President's Message - Satyanarayana Pooja 2021

Namaskaru. 

Welcome to our annual Sarvajanik Satyanarayan Pooja. 

I would like to start by acknowledging the traditional custodians of the land on which we are gathered today and pay respect to their elders, past, present & emerging.

Today’s Pooja marks the start of a milestone year for the Konkani Association of Australia, being the 10th year since its inception back in 2011. The Association has evolved over the years under the stoic leadership of our past presidents Anita Prabhu, Ajit Dongerkeri, Naveen Shenoy and Athin Sujeer, who, along with their respective committee members, have worked tirelessly to enrich the community. I Would like to acknowledge their achievements and congratulate them on a job well done. 

As you all know, 2020 has been a difficult year in more ways than one. As the global pandemic took over, so changed our way of life. Instead of the usual hustle bustle & panchadik that are synonymous with the Konkani community, I could never have imagined that we would have to limit the number of attendees at a pooja or ensure they socially distanced from each other. But we have to adapt and accept that a lot of things that we did or had taken for granted is no longer possible and that health and safety becomes a priority. 

Given the fluidity of the current situation, there has been a lot of uncertainty with regards to the hosting of community events, and this may continue until the rollout of the vaccine is completed. the most recent issue of our newsletter “AK”, outlines our event calendar for the year along with other articles, stories & some fun activities. Please save the event dates. Rest assured, the committee is working hard to plan & bring you as many events as possible in due course in a safe yet exciting manner. We are looking at this year as an opportunity to embrace & adopt new ways of doing things going forward.

This Satyanarayan pooja is one of the first events hosted by KAA, which we are streaming live to all members via youtube. This is one of the small initiatives made by the committee, to ensure that everyone can be a part of this pooja. This is also in line with our vision of involving everyone, with the right use of technology.

I would like to sincerely thank Anita & Ram Prabhu, who are the main sponsors of this Satyanarayan pooja. I  would also like to thank Atreya ji, who will be performing the pooja for us today. Thank you to all the other members & volunteers, who have helped out in various ways be it setting up the hall or preparing Sapath, made donations or helped with other pooja related activities. Thank you to Kamakshi Mai who will be doing the “Katha”, which I personally think is a blessing in itself for the community. Thanks to Naveen maam for what I am sure, will be some really great photographs that he will be taking. A big thank you to all present here & watching from home for having the patience to work closely with us, as we look to overcome challenges & ensure that the safety of the community is the highest priority. And last but not least- thank you to my team, the committee members of 2021…I have no words to describe your passion for this community and I Thank you from the bottom of my heart

Thank you all for your patience and understanding once again. If you have any further queries, do not hesitate to talk to one of the committee members.

Please enjoy the pooja, and may Lord Satyanarayana shower his blessing on us all. 

Best Regards,
Sanjay Kudva
President   |    Konkani Association of Australia    |    www.konkani.org.au