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NORTH AMERICAN Newsline FEBRUARY 03, 2023 | The Indian Eye 16

The South Asian Times celebrates

felicitation of Anil Bansal as Person of

the Year at the Indian Consulate

OUR BUREAU
New York, NY
nil Bansal, Past President of
FIA, a successful serial entre-
Apreneur, ambassador and pro-
moter of Indian arts and culture, and
a great humanitarian, was felicitated
as The South Asian Times Person of
the Year (POY) 2022 at the Consul-
ate of India here on January 21. The
event was oversubscribed with the
presence of who is who of the Indian
diaspora of the New York metro area.
At the graceful event, immediate
past Person of the Year Mohan Wan-
choo presented a shawl and Consul
General Randhir Jaiswal presented
the crystal plaque honoring Anil Ban-
sal POY-2022 on behalf of Forsythe
Media Group. Joining in the presen- Consul General Randhir Jaiswal presented the plaque honoring Anil Bansal as The South Asian Times Person of the Year 2022
tation were Kamlesh C Mehta (Chair- on behalf of the newspaper Chairman Kamlesh Mehta.
man, Forsythe Media), Ankur Vaidya
(Chairman, FIA), Dr Nirmal Mattoo Bansal has supported both organiza-
(Chairman, IAAC), Chintu Patel tions for decades.
(CEO, Amneal Pharmaceuticals), Bansal’s extended family, friends
and Haridas Kotahwala (Chairman, and colleagues were present in full
Navika group). Mrs. Nimmi Mehta strength at the event. His son, Avin
presented a floral bouquet to Mrs. Bansal, CFO and investor, and
Kumud Bansal. daughter Neha Hannan, a lawyer, ex-
As a surprise but memorable mo- pressed their love and admiration for
ment of the evening came when on re- him. Nephew Dr Sharad Sahu, an in-
quest of FIA, Consul General Jaiswal ternist, shared some family anecdotes
presented to Bansal the Pravasi involving Anil Bansal.
Bharatiya Medal conferred on FIA, Anil Bansal in his acceptance
which was honored by the Indian gov- speech expressed gratitude for the
ernment for its commendable service honor and went on to share his life
in India and the US during Covid experiences. He concluded by shar-
during Bansal’s presidency. Notice- ing the life lesson of ‘giving back’: “I
ably, Anil Bansal was president of and Kumud felt that we have enough
FIA during the peak of COVID-19, financial resources for the rest of our Ankur Vaidya (FIA), Rakesh Kaul (IAAC), Anil Bansal, CG Randhir Jaiswal, and Kamlesh Mehta
and he was instrumental in sending lives for what we want to do and how at the launch of The South Asian Times Person of the Year 2022 issue
over $50 Million worth of aid from we want to live.”
FIA to India during the pandemic. The newspaper featuring honored and who spoke at the event ta Seth were among the attendees.
Speaker after speaker praised Anil Bansal as POY 2022 was also included Chintu Patel (2017), Haridas The event was emceed by the fa-
the publication and Bansal’s accom- launched at the event by the Consul Kotahwala (Navika – TSAT Organi- mous Bollywood & Hollywood actor
plishments and services to the com- General. Copies of the issue were dis- zation of the Year 2018), and Ankur Prashantt Guptha.
munity and society. Kamlesh Mehta tributed to the attendees and coffee Vaidya (FIA was Organization of the A sumptuous vegetarian dinner
highlighted Bansal’s humility and mugs gifted by alotusinthemug.com Year 2015 during his presidency). created by Michelin Star decorated
selflessness, mentioning that it was web magazine. Pam Kwatra, a renowned communi- chef Hemant Mathur was served.
hard to convince him to accept POY The South Asian Times could not ty leader, Shailesh ‘Sam’ Jain, Chair- The proceedings of the event
honor. Ankur Vaidya spoke on behalf formally felicitate Mohan Wanchoo, man of Cheapoair, and prominent were supported by Eric Kumar, Totee
of FIA (Federation of Indian Associ- POY 2021 because of Covid, so he was community leaders Karamjit Singh Wadhwa, Nicky Jagda and Parveen
ations – NY-NY-CT-NE) and Rakesh honored with a shawl by Kamlesh Me- Dhaliwal, Jasbir Jay Singh, Alok Ku- Chopra. Chopra’s wellness and spir-
Kaul and Dr Mattoo for IAAC (In- hta and crystal plaque by Haridas Ko- mar Dr. Avinash Gupta, Rajeev Kaul, ituality website, alotusinthemud.com
do-American Arts Council). POY tahwala. Other past POYs who were Sunil Shah, Saurin Parikh, and Suja- was launched after the felicitation.

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