Editorial…. Now even though the Paint it Red jingle is done, finnito the beat still lingers on. Feet tapping every which way and gobs yapping away; the Amchigello’s who attended this marquee event, are still living the dream. And why not for those 4 hours of finger licking, foot tapping time all Amchi problems and concerns were kept aside. I mean problems such as “Aaj dhampaara jevan kassale”, or “Vaigo aaji konna millecheka vochka”…. Aai shappath !!! Those are really afternoon alter-ing and imminent fight precursor type of questions. Those who did not attend a big Addi to all of them…. You missed a ball of fun, laughter and yumm jevan. Besides the lucky few even got to serenade in front of Zee News… So if you have lernt your lessons DON’T MISS a Program. Which brings me to the next point. Saunsar Padwo is fast approaching Sunday March 18

th. The early Pakshi tickets

for the April 7th event are out, so go on

Yo Amchi’s!!!, grab them before its too late. OKA entertainment quad has put together a great ensemble of talented Kokke’s and kokke-lets for you. Holllld on there…I can immediately sense the unease amongst Arvind, Satish, Yogish. … Assa re Jevan vari assa.. phikir not. More details on this sure winner inside. Gods have been super kind to us in Hog Town. While its been snowing Bears and Reindeers across the pond in Buffalo, Rochester and even in Trump town its been relatively quiet in Konkani land…. Okay New-market maybe an exception. The Kamath’s living there were anyways thought to be living with these Bears and reindeers and igloos…(angry face) With the last icicle melting one wouldn’t be surprised to see a few of us coming out in their kaccho’s and kind. That said the eternal Kokke snowbirds still think going south is warranted. They have indeed gone or going places down under. The Pai’s (Shivadas Maam- Sheetal Akka) and the Chikermane’s have decided to set sail in different occeans. WHY!!! A typical nosey Kokke question and a immediate explanation too… Sangille jagaddeche najj mohnu. While we are at it… Gurudatt Maam’s article on Gokarn would set you adrift on a nostalgic journey in the temple town of Gokarn. Re-plete with examples of life in the day of Gokarnian…do read his trave-logue inside. Jayshree Kamath our Non Resident Chef from Kerala has yet again given us a mouth-watering recipe of Buns an all time Konkani fav. If this does not tickle your appetite what will. Voices come back loud and clear when Amma used to announce to us when Buns were made…. Nostalgia revisited. Jai Ho! Niranjan Kamath

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

Editorial ..............................1

President’s Message ...........2

Ugadi Vaibhav 2018 ...........3

Culture ................................4

Amchi Food Korner ............6

Life & Times in Gokarn ......7

Youth Corner ......................10

Announcement ...................11

Founder of Somnitude .......13

Our Sponsors………………….15

Contact Us:

ontariokonkani@gmail.com

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Volume III Issue March - 2018

Dear OKA family, Namaskaru! A very happy Ugadi/ Sansarpadvo to all of you! As all of us prepare for the new year of the Konkani community, it brings to my mind a very famous quote that we grew up listening to (with the English translation): Om Sarveshaam Svastir-Bhavatu | Sarveshaam Shaantir-Bhavatu | Sarveshaam Purnnam-Bhavatu | Sarveshaam Manggalam-Bhavatu | Om Shaantih Shaantih Shaantih || May there be Well-Being in All, May there be Peace in All, May there be Fulfilment in All, May there be Auspiciousness in All, Om Peace, Peace, Peace. I hope you have marked your calendars for April 7th Ugadi celebrations. We have planned a delicious Konkani menu and entertainment for you. The details are on our website as well as Facebook page. Please register online. You can sit and chat and enjoy delightful entertainment planned for you meticu-lously by Lakshmi & Vikram and enjoy the delicious food carefully selected by Nandita Yedery. Ugadi will be during the day – A luncheon event at the SVBF(Sringeri Temple)

We are looking forward to seeing all of you and enjoy the event together! Happy Ugadi/Sansarpadvo!

