After inviting suggestions from more than one lakh people across the country, India is set to take its nightlife to Canada and vice versa. As part of the Smirnoff Nightlife Exchange Project, the two countries will host these parties to give the other an experience of the nightlife in their country. A month-and-a-half into the planning, India’s party is ready, and was announced at a send-off party over the weekend.

“It’s quite spectacular,” says Nikhil Chinapa, curator of the project in India. Chinapa has been instrumental in shortlisting the best ideas submitted by fans online, and implementing them along with quite a few of his own. “Some of the ideas are really authentic,” he says. “They’ve sent in suggestions regarding food, decor, fashion, music and even movie clips that can be screened.”

A standout feature of India’s party will be a Bollywood-themed tent, where Canadians can dress like their favourite movie stars. Other features include visual projectors that will screen clips representing several common sights from across the country — the traffic, famous monuments, festivals, traditional dances and lots more. Chinapa jokes, “I’m trying to arrange for an elephant that can stand at the entrance with a ‘Horn OK Please’ sign on its head!”

Ask him what he’s expecting from Canada, and pat comes the reply: “Snow”. “I’d love for them to share with us something along the lines of skiing, ice hockey or snowboarding. They have some great musicians as well, DJ Sultan being one of them. It’s ironic because most people in India who have heard of him think he’s from here!”