Canada Day Kicks Off Summer in the City

Far-flung Konkani flock to Hamilton for festivities; About 1,700 delegates celebrate cuisine, art

Hamilton became home this weekend for 1,700 Konkani people living far away from their Indian motherland.

Celebrating their art, culture, language and distinctive cuisine at a three-day gathering at Hamilton Convention Centre, they've transplanted the Konkani region of southwest India to Steeltown. The event ends today.

A tiny ethnic group within India, the Konkani are thought to have settled in southwest India (centred around Goa) in the 11th century. Many Konkani are Hindus, but some were converted to Roman Catholicism by colonizing Portuguese. Others are Muslim.

The Konkani also have their own language.

Hamilton Place lobby looked like the arrivals lounge of a big-city airport as Konkani from across Canada, the United States, Australia and the Middle East greeted family and friends.

"We're especially grateful for the hospitality of Hamilton," said Sadanand Benegal, a retired mechanical engineer from Scarborough who decorated the convention centre for the festivities.

"We really feel well received here."

Ashok Bhatt, a chartered accountant from London and co-chair of the Konkani Sammelan (conference) 2006, said he knew immediately that when he first toured Hamilton Place, Hamilton was a better location for the biennial gathering than Toronto .

The stage, the acoustics, the number of rooms for seminars made it perfect, he said.

The icing on the cake was finding out that one of the cities Hamilton is twinned with is Mangalore, a city in the Konkani region on the Arabian Sea, about 700 kilometres south of Mumbai.

"Ram Kamath, president of the Hindu Samaj Temple, is a Konkani and he was instrumental in convincing everyone Hamilton was the place," Bhatt said. "He got everyone all fired up and really made us feel welcome."

This year's conference marked a number of firsts, noted Bhatt, including the largest-ever attendance, a record number of seminars and the first time it's been held in Canada.

Sushila Hebla has lived in Toronto since 1962. She made her first trip to Hamilton on the weekend for the conference. "I'm glad it wasn't in Toronto," she said. "This way, I get to stay in a hotel. Otherwise, I'd be entertaining guests in my home."

Among the 1,700 delegates are more than 200 youth aged 12 and under plus more than 400 people aged 12 to 32.

"We're very proud of that," said Bhatt, adding the secret to drawing young people to such gatherings is to provide them with opportunities to help organize the event.

A half-dozen committees were led by young people, Bhatt said, and a roster of youth activities included speed dating, a karaoke room, a night club gathering at the Sheraton hotel and a Konkani Idol contest.

A special treat for delegates is three days of Konkani cuisine, said co-chair Amita Bhatt, Ashok's wife. Konkani dishes do are not usually flavoured by traditional Indian spices such as coriander, cumin and fenugreek. They rely instead on coconut juice and coconut milk, similar to Thai food.

"We are teaching the convention centre guys in the kitchen," Bhatt said.

"They're really excited about learning this. They seem to relish it."