Divya & Ravi Nayak President Ontario Konkani Association

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PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

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UGADI VAIBHAV 2018

HTTP://WWW.ONTARIO-KONKANIS.COM/

EVENTS/UGADI-VAIBHAV

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Gudi Padwa -Vikram Samvat 2075

Sunday March 18th 2018

Pratipada Tithi Begins = 18:41 on 17/Mar/2018 Pratipada Tithi Ends = 18:31 on 18/Mar/2018

Gudi Padwa, chiefly observed in Maharashtra and Konkan Ghats of India maps is considered as the as the first day of the year. As per the old beliefs, it is the start of new Samvatsara, a cycle of sixty years. All sixty Samvatsara have distinct names.

As per the Lunisolar calendar, Gudi Padwa is the New Year for people of Maharashtra. New Year is the start of fresh energy and prosperity, thus, by observing this festival people welcome the spar-kling new zest in their life. It signifies the onset of the month of Chaitra Month which is the month to sow seed for new crop. As harvesting are a chief profession and a vital aspect of people’s lives, the importance of this festivals increase by manifolds. Furthermore, it also represents the triumph of King Shalivahanaover Sakas who was raised by his followers when he was back to ‘Paithan’.

This day has great significance, as it is believed that Lord Brahma created the Universe. Every year this day marks an importance in the heart of people. Many events and gatherings will take place on this day. This day makes people forget their mistakes and people forgive other.

While in Maharashtra and Konkan areas it is celebrated as Gudi Padwa, the same festival takes the name of Ugadi when it comes to Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.

India is known for its culture and festivals; in fact, the nation is called the land of festivals. Gudi Padwa is the main festival of Maharashtrians which is celebrated as New Year of Maharashtrians. Gudi Padwa is the Marathi term that replicates the concept of Chaitra Shukla Pratipada or the first days of the Chaitra month (March – April) which also marks the New Year as per the lunisolar Hin-du calendar.

The term Padva comes from the Sanskrit term Paddavo meaning the first day of the waxing phase of the lunar month. This auspicious festival marks the New Year for all Maharashtrians including all Konkani’s (who call it Saunsaar Padva) and is widely celebrated in India. This year Gudi Padwa falls on 18th March 2018.

Gudi

On this day, devotees take a wooden stick and cover it with a piece of red or yellow coloured cloth. Later on, they place a Kalash which is made up of copper, silver or bronze over the stick, called as ‘Gudi’. They place this Gudi outside their door and hoist it at a height. Neem leaves is also hung along with Gudi at the door and people relish the sugar candy, called Saakhar Gaathi.

As per belief, the long ‘Gudi’ symbolises victory and inspires people to prosper materially and spirit-ually. One of the important food items on this festival is a paste of Neem and Jaggery. Ladies wake up early morning and draw intricate patterns with rangoli powder, diyas and flowers in front of their homes, in their gardens and courtyards. They wear new clothes and enjoy family gatherings. Dur-ing the evening of Gudi Padwa, a Lezim (a traditional Maharashtrian folk dance) is also performed.

CULTURE

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Savouries and Foods eaten

Mouth-watering dishes like Puran Poli, Shrikhand, Aam Panha (refreshing mango drink), Gulab Jamun and the dough for Puri are prepaid. Maharashtrian families also make the traditional dish of Shrikhand – Poori for the celebration of Gudi Padwa. Apart from this, the sweet dish called Puran poli is also a common delicacy for Gudi Padwa. The day is also believed to be auspicious for ‘vaastu puja’ and opening new business establishments. On this day, several processions are also taken out.

Gudi Padwa Puja The procedure of the puja plays the significant role in the celebration of any festival. Here is how the Gudi Padwa should be performed: Material required: Bamboo casing, copper pot, yellow or green colure cloth, mango and Neem leaves, flower garland, Lord Brahma idol. Here’s what is done:

The devotees take an oil bath in the morning before offering their prayers to the almighty. Scriptures suggest that oil bath removes all the impurities from your body and makes it pristine.

A rangoli should be made at the entrance of your house, at the puja place along with a swastika of Haldi and Kumkum.

The puja should be performing with all your family members and in the right corner of the house.

Place the bunting of mango and Neem leaves at the top of your doors.

Make a Gudi for the puja. To make the Gudi, first, take the bamboo stick of medium length and place the green or yellow cloth on the very tip of the stick. Tie few Neem and mango leaves around the cloth. Next, tie a garland of red flowers along with a few sugar crystals. A cleaned copper or silver inverted pot should be placed over the cloth. Your Gudi is ready and places it on the right side of the entrance of your home.

