The Tamil Creator

Ara Ehamparam
  • 4.9 (25)
  • BUSINESS
  • UPDATED WEEKLY
The Tamil Creator

"The Tamil Creator" is a podcast started by me (Ara Ehamparam) to celebrate, spotlight and learn about the brilliance among creators in the global Tamil community, with the end product being a conversation that is equal parts educational, inspirational and entertaining.

  1. JUN 22

    EP #134: Meena Kothandaraman - Experience Strategist At twig+fish, Graduate Lecturer & Proud Canadian Bostonian

    Meena Kothandaraman ( @meena_ko ) is an Experience Strategist at twig+fish, UX Expert, a long-time graduate lecturer at Bentley University ( @bentleyu ) and a proud Canadian Bostonian. She joins Ara on this episode of #TheTamilCreator to discuss growing up in Ottawa with Indian-Tamil roots, how she enhances users experiences and the importance of connecting to peoples’ stories, how her & her business partner came up with the twig+fish name, why the education system needs to change, her creative endeavours (a children’s book and cooking show), and so much more. Follow Meena: - LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/meenakothandaraman/)     Timestamps 00:19: Ara introduces this week’s guest, Meena Kothandaraman 00:40: Meena speaks on her early childhood; the impact of her parents 03:29: Indian-Tamils and Sri-Lankan Tamils 05:09: Moving from Canada to the United States for education 06:40: Meena speaks on her siblings 08:02: What her parents did to strengthen Meena’s bond with her siblings 09:22: How she named her company and designation 14:40: Why she chose her career field; the rise of UX 18:22: Should you follow your passion or something you’re good at? 21:54: Balancing her entrepreneurial efforts and lecturing at Bentley University 25:51: Do both roles go hand-in-hand to bolster her credibility? 29:18: Meena explains the ‘NCredible Framework’ 32:07: Writing 10 children’s books and hosting a cooking show 39:29: Innately being an adventurer; wanting to try different things 40:17: Advice she would give her 16-year-old self 41:33: The legacy she wants to be remembered for by friends and family 42:42: Creator Confessions 55:57: Advice for Tamil creators 58:39: The Wrap Up Intro Music Produced And Mixed By: - The Tamil Creator - Yanchan Written By: - Aravinthan Ehamparam - Yanchan Rajmohan     Support the show

    59 min

  2. JUN 7

    EP #133: Siv Sivasamy - UK-Based Co-Founder Of The Mayfair Collective

    Sivathasan “Siv” Sivasamy ( @siv.sivasamy ) is the New Business Director at Charles Square as well as the UK-Based Co-Founder Of The Mayfair Collective, a trusted circle of family office advisors that builds business relationships with purpose. He joins Ara on this week’s episode of #TheTamilCreator to drop countless gems while discussing arranged marriages, why the Mayfair Collective was created, why modern day relationships are like microwave meals, how boredom can actually be a gift, the “let them” theory, having always been able to connect with people/how it naturally led him his career path, and so much more. Follow Siv: - LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/sivasamy/)     Timestamps 00:19 - Ara introduces this week’s guest, Siv Sivasamy 01:20 - Siv’s formative childhood years; from Sri Lanka to the UK 05:50 - Do arranged marriages have more longevity? 08:13 - Why he chose an arranged marriage 11:16 - Modern day relationship dynamics 13:49 - How the age of abundance leads to shallow perspectives 15:08 - Is boredom a gift? 16:37 - Men struggling to have deeper conversations/a loneliness epidemic 20:34 - Andrew Tate, Adolf Hitler, Donald Trump, Nigel Farage, etc. 26:44 - Losing the fine art of debate and why you can’t force people to change 30:01 - How he ended up with Charles Square, what he does, and more 40:25 - Mayfair Collective; what it is, how it works, and Ara gets rejected 47:51 - Siv hangs up on Ara and calls back? 51:41 - Creator Confessions 1:00:32 - The Wrap Up Intro Music Produced And Mixed By: - The Tamil Creator - Yanchan Written By: - Aravinthan Ehamparam - Yanchan Rajmohan       Support the show

