New Delhi, Oct. 19 -- Manish Mehrotra will be taking Indian festive flavours to an international audience when he travels to Singapore with his team in the coming weeks to curate a Diwali celebration at 67 Pall Mall, a private club. Back home in Delhi, his modern Indian restaurant Nisaba is preparing for a busy season, with private parties, intimate gatherings and catering orders lined up for Diwali. Across the restaurant industry, operators are looking to tap the growing demand for home celebrations, offering everything from hors d'oeuvres to curated menus and chef-curated party boxes and food orders for private gatherings. "Everyone has their own way of celebrating, and food is almost always at the heart of it," Mehrotra told Mint. The aim is to capture a larger share of festive spending as celebrations pick up pace at home after the Navratra season. Several chains said they are expecting a 3-7% increase in business in the December quarter, owing to an increase in private parties, typically of 30-50 people, at homes over the two-week period. In Mumbai, Bellona Hospitality, which operates restaurants across several cuisines, will focus on customized menus and food packages for home and corporate celebrations. Its brand, Ishaara, a modern Indian restaurant known for its inclusive dining format, as well as its pan-Asian and Italian restaurants, is expected to see strong growth. The company is looking at outdoor catering orders for groups of 30-120 guests, with prices starting at about Rs.1,500 per person. "People don't want the shebang of the whole restaurant coming over. We also make curated boxes, which cater to parties perfectly," said Prashant Issar, managing director of Bellona Hospitality and founder of Ishaara. He said the business typically involves parties of 25 or more guests, while per-person spending on these occasions has risen 18-22% year-on-year to Rs.1,500-5,500. Corporate meal boxes, priced at Rs.700-1,500, are another revenue stream, particularly when companies place high-volume orders....