Once the Gudi is placed, chant the mantras of Lord Brahma and do prayer.

After the puja, distribute the prasad to everyone.

The phrase of Gudi padwa includes few Neem leaves and flowers, soaked dal, a tsp. of honey, a few cumin seeds (jeera), and a pinch of Hing (asafoetida).

The puja gets complete only when you drink the water from the inverted pot next morning

By Mysore N Sudhakar Kamath

Adapted from: Mijaaj.com, https://www.drikpanchang.com › Calendars › Hindu Calendar

CULTURE

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AMCHI FOOD KORNER

Buns Rotti

By Jayashree Kamath

WHAT YOU NEED: (makes 24 pieces)

All purpose flour/ Maida 1 1/2 cups

Sugar 8 tsp

Banana, over ripe, 1

Salt

Soda bi carb a little

Butter milk to make dough

Oil to fry

HOW TO MAKE :

Sieve Maida, soda bi carb and salt together.

In a little warm water melt the sugar, mash the banana and add.

Add Maida in the sugar water and slowly adding buttermilk. Prepare a soft dough, like chappati dough.

Keep this dough covered for 4-6 hours. (I kept this dough overnight, it came out so soft and fluffy)

Divide this dough in to 24 parts and make small balls.

Roll out each ball applying some Maida, in to 4-5 inch diameter, like poories but thick ones. Otherwise the dough will stick on both the roller and board.

Heat kadahi with enough oil. When it is hot, fry the rolled poories one by one. When you slide the poori in a hot oil, just press the poori inside the oil, several times with the spotted spoon, it helps the poori to become puffed. Take out the poories with spotted spoon and place them on a tissue paper

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By: Gurudutt Chikarmane During our hectic preparations and the lead up to 2006 Kokani Sammelan in Canada, my wife Shanta and I were with our dear friend Aruna Mallya Gupta, who edited the Sammelan souvenir. Over snacks and tea, the topic of life and times in Gokarn and the Kanaras (Karwar district known as North Kanara or Uttar Kannada in Kannada language, and Man-galore district known as South Kanara or Dakshin Kannada) came up. Aruna suggested I write about it for the souvenir, which neither Shanta nor I could get around to it given our other responsibilities. Gokarn lies on a cul-de-sac on the Arabian Sea off the NH 17 (I believe it is now renum-bered as NH 66), about 60 km south of Goa border. Gokarn is an ancient habitat men-tioned the Ramayana, an epic that runs through the heart and soul entire Indian sub-continent from Tibet (Mount Kailash in the Himalayas) to Sri Lanka. Ravana, the king of Sri Lanka, had assiduously prayed at Kailash Parbat and acquired the Atma Linga of Lord Shi-va. The gods appear to have conspired to take the Atma Linga back by sending Ganapati to do the deed! I love our mythology; even our Gods are as devious as any of us! Ganapati tricked Ravana with a promise to look after the Atma Linga while Ravana per-formed his evening prayers (Sandhyavandan), and then promptly placed it on the ground. The mythological properties of Atma Linga are said to be such that once on the ground it takes deep roots (God's outreach to Pataal!) and cannot be dislodged. Thus Gokarn be-came the home to the earthly abode of Lord Shiva, and the Mahabaleshwar temple as a pilgrimage centre for Shiva devotees. If one has to bear witness to what life was in pre-industrial agrarian societies and how one could leapfrog into post-industrial life with internet and smart phones within just one gener-ation, one has have to lived in places like Gokarn in late 1940s and the decades immedi-ately after. My family had lived there since early 1700s, when my 9th generation ancestor moved there from Ikkeri in Shimoga district. It seems he was a senior official in the Keladi kingdom at Ikkeri, a protectorate of the larger Vijayanagar Empire. Anecdotally, he had a large house there; and thus the name Chikarmane (small palace in Kannada!).