    1h 2m

  3. MAY 17

    EP #132: Sujatha Sivarajah - Intrapreneur & Vice President at McKesson Canada

    Sujatha Sivarajah ( @sujatha_sivarajah ) is the Vice President of Strategic Execution & Operational Excellence for McKesson Canada ( @mckessoncanada ). She joins Ara on this week’s episode of #TheTamilCreator to discuss the significant impact of her parents while she was growing up, being a part of a graduating class that comprised only 10% females, building teams at multiple companies including LifeLabs and Sanofi, being a woman of colour in a male-dominated field, the importance of building a solid foundation, her fascination with history, and so much more. Follow Sujatha: - LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/sujatha-sivarajah-p-eng-80897a9/)    Timestamps 00:19 - Ara introduces this week’s guest, Sujatha Sivarajah 00:43 - Sujatha speaks on her upbringing; Jaffna, Ohio, Nigeria 02:19 - Sujatha’s dad being her mentor; advice for parents 06:08 - Being a woman of colour in a male-dominated field (Electrical Engineering) 9:52 - Her time at Ford during a recession in Canada; and then LifeLabs 17:11 - Leaving LifeLabs after 7 years to build another team; this time at Sanofi 21:10 - What is pharmaceutical manufacturing? 22:23 - Was the lack of pharmaceutical manufacturing during the pandemic true? 24:17 - What McKesson does, and what her role here is 26:13 - What Sujatha hopes to accomplish during her tenure at McKesson 27:34 - Her view on work-life balance 29:19 - Parkinson’s Law - work expands to the time allotted for it 30:35 - How she secured her roles; never saying “no” 40:24 - What she would have done in another life; anthropology or archaeology 42:13 - Advice she would give her 16-year-old self 44:02 - The legacy she wants to be remembered for by friends and family 45:25 - Creator Confessions 53:19 - The Wrap Up  Intro Music Produced And Mixed By: - The Tamil Creator - Yanchan Written By: - Aravinthan Ehamparam - Yanchan Rajmohan      Support the show

    54 min

  4. APR 6

    EP #131: Arunan Arulampalam - Mayor of Hartford (Connecticut)

    Arunan Arulampalam ( @mayorarunan ) is the Mayor of Hartford (Connecticut). He joins Ara on this week’s episode of #TheTamilCreator to discuss South Asian representation slowly growing in the politics, his parents’ belief that “no one would vote for someone with the last name, Arulampalam” because of the world they inherited and overcoming these underdog odds, being the CEO of a non-profit before running for mayor, his passion for Hartford, the importance of faith and family in keeping him rooted, and so much more. Follow Arunan: - Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/mayorarunan/)    Timestamps 00:19 - Ara introduces this week’s guest, Arunan Arulampalam 01:22 - Arunan’s thoughts on how the 2025 US Elections played out 03:34 - Arunan speaks on his childhood years; not realizing he’d end up in politics 06:43 - Politics being less openly discussed in today’s world 07:09 - College, love, career, and family; Atlanta, LA, and Hartford 08:43 - Why he loves Hartford; why you should visit 10:16 - Being the CEO of a non-profit before running for mayor 12:00 - His path to becoming mayor; beating the odds as an underdog 15:47 - What he wants to accomplish during his time as mayor 17:51 - His day-to-day as mayor; navigating a lack of time 19:28 - How he manages his energy through work and familiar priorities 21:20 - Family and faith dictating his decisions; staying humble 23:35 - His biggest learning lessons since becoming mayor 27:18 - What’s the Tamil-community like in Hartford? 29:25 - Advice he would give his 16-year-old self 30:17 - The legacy he wants to be remembered for by friends and family 30:51 - Creator Confessions 35:36 - The Wrap Up Intro Music Produced And Mixed By: - The Tamil Creator - Yanchan Written By: - Aravinthan Ehamparam - Yanchan Rajmohan     Support the show

