with a panel of incredible investors and founders, followed by open networking

  • Use MANGO20P for 20% off. Free tickets are subject to approval and are not guaranteed admission.

The Scene 🪔

Other South Asian events I’m keeping an eye on in and around the city

Cool Desis Doing Cool Thing 🐘

Highlighting people in our community making strides in diverse fields!

Sravya Alla is a Product Manager at Spotify working on AI DJ, an AI voice narrator that walks you through your personalized set of music. She launched this product in March 2023, and AI DJ has now garnered over 15 million MAU in two languages (English & Spanish). She’s also a DJ in real life, mixing desi beats, house, amapiano, baile funk and more under the name “DJ Halla”. She holds a Master’s degree in Computer Science and a Bachelor’s degree in Business at the University of Pennsylvania.

Why do you do what you do?
Spotify has always been my dream company, so it feels surreal not only to be working there but also to work on a 0 to 1 product that millions of people love using. As a DJ, I love being able to curate the vibe and energy of a room and take the crowd through a journey of music from around the world.

Music is such an important part of many people’s lives, and in both roles, I have the honor and privilege in bringing joy, energy, and motivation to people through music.

What does your Desi identity mean to you, and how has it influenced your journey?
I’m very proud of being Desi and bring my full self to work every day. Every example I use at Spotify is either “Telugu” or “Indohouse,” and many others have started to use these genres in their own testing and products. As a DJ, I love playing desi-inspired music and mixing desi music with all sorts of global sounds. We have such a rich musical culture and infusing this magic with cultures from around the world is extremely powerful and beautiful.

What advice do you have for those entering your field?
When building products, keep things simple. You can always make something more complex, but it’s exponentially harder to take away the complexity.

If you’re interested in DJing or a related creative passion, just start. It’s gonna be daunting at first and you’re gonna have imposter syndrome. Every DJ, singer, artist, and dancer had to start from somewhere.

For both fields, community is super important. We learn and get inspired from each other. 

Sravya’s favs 🌟 
🎬 Bollywood Movie: Fanaa
🍛 Desi Eat: Dahi Puri
🌶️ NYC Restaurant: Kanyakumari

Meme Bazaar 👳🏽‍♀️

Random Stuff 💃

• Mango Resume Drop - if you’re looking to make a career switch!

• Love what Mango is doing? 🥭 Buy us a coffee - any support would go a long way and let us keep hosting events!

• Want to sponsor an event or host something with me? Get in touch!

• Have a friend who’d want to be on this newsletter? Sign up for Mango Bites here!