Gold House Launches Shorts Fund

Ranbir Kapoor and Yash opened the Gold House Diwali event at The Majestic Downtown in Los Angeles on Friday. The gathering took place one week before the global release of their film, Ramayana: Rise of a Legend, which opens in theaters on Nov. 5. The event marked the largest Gold Diwali hosted by the organization, which supports the Asian Pacific community.

Gold House used the evening to announce the Gold Stack Shorts Fund. This new initiative is a partnership with South Stack Studios that will provide support for proof-of-concept shorts and micro-series based on South Asian stories. Submissions for the fund are open through Nov. 30. The organization plans to name the chosen projects on Jan. 10, a date that falls before the Sundance Film Festival.

Bing Chen, executive chair and CEO of Gold House, framed the event as a celebration of community and connection. He stated that the organization wanted to honor how culture shapes identity and the possibilities creators generate. Chen also noted that the event targets creators, founders, and builders who understand that overnight success is the result of decades of work.

The organization promoted Ramayana: Rise of a Legend as the largest film ever produced out of India. The movie is based on the ancient epic. A DJ set and dance floor themed around the film ran throughout the night. The event also featured a one-off carrom board hand-painted by Indian luxury designer Anita Dongre in collaboration with Gold House. Guests also saw a limited-edition Marigold Charm from a Cuyana collaboration released earlier in October.

Co-hosts for the event included figures from entertainment, media, fashion, and business. Among them were Tan France, Freida Pinto, Avantika, and Sarayu Blue. Blumhouse president Abhijay Prakash, Poshmark chairman Manish Chandra, and Kabir Ahuja, global head of TMT and consumer technology at McKinsey, also hosted. Anita Dongre and Yash Dongre, along with South Stack Studios, were listed as co-hosts.

The guest list included Saheli Khan, Aishu Devan, and Sehaj Sethi from Avatar: Seven Havens. Other attendees included Hannah Simone, Janina Gavankar, Manish Dayal, Sanya Malhotra, Richa Moorjani, Nisha Ganatra, Asif Ali, Michelle Khare, and Avani Gregg. Rasoi Catering served regional South Asian dishes, and a lounge was set aside for carrom.

DJ MissNinja provided music alongside KVS Tabla, an act that fuses tabla with electronic music. Bhindi Jewelers hosted a jewelry experience, and the dating app Dil Mil sponsored a portrait station produced by The Lounge Booth. Smartwater, Glance, McKinsey & Company, and Google’s 100 Zeros backed the event, which was produced by BMF Productions. The party followed the recent rollout of Gold House’s Diwali Cultural Guide.