Ethical & Efficacious LLC

Ashok Pai “Shoky”

Cultural Connector • Honky-Tonk Humanist • Builder of Experiential Community

Welcome — and thanks for stopping by.

My work lives at the intersection of art, movement, and human connection. After years spent moving through New York’s cultural, creative, and civic worlds — from Shanghai nights to Park Avenue Armory openings to Brooklyn dance floors — I’ve become interested in something much simpler and far more meaningful:

Spaces where people genuinely feel connected.

Today, I focus on building environments where rhythm, design, and community meet. Places where people rediscover presence, music becomes conversation, and the room itself feels alive.

Ethical & Efficacious LLC

Creative Projects • Cultural Consultancy • Experiential Design

Founded originally as a media and cultural strategy studio, Ethical & Efficacious LLC has evolved into the umbrella for all of my creative and community-building work. It now sits at the crossroads of:

• culture

• movement

• design

• community

• human-scale experience

E&E is where the projects I care about live — projects rooted in authenticity, artistic curiosity, and social connection.

Current Focus

I’m working on bringing a modern form of honky-tonk culture to New York City:

a space where live music, dance, design, and community blend into something immediate, warm, and surprisingly grounding.

This evolving work includes:

• experiential dance nights

• pop-up cultural gatherings

• live-music events

• cross-disciplinary collaborations

• projects exploring connection, rhythm, and communal energy

Somewhere between an art opening and a dance floor — that’s where I feel most at home.

HONKY TONK

A recurring dance series built around live country music, partner dancing, and shared floor etiquette.

Honky Tonk is a social dance series centered on real partner dancing, live country music, and a protected dance floor. Each night includes a free dance lesson, a roped-off floor, and a continuous live band set. The aim is simple: a room where people can actually dance together.

This series exists to preserve embodied social culture — shared movement, mutual awareness, and informal etiquette — at a time when much nightlife has become passive, performative, or screen-facing. Honky Tonk prioritizes participation over spectacle and creates space for genuine, in-person connection.

How it works

• A free dance lesson at the start of the night

• A roped-off dance floor to protect movement and flow

• Live country music, played as a continuous set

• Shared responsibility for keeping the floor clear and welcoming

Everyone is welcome. No prior dance experience required.

Currently hosted at Lucinda’s, launching with a special Monday edition on January 19, followed by recurring events every third Sunday of the month.

Created and hosted by Shoky Pai.

Past Cultural Work

These recent and past projects continue to inform the world I’m building today:

• Art Basel Miami Beach — facilitated a spontaneous, late-night pop-up installation at the Faena, blending light art, DJs, and improvised community

• Shanghai immersion, exploring creative subcultures, nightlife, and emerging trends in one of Asia’s most dynamic cultural cities

• Bennett Media Studio — supported international creative initiatives led by the former CEO of VH1/MTV Networks

• ROX Gallery (NYC) — contributed to atmosphere, social flow, and cultural programming during a formative era for Lower East Side art spaces

• Writing and civic engagement, including reflections on justice, community, and culture

These experiences form the foundation for my present work in creating human-scale environments where community can breathe.

Contact

For collaborations, cultural projects, or conversations, you can reach me at:

ashokpai@ethicalandefficaciousllc.com‍ ‍

Instagram: @shokypai

(A window into honky-tonk community, dance, and creative work.)