New York Diary

ChatGPT, ChaatGPT, Chaat BOTs – and Amitabh Bachchan too!

In this AI-driven age, we all know what is ChatGPT – but do you know what is ChaatGPT? It is an AI-powered Holi celebration combining food, play, and ideas. Eat chaat—India’s iconic street food—and generate your very own combination of chaat condiments & add-ins with an open-source ChaatBOT, based on your personality and tastes.

All this action is happening at the Museum of the Moving Image (MOMI) in Queens where on Sunday, March 8 from 2 pm to 4 pm ChatGpt and ChaatGPT will come together in a delicious free community event where you get to eat chaat and learn about AI.

Playful yet serious, the program includes a short workshop, presented by artist Prashast Thapan, examining how open and closed AI models differ, with attention to transparency and data literacy. Rather than promoting any platform, the event invites participants to better understand how these systems work and the choices available when deciding whether and how to engage with them.

You have to RSVP for the AI workshop at 3 pm.  Chaat is provided by Maa Ka Dhaa ( love the name!) and available first come, first served.

There is also music and dance for the family because this is a Holi celebration. And because the song Rang Bharse adds so much to any Holi celebration, there is a screening of the classic Bollywood film Silsila starring Amitabh Bachchan, Rekha, Jaya Bachchan and Shashi Kapoor. (Tickets required).

This is part of MoMI LAB, the Museum of the Moving Image’s new initiative dedicated to AI and emerging technologies, and Open Worlds 2026.

Schedule of activities:

2:00–4:00 p.m. ChaatGPT personality test plus free chaat and chai

2:00–4:00 p.m. Holi crafts and celebrations

3:00–3:30 p.m. AI workshop: “Open Source for an Open World” with Prashast Thapan. RSVP recommended, limited space available.

Special Guest: 

Prashast Thapan is the founder of Pariah Interactive a creative studio shaping contemporary digital culture. 

4:00 p.m.: Stay for a screening of the 1981 Bollywood classic Silsila.

So get started on your Holi celebrations early, while the snow still lingers in New York.

More details at https://movingimage.org/event/chaat-gpt/

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