A moment from the recently concluded Jazz Festival in Kolkata, spearheaded by Desai and his organisation, Little i. Pic/Redbantoo

When intellectuals in Kolkata were nearly in tears that an iconic Jazz festival was about to be scrapped for the first time in 14 years since sponsors had backed out post demonetisation, Varun Desai stepped in to save the show. The 33-year-old entrepreneur and event manager found allies among cultural organisations and a music channel, and salvaged the event. He has big plans to develop partnerships at a national level to hold gigs across India that will focus on independent artistes as well as veterans. Excerpts from an interview.