LIFE & TIMES IN GOKARN

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For centuries life had not changed much in Karwar district unlike in Mangalore district. Electrification, paved roads and the formal English education pioneered by missionaries with the attendant proselytizing zeal came to Mangalore (or Kodial as we called it) in mid to late 19th century. Mangalore was connected by railway with Kozhikode (Calicut) in Kerala and with Chennai (Madras) from there by 1907. Thus Mangalore and surrounding areas rapidly modernised, and armed with English education Konkanis started their inexorable migration to Chennai and beyond. In comparison, Karwar district remained frozen in time. An added quirk to this was the Karwar district was part of the then state of Bombay, which included the current state of Gujarat, western Maharashtra and four districts of North Karnataka (Karwar, Dharwad, Belgaum and Bijapur). Mangalore was part of the then Madras state. The predominantly Kannada (and Konkani) speaking districts of the Bombay state were the stepchildren that received scant attention, if any, in terms of development. Pre-industrial agrarian society implies self contained living on all locally produced commodities with minimum trade (and contact) with the outside world. A classic village economy. Until late 1930s, when Chitrapur Transport started by Mirjankar brothers began a semblance of scheduled bus service between larger towns, only means of transport was the bullock cart to nearest ports of Karwar or Tadadi or Kumta or Honavar, and Steam ship service by Sabarmati Lines to Bombay. When my uncles went to Bombay for their university education in the 1920s, it was a three day journey for a distance of about 700 km; a four hour bullock cart ride to port of Tadadi, a creaky/leaky wooden tender (Machvo) to the ship, the 36 hour sailing on the ship that stopped at every port, and the seemingly interminable waits in between. Needless to say there was no service during the monsoon season! I vividly remember the Chitrapur transport buses and the rides. My uncles used to call these contraptions Chakra Asshili Vali Mantavu! Vali Bhajji is a local creeper vegetable that needs supporting hand made trellis (Mantavu) to grow. The buses with hand cranked smoke spewing gasoline engines, wooden benches for seats, doors and windows held together with nails and jute strings, bald tires that had flats at least once every trip, resembled Vali Mantavu (Trellis) indeed! Nonetheless this was progress. Gokarn and other near by towns of Kumta, Honavar were finally connected to Hubli, the nearest railway station in 1950, with a 6 to 8 hour 160 km bus ride. One could get to Bombay from Gokarn now in about 30 hours by bus and train. No more Sabarmati steam ships! I do vividly remember to this day my first trip to Mumbai (Bombay as it was known then) in 1954. Along with this came sporadic availability of Ghattavaili Randaikai, vegetables from beyond the Western Ghats. While from October to May, there was an abundance locally grown vegetables and of course fresh fish from the sea, the monsoon months would indeed be very lean. One had to plan for monsoon by preparing and storing pumpkins, pickles and tubers like Alva Maddi, and dried fish. Now with regular transport, those who could afford could get potatoes, cauliflower, cabbage and similar vegetables not local to the west coast around the year!

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Chitrapur Transport did provide this valuable service until state transport company integrated the service later in the decade. Electricity did not come to Karwar district until 1964, except the town of Karwar where sometime earlier an enterprising businessman set up a diesel generating station and electrified the town. It was a tourist site for our school excursions! We did our homework under kerosene lamps that required an daily evening ritual of cleaning the glass domes and trimming the wicks. Of course there was no telephone. Only technology was the telegraph service at the local post office where we watched in wonder as the postmaster clicked away Morse code and wrote down messages that came back. One Nadkarni family brought the first radio to the town in early 1950s. This radio had a battery the size of a small suitcase and an antenna spiked up higher that some cell towers of today! Small crowds would gather outside their window every Wednesday evening to listen to Radio Ceylon! This relative lack of modernity compared to rest of the country, in no way hindered our core Konkani values – pursuit of education, love of learning, appreciation of arts and music, and enterprise and egalitarian beliefs. Of course we had our feudal systems and rigid social hierarchies. In retrospect, in comparison to rest of the country, I do believe these were benign and far less pernicious than elsewhere. The feudal system was more of a social contract where the “tenants” (those who lived on lands owned by us) would provide us with free labour and a part of produce they worked on, and in turn we would be responsible for their well being in every aspect. I remember my mother spending sleepless nights to attend to their illnesses, to child births and to sorting their marital problems, and my father and uncles berating them to send their children to school. A testament to this symbiotic relationship is the warmth with which we were received when we visited them in Gokarn after several decades of leaving the place. I left Gokarn in 1961 and we closed our establishment there in 1976. We were there in 2006/2007 for an extended period. Change has come there as everywhere – mostly for good and some for not so good. There is all around prosperity, people are better dressed, appear better nourished, more educational and employment opportunities are open, you can get to Mumbai and other major cities overnight either by rail or road, there are cell phones, internet and so on. The class/caste system is breaking down, albeit slowly, as seen by non-Brahmin names on honour roll at my old high school. There is the flip side too. In my childhood in absence of light and air pollution, I remember sitting on the Gokarn beach at night and seeing brilliantly lit sky full of trillions of stars. It is no longer so. There is the brown haze in the sky, the ubiquitous plastic and packaging material trash on the streets, and like most Indian towns of that size, there is no trash collection or public sanitation system. But then progress comes in fits and starts, and this too shall change. As the Greek philosopher Heraclitus said in 500 BC, change is the only constant in life. And we Konkanis more than anyone else I believe, have embraced change for the better. I can say this confidently seeing our next generation that has come of age here in Canada and in the United States doing so well in all walks of life. Tomorrow will always be better than today!

