A glowing reminder of why people matter, not the place.

MAD Salons take place in a great, informal evening setting. The crowd is always eclectic, always interesting, and the conversation stirring to say the least. Above all, MAD Salons have the sort of culture positive atmosphere I hope will continue to grow and thrive here: where great people meet each other and ideas collide and multiply.

Have had the most stimulating discussions ever. The city seriously needs a space like this - where the air bristles with ideas and actually thrives on debates.

The MAD salons bring together an international mix of eclectic perspectives and fields of expertise. Anchored around a specific topic of discussion and featured presenter, MAD evenings both enlighten and entertain. The MAD format is an ideal extension of dinner party socializing, in that it allows designated speakers to substantively share their expertise with a receptive audience. Equally, presenters benefit from alternative perspectives on their topics and new lines of questioning. In a world of consensus opinions, MAD is an agent for intellectual cross-fertilization among those privileged to attend.

Susmita and Sid have the most excellent dinner parties and intellectual salons. They are reminiscent of the get-togethers in the movie Midnight in Paris. Being around them always makes me feel like anything is possible.

The MAD salons have filled a void sadly expressed in today's information-overloaded society. The average (elite) person consumes information in either bite-sized amounts (on one extreme) or in PhD dissertation-sized amounts (on another extreme) in an independent and/or academically siloed fashion. The MAD salons have brought experts and "armchairists" alike together for a refreshing exchange of concepts, ideas, and opinions which can only further inquiry and design. The conversations are always enlightening, sometimes controversial, and always conducted in a fashion where each person feels open to the opportunity to question and ideate in a more casual setting than one finds at more institutional talks.

A unique platform where art, science, business, food, cultural diversity and friendship come together. Everywhere else such a format would be snobbish and ostentatious, but not at MAD.

MAD is never trivial, always focused, and with an out of the box eye on the complex Indian reality.

In a world where most adult learning takes place at home alone with mouse in hand, it's the perfect antidote to sit in a presentation environment with an interesting speaker talking about his or her work. The Q&A at the end of each MAD allows one to round off the understanding of the subject matter and clear any doubts; but also to vigorously challenge the speaker and his or her proposition - something that would be harder in a more formal environment. On some occasions the Q&A can be longer than the talk itself - this is deeply satisfying. In a frenetic growth environment like we are experiencing, where time is [thought of as] money and the general societal focus is on doing, contemplation and thought triggering is all the more imperative and relevant.

MAD's by invitation only style and air of intellectual elitism conceals an idea whose time has come: real-time, face-to-face venues for friends and friends of friends to share knowledge and debate. Just like Facebook, MAD works on network power. The difference is that MAD brings it back to human scale: Real people discussing together at home. It is a TEDish cult for the new and the bright without the star-effect of the podium. One can interact horizontally with MAD’s guests. Multiplied a million times, the MAD format holds incredible potential for development of advanced forms of socialization and intellectual exchange.