What do a child’s first birthday party, a black-tie dinner hosted by a foreign consulate, a pop-up sale and a hula-hoop workshop have in common? You can hold any of these events (and many more you can think of) in Ave 29’s Hughes Road event gallery or its soon-to-be launched extension in Santacruz.

Normally, a gallery is associated with art but, through Ave 29, 24 year-old Pia Shivdasani and 25 year-old Atmika Didwania play host to a wide range of events in space-starved Mumbai. “Usually when people host events, they either have to rent a banquet hall or a five-star hotel,” says Didwania. “Apart from the costs involved, both have a certain kind of look and feel to them which can’t be played around with much.” Their solution was to provide the city with an affordable and flexible alternative for people who wanted a fun, creative space for their events.