    36 min

  5. FEB 23

    EP #130: Kamzy Gunaratnam - Norwegian Politician & Former Deputy Mayor Of Oslo

    Khamshajiny “Kamzy” Gunaratnam ( @kamzy_gunaratnam ) is a Member of Parliament in Norway and former Deputy Mayor of Oslo. She joins Ara on this week’s episode of #TheTamilCreator to discuss how she got recruited into politics, being elected (at a time) as the youngest Deputy Mayor in Oslo’s history, why taxes are a good thing for the collective, what she hopes to achieve in the next few years (minimizing domestic violence and securing abortion rights for women), the impact of Utøya (the 2011 Norway attacks) on her personally including losing her best friend, the benefit of her individuality as a Tamil girl while growing up, how Helen Keller’s biography showed her she has no room to complain, and so much more. Follow Kamzy: - Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/kamzy_gunaratnam/)   Timestamps 00:19 - Ara introduces this week’s guest, Khamshajiny Gunaratnam 01:09 - Kamzy’s early years; being shy before becoming a part of a Tamil Youth Organization 02:49 - The process of being a new immigrant in Norway; then versus now 05:27 - The Tamil community within Norway’s population of only 5,000,000 people 07:59 - How she became Deputy of Mayor at such a young age and why she got selected 10:57 - Shaping the vision and ambition for Oslo’s population of 700,000 people 14:33 - The radicalization of Norway/the country’s ability to positively leverage tax money 21:19 -  Utøya ; losing her best friend and re-thinking her career in politics 25:16 - The motivation behind the  Utøya  shooter 26:15 - Hoping to minimize domestic violence/help women obtain abortion rights 30:59 - The biggest learning session she’s experienced in the past three to five years;  35:12 - Advice she would give her 16-year-old self 37:38 - The personal legacy she wants to be remembered for by friends and family 39:33 - Creator Confessions 47:12 - The Wrap Up Intro Music Produced And Mixed By: - The Tamil Creator - Yanchan Written By: - Aravinthan Ehamparam - Yanchan Rajmohan       Support the show

    48 min

  6. FEB 9

    EP #129: Hari Mahesh - Founder Of ar•ram•bam & Director (New York) Of The Knowledge Society (TKS)

    Hari Mahesh ( @harimahesh ) is Founder of ar•ram•bam ( @arrambam__ ), a modern third space for the next generation of Tamils and Southern South Asians, as well as the Director of the New York Chapter for The Knowledge Society (TKS, @tksworldhq), an accelerator for unicorn teenagers.  He joins Ara on this week’s episode of #TheTamilCreator to discuss early exposure to tech in Seattle, his favourite Tamil actors, the magic of @yanchanproduced , building several apps during high school, how his parents felt about him dropping out, nurturing the next Elon Musks at TKS, starting a Tamil renaissance moment with ar•ram•bam, and so much more. Follow Hari Mahesh: - Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/harimahesh/)  Timestamps 00:19 - Ara introduces this week’s guest, Hari Mahesh 01:09 - Hari’s formative years; travel, Tamil culture, and technology 07:27 - The impact of frequently travelling/moving around during childhood 10:28 - Learning to build friendships/relationships through common interests 12:48 - From dropout to the youngest healthcare employee at Johnson & Johnson 19:33 - His kickstarter in 2016 raising $15,000 for ZAVR Men 23:40 - What TKS is and how the opportunity arose for him to lead the NY Chapter 28:27 - Will the next Elon Musk emerge from TKS? 41:11 - How ar•ram•bam came about, what’s next, working with Yanchan, and more 56:36 - Advice he would give his 16-year-old self 58:46 - The legacy he wants to be remembered for by friends and family 1:01:01 - Creator Confessions 1:14:09 - The Wrap Up Intro Music Produced And Mixed By: - The Tamil Creator - Yanchan Written By: - Aravinthan Ehamparam - Yanchan Rajmohan        Support the show

    1h 16m

  7. JAN 20

    EP #128: Swathi & Shurabi Anphalagan - Twin Sisters & Co-Founders Of "The Twin Tales Project"