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YOUTH CORNER

Where the Stars Allign….. By: Pranav Kamath Gr.10, Richmond Green S.S Soccer is one of the most popular sports in the world and the sport has millions of fans around the world. Ever since I was 5, I’ve been in love with this sport and slowly I graduated from house league to represent the town of Richmond Hill on their Rep team. This summer, the long wait of 4 years is coming to an end when this world renowned tournament kicks off The FIFA World Cup. A look back at FIFA - Every 4 years, the world’s best athletes join together in one country to fight for the 18 karat gold trophy which is valued at an excess of 8 million dollars! The first world cup took place in Uruguay in 1930 and ever since then, the tournament is held every 4 years in different places around the world. However there was a gap in 1940’s where the World Cup was halted due to World War II. During the 1950 World Cup, India was ejected from the tournament due to the fact that they wouldn’t wear appropriate soccer cleats while facing other teams in the early stages. While the 1966 world cup was commencing, the World Cup trophy was stolen at a 24 hour surveillance museum. After a long and tiresome investigation, the police forces still couldn’t find the priceless trophy, but they were overjoyed when one of the locals found the trophy in an alleyway, thanks to their dog who discovered it. The World Cup is one of the biggest spectacle in the world and the final game in 2014 be-tween Argentina and Germany was viewed by over 1 billion people! This year - July 16th, the world’s most famous tournament starts with the host nation, Russia facing Saudi Arabia. The matches will be split in various Russian cities such as Moscow, St. Petersburg and Kazan. The favourites to win the current tournament are the champions, Germany. Germany have won a total of 4 world cups and their team is very experienced and diversified in every posi-tion. Another tournament favourite is Brazil. They have world class players such as Neymar Jr. and Coutinho. Following their 7-1 defeat to Germany in the last World Cup, the players would want revenge as they try to get their hands on the trophy in Russia, this summer. Ar-gentina are also tipped to win the tournament due to the fact that they have one of the best players in the world, on their team – Lionel Messi. Messi is 31 this year and this might be his last year to participate in the World Cup tournament. He is going to be very determined to win a trophy with his nation. Portugal is very much in the run for the cup as well. The main reason being, Portugal have won the European Tournament in the summer of 2016. Throughout the tournament, there are several wild card teams such as Iceland, who are the smallest nation to ever qualify and Sweden who knocked out Italy in the qualification stages. So this summer, you should follow the most exciting competition in the world and experience the culture and different shocks the tournament has to offer. The World cup runs through July and August and the players that partake in the tournament show a high degree of passion and desire to lift the famous trophy at the end. This is going to be an exciting summer for all sports lovers! All the best to the team you support!

