Desi Matters Productions, an Indian-owned entertainment company, recently marked its 10th year with a lively and festive celebration called Baisakhi Fest 2024.
Held at the Hilton Manila Ballroom, the special event brought together Indian expats, local businesses, and friends for an evening filled with music, dance, and festivities.
During an interview with its founder and CEO, Rav Singh, the company began as a small company catering to the Filipino-Indian community.
“Desi Matters Productions started as a small entertainment company that caters to the Indian community here in the Philippines. I’m a DJ and I was able to start my small entertainment company, which was lacking in the Philippines. There were no Indian performers or Indian-based production,” Singh said.
Recognizing the lack of Indian entertainment options, Singh embarked on a mission to bridge this cultural gap.
“No Indian events were happening in the Philippines. We were minorities in the Philippines but we wanted to show who we are to Filipinos, we wanted to have that cultural exchange on food and performances. That was the main vision and then slowly, we grew and then we did events. We brought a lot of our Indian partners,” he added.
From these humble beginnings, Desi Matters Productions has grown into a multifaceted entertainment company with two subsidiary arms—Desi Matters Studio and DMS Prime. The Studio specializes in capturing life’s moments through media production, on the other hand, DMS Prime focuses on corporate events, marketing, promotions, and content creation.
“We organize Indian concerts, we bring in artists from India, and then from there, we opened Desi Matters and offer our services for different events like Indian weddings, and birthdays,” shared Singh.
When asked about the impact of having a company that brings the spotlight to the India-Philippines community, Singh said that compared to 10 years ago, “it’s getting better”.
“For example, when we look back 10 years ago, no one was eating Indian food, it’s different now. And you know, how Indians were looked upon a few years ago. But right now, we’ve managed— not just our company—but it was a joint effort of our whole community, and our respective governments are pushing it. So, it was a joint effort. We want to showcase that Indian culture is vibrant and colorful,” he continued.
Desi Matters Productions actively promotes cultural exchange. Their short film, As The Moth Flies, directed by Gayle Oblea, was nominated at the 2023 Brussels Short Film Festival. They also plan a fashion event featuring Filipino designers creating Indian-inspired collections.
Singh then shared his ambitious plans for the future.
“We want to get into Philippine cinema as well. For now, we want to focus on DMS Prime. We want to cater to different corporate companies whether for their marketing [and] solutions. Of course, Philippine cinema is our goal. Maybe we will produce a film in a year,” he stated.
Baisakhi Fest 2024 was organized and presented by Beyond Logistics Events. The event also served as a 30th-anniversary celebration for Shroff Travel, one of the sponsors.
Other sponsors included PAGCOR, PRA Philippines, Retirement Authority FICWSI, Swaadisht Manila, Rich Royal Indian Curry House, Flavours, HME Happy Manila Entertainment, MK Productions, Indian Cultural Association of the Philippines, Punjab Indian Grocery, Punjab Appliances Store, The Furr Project Animal Hospital, Ambica, Hilton Manila, Lulu Money, and Beyond Logistics Events.
