The Kahani Of: Ariana Nathani, Founder of Drinks First
This piece is a part of our “The Kahani Of…” series. Kahani means story in Hindi and we want to explore the many diverse and interesting stories of the South Asian diaspora.
Ariana grew up in an extremely diverse NYC, born and raised in Manhattan. Her background greatly shaped her perception of the world - her parents immigrated to the states from Mumbai, India in the 80’s when Ariana’s father got a scholarship to attend graduate school in the states. Ariana’s parents have a unique story too; her dad is Muslim and her mom is Jain - they met in undergrad in India and fell in love. Seven years later, they got married. The rest is history.
As she began her career after graduating from college, one conversation kept coming up amongst peers and friends - dating. We went on to talk about being South Asian women in 2023, dating, and being in our late 20’s, the expectancy of marriage, and growing up with immigrant parents. It becomes difficult for us to open up about our dating lives with parents, but at the same time, they’d like to see us move forward with “the one”. But as we know, dating is hard. People play games. Sometimes, both sides aren’t on the same page. We hear horror stories from our girl friends. How do we go about this?
Ariana set out to create a safe space for everybody - South Asians and non South Asians alike - to meet others. Her brand, Drinks First, started as a podcast with just friends and people within Ariana’s community first. During the pandemic, people were craving online communities to relate to and be a part of. Drinks First became that - and after getting some traction, Ariana created a mini-series on NYC influencers and their dating experiences in the city. The series gained a few more eyes, and around the same time, Ariana won a giveaway with a beverage brand. A coincidence, it turned out that Ariana and the founder had many mutual friends, and they came up with an idea to host an event. She pitched her idea to Soho House, and she was able to host the first event at Ludlow house on May 1st of 2021. The event included a live panel, interviews, and blind date opportunities. This event was a major success, and Ariana immediately saw the benefits of throwing such events - for both people in her community, and those seeking to meet new individuals. As time went on, more brand partnerships happened for Drinks First, and the podcast gained more traction. Ariana was able to craftily build a safe space for those interested in romantic connections, but also created a safe space for all - regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, and more.
Being very inclusive did not mean Ariana was going to neglect her South Asian roots. It dawned upon her that in a melting pot like New York City, she was always joining her Jewish friends for Shabbat dinners and celebrating Hanukkah with them or celebrating Lunar New Year with her Asian American friends. However, she realized she was turning down hang outs because she had a Diwali dinner to go to with her parents instead of inviting her friends to partake in the fun and cultural experience like she was for their respective traditions. So she then took it upon herself to throw a Drinks First Diwali party, where she really tapped into the strong and diverse South Asian community in New York and was able to expose people from other backgrounds to a beloved South Asian holiday. Having someone like Ariana to connect people in a space like nightlife and dating really brings South Asian culture in a more open light that feels like it has been missing a bit.
What pleasantly surprised her also, was that people didn’t only meet for dating purposes - folks had the opportunity to connect with like minded individuals they would become friends with, work with, and find a safe community with. Because individuals are attending these events with a purpose, the energy tends to be more positive, inclusive, and uplifting. And we’ll have to say, Ariana’s energy exudes exactly that! It’s not like a tradition bar or club scenario where people are already with people they know - at Drink’s First, everyone is eager and more inclined to get to know one another and Ariana has accomplished facilitating such a welcoming and safe space to do so. We also don’t see many women who look like Ariana doing what she does, in a city like NYC and it’s about time we not only take up the space, but allow everyone into it, too. We can’t wait to see where Drinks First goes!
Follow Drinks First on instagram
Listen on spotify, apple podcasts and audible