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ANNOUNCEMENT

Surekha Shenoy

Surekha Shenoy is a highly successful former executive in the Financial Services industry with extensive experience in credit risk management, collections, fraud, business proposals, and program management. Surekha has over 12 years of experience in the Banking industry with accomplishments in loss reductions, revenue enhancements, channel productivity, strategic vision, and project management. Her education includes a bachelor’s degree in Engineering (India), M.Sc. in Industrial Systems Engineering from University of Regina, and an MBA in Finance and Operations from Wilfrid Laurier University. Surekha lives in Cambridge with her husband Revi and their two daughters Ankita and Anoosha. She is a strategic thinker and is known for her leadership skills in leading and motivating people. She is a strong believer in an inclusive society and was actively involved in advancing the diversity files for Visible Minorities and the Indigenous Peoples while working at TD. She was also a mentor at the Toronto Region Immigration Employment Council (TRIEC) helping new immigrants successfully integrate into the workforce. Surekha is extremely passionate about giving back to the community, and has demonstrated the hard work needed to produce effective results. Since 2011, Surekha serves on the Cambridge Memorial Hospital Foundation Board (CMHF). She has championed many initiatives at CMHF from building strategies and fundraising for the WeCareCMH Capital Campaign, to organizing Community Outreach Diversity Dinners by engaging diverse community groups to build a better community. Surekha is currently the Past Chair of CMHF. In addition to serving on the CMHF Board, she also volunteered for the City’s Friendly Visiting program, was a mentor for Leadership Waterloo Region’s ‘Youth on Board’ program, is co-chair of the East Indian Community Walkathon of Waterloo Region that has raised over $250K for various charities, volunteers for the Trinity Community Table (Soup Kitchen), and fundraises for the Cambridge Self Help Food Bank. Raised in Puttur, South Kanara district in Karnataka, Surekha came to Regina, Saskatchewan as a young student to do her Masters in Engineering, and while studying there she met her husband Revi, a Keralite who was doing his Ph.D. in Engineering. They later moved to Newfoundland, and finally made their home in Waterloo region in 1995 to be close to her sister (Padma Kamath) and her family. Surekha is a lifetime member of the Ontario Konkani Association and the Grand River Malayalee As-sociation (GRMA). She has encouraged her daughters to be immersed in the Konkani and Malayalee cultures by performing at the Diwali and Onam functions over the years. After the passing of her mom (Sharada Shenoy), Surekha decided to bring her dad (Moolky Satyanarayana Shenoy) to Cambridge to live with her family. With a successful career in the corporate world as Associate Vice-President, Business Banking for TD, Surekha did not hesitate to give it all up to care for her father once his health deteriorated. After the passing of her dad in August of 2017, and the void it left in her life, Surekha has embarked upon serving her community as the candidate for MPP of the Ontario Liberal Party in the Kitchener South-Hespeler riding.

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“It would be my privilege and honour to be the first immigrant Konkani woman at Queen’s Park,” says Surekha. Please help her get there. You can support in many ways: volunteer, canvass, fundraise, or donate to her campaign. Please use the link below to donate to the Kitchener South-Hespeler riding: . https://secure.ontarioliberal.ca/donation?r=2049 Please note: only individual donations are allowed as per Elections Ontario regulations with a max of $1200/year. The first $400 will provide a 75% tax credit, and the remaining $800 will provide a 50% tax credit. Any donation of any amount is much appreciated.

"Building a stronger and fairer community - together"

Website: www.votesurekha.ca

Twitter: @votesurekha

Facebook: votesurekha

Instagram: @votesurekha

Email: info@votesurekha.ca

Phone: 519-654-3298

Page 13

AMOL RAO : OUR VERY OWN KONKANI ENTREPRENEUR, FOUNDER OF SOMNITUDE.

