Belated birthday surprise

Friends and family of Buzz editorial assistant Pooja Salhotra surprised Pooja with a belated 25th birthday party at Xochi, only 11 months after her birthday. When Pooja turned 25 last September, she was in the midst of weighing whether to take a leave from Harvard Law School. Pooja’s mom, Poonam Salhotra, wanted to ensure Pooja still got a chance to celebrate this big birthday, so she worked with family and friends to plan the surprise. She even had Pooja’s friends saved under different codenames on her cell phone to make sure Pooja didn’t suspect anything. Pooja thought she was going to dinner with her family, but when she entered Xochi, the room was filled with her friends, including St. John’s School graduates Mary Helen Johns, Elyse Lopez, Meredith Rae, Tarika Khaladkar and Gaby Santiago, as well as Pooja’s two college roommates who flew in from St. Paul and New York City for the special occasion. After enjoying dinner, drinks and special toasts from family and friends, Pooja danced the night away with her friends. Here, Pooja is pictured with her parents Atul Salhotra and Poonam Salhotra and older brother Raj Salhotra. Read more about Pooja’s decision to leave Harvard law school at “My Quarter-Life Crisis”. 

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