For most of his life, Amol had difficulty with sleep. He would stay up late and always have a tough time getting out of bed. He would feel tired during the day. He concluded from his research that the root cause may include the use of devices that we all take for granted : cell phones, TV, Laptops, iPads et al, as well as our in home lighting (for example LED lights) that emit light at all hours of the day. He found a solution that would change his life and drive him to help others who have similar issues with sleep. First the problem: the timing of sleep is determined by something known as the circadian rhythm. This rhythm is internally generated but depends on environmental inputs to keep aligned with the world. The most important input is light. Light during the day is good, but light at night is bad. Specifically a wavelength of light known as `blue light`. If we are exposed to blue light at night, we prevent our bodies from properly preparing for sleep. This then causes us to have a poorer night of sleep and wake up feeling more tired. The Solution: Amol discovered that he could improve his sleep by using glasses with specialized filters that removed blue light. These glasses are worn in the evening and filter light from not only electronic devices but also overhead lighting. Having successfully used the solution himself, he determined that there was both an opportunity to use his own beneficial experience to help others, and to fulfil his aspiration to become an entrepreneur. Thus Somnitude was born. It is an online business that has been growing slowly but steadily over the past 3 years. During this time, Amol went back to school again to do his Masters in Industrial Engineering at the University of Toronto, and his business venture was welcomed by their Accelerator 'Impact Centre', which promotes research and business among its members. In 2016, his company was sought out by one of the leading lacrosse teams from the US, and he was invited (during their Toronto training camp) to make a presentation on the impact of blue light, and how their performance could be improved by using Somnitude glasses. Amol has received the backing and endorsement from the independent Canadian experts in the field of sleep science. He recently addressed over 70 medical professionals from a the leading Sleep Clinic in Canada. Amol’s journey lead him to realize that the science of circadian rhythms can be applied to many problems related to sleep. He recently launched Chronoshift, a mobile application that helps people travel without jet lag. The app is available for iOS and Android. Another Konkani youth, Yash Kini (Vanita & Sujeet's son), worked with Amol to build and publish the app.

Page 14

The crowing glory was when the Canadian Olympians reached out to Amol at the behest of Dr. Amy Bender, a leading sleep scientist at the Centre for Sleep and Human Performance, based out of Calgary. She selected Somnitude from among many options and specifically recommended them to the athletes she interacts with, include the Olympic Team for Freestyle Ski. The elite athletes were provided with Somnitude glasses to help them sleep better and adjust to jet lag in an Olympic village 14 hours ahead of Toronto. Amol will track the impact of the glasses on the team’s sleep for six months after they re-turn home. After that news broke, Somnitude received a lot of positive attention in the media, and has appeared in print, news and radio (see links below). We are incredibly proud of Amol's achievement, and so is everyone else who has heard about it, both in the Konkani community and elsewhere. RANA president Mahendra Bhandari wrote to me " ....this is inspiring for our community and specially for younger generation!! ". We hope this is just the begin-ning and his venture will kick into high gear now. We are confident that the best wishes of KAO, and the blessings of its elders are with him on this journey. Check out following links : https://blueblockglasses.com/ http://www.metronews.ca/news/toronto/2018/02/05/how-a-toronto-start-up-is-helping-canadian-athletes-in-pyeongchang-cope-with-jet-lag.html http://toronto.citynews.ca/video/2018/02/08/canadian-olympians-testing-out-glasses-to-promote-sleep/ https://omny.fm/shows/calgary-today-with-angela-kokott/jet-lag-glasses http://www.impactcentre.ca/imc-news/somnitude-launches-chronoshift-to-combat-jet-lag/ https://www.msn.com/en-ca/video/watch/how-glasses-developed-at-u-of-t-are-helping-canadian-olympians-in-south-korea-sleep/vp-BBIStxt & https://www.mie.utoronto.ca/this-engineering-startup-is-giving-canadas-olympic-skiers-a-fresh-edge/

Our Sponsors:

A big Thank you to our Sponsors! For sponsorship opportunities, please

contact Ravi/Divya Nayak at ontariokonkani@gmail.com

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Page 15

Century Private School w as founded in 1994, w ith the Ontario Departm ent of

Education Registration Certificate. Century Private School offers an enriched curriculum

based on the Montessori Method from 2.5 up to age 6, and an enriched version of the On-

tario Ministry of Education curriculum up to grade 12. Century Private School graduates

and alumni are now enrolled in prestigious universities of their choice.

Century Private School has been established for over 20 years, and holds a high reputation

amongst the local community. Century Private School is known for its excellent education-

al quality, combined with the unique Montessori educational philosophy.

Century Private School offers personalized teaching, low students/teacher ratio with small

size classes. As a prestigious private school, Century Private School provides top-notch

preparation for post-secondary studies, structured curriculum, emphasis on specialties like

art, music, French and physical education, enriched and focused on academic quality. Cen-

tury Private School also customized program for children who are gifted or have special

needs. With diversified After- School programs such as Taekwondo, Chess, Golf, Robotics,

Badminton, Zumba and many others, Century Private School provides an all-rounded envi-

ronment to build the character of the children with solid foundation for their future suc-

cess.

https://www.centurypscanada.com/

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