    Swathi & Shurabi Anphalagan ( @twintalesproject ) are twin sisters who both attend the University of Western, pursuing healthcare-related careers.  They use science knowledge to promote inclusion in the “Twin Tale” series of books they’ve created. They join Ara on this week’s episode of #TheTamilCreator to discuss being their innate curiosity and interest in science, choosing Western University ( @westernuniversity ) and healthcare career paths, working at the same jobs together over the years, their thoughts on AI, how volunteering at a local vaccine clinic during COVID-19 led them to spreading joy through the Twin Tales Project, their creative backgrounds helping them transfer knowledge and make it more accessible for the community, and so much more. Follow Swathi & Shurabi: - Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/twintalesproject/) Timestamps 00:19 - Ara introduces this week’s guest, Swathi & Shurabi 02:01 - Working together at the same jobs and being best friends 04:08 - Their childhood; being immersed into the Tamil community 05:44 - Growing up in Brampton and going to Tamil class 07:26 - Choosing Western and healthcare careers; passion for science 09:57 - How strong their twin telepathy is; finishing each other’s sentences 10:30 - Their fourth year at Western and working at Unity Health 13:20 - Their “Aha” moment; how the pandemic led to Twin Tales 15:48 - Turning their idea into books; storylines, illustration, and publishing 18:45 - Fundraising to get the Twin Tales Project off the ground 19:36 - Two steps forward, one step back; over a year for a final product 20:13 - Did they hesitate before deciding to work together? 22:40 - Their parents being supportive during this entrepreneurial venture 24:20 - Promoting their books through word of mouth and social media 25:50 - Their thoughts on AI; how they see it impacting their careers 29:43 - Having four books currently out and planning to release more 30:47 - What they envision in 3-5 years; lifelong learning and community impact 32:06 - Their biggest learning lessons in recent times;  33:54 - Advice they would give their younger selves 35:39 - The personal legacies they want to be remembered for by friends/family 37:10 - Why they are inspired by being kind 38:29 - Creator Confessions 51:17 - The Wrap Up Intro Music Produced And Mixed By: - The Tamil Creator - Yanchan Written By: - Aravinthan Ehamparam - Yanchan Rajmohan       Support the show

    52 min

  8. 2024-11-17

    EP #127: Vijay Kumar - Chef & Partner At Semma (Michelin Star Restaurant In New York City)

    Vijay Kumar ( @chef.vijayakumar ) is a chef-partner at Semma ( @semmanyc , the only Michelin Star [ @michelinguide ] Indian restaurant in New York City), one of the hottest food spots in the city! He joins Ara on this week’s episode of #TheTamilCreator to discuss transitioning from engineering to being a chef to excel in the culinary mecca of New York, going from starting a business in only two months to having his authentic South Indian food be recognized by the likes of the New York Times and Padma Lakshmi ( @padmalakshmi ), him sharing the best part about running the restaurant and so much more. Follow Vijay: - Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/chef.vijayakumar/) Timestamps 00:19 - Ara introduces this week’s guest, Vijay Kumar 01:17 - What led him to this career path 02:59 - The demand of running a restaurant 04:42 - Wondering if he should’ve stuck with engineering 05:46 - Moving to New York City 09:34 - Coming up with the restaurant name; Semma? 10:42 - Building up his business; how long did it take? 12:24 - Cooking unapologetically 14:35 - The reception he received from non-Indian New Yorkers 16:26 - How he got a Michelin star 17:53 - Hosting Padma Lakshmi at his restaurant 20:00 - Not taking a vacation in three years 20:24 - His favourite dish to cook 21:08 - The exaggeration of cooking shows/movies 21:58 - Will he become a global brand ambassador for Indian cuisine? 22:41 - Initially aspiring to break barriers 23:37 - Are there negatives to his restaurant receiving so much attention? 24:09 - His favourite places to eat at in New York 26:20 - His favourite thing about New York City; the welcoming vibe 26:58 - One of his biggest learning lessons; COVID 28:57 - The Tamil community in New York City 30:01 - Advice he would give his 16-year-old self 30:57 - How he wants to be remembered by friends and family 31:48 - Creator Confessions 39:35 - The Wrap Up Intro Music Produced And Mixed By: - The Tamil Creator - Yanchan Written By: - Aravinthan Ehamparam - Yanchan Rajmohan      Support the show

    42 min
See All (134)

4.9
out of 5
25 Ratings

About

"The Tamil Creator" is a podcast started by me (Ara Ehamparam) to celebrate, spotlight and learn about the brilliance among creators in the global Tamil community, with the end product being a conversation that is equal parts educational, inspirational and entertaining.

Information

  • Creator
    Ara Ehamparam
  • Years Active
    2021 - 2025
  • Episodes
    134
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2025 The Tamil Creator
  • Show Website
    The Tamil Creator

To listen to explicit episodes, sign in.

Stay up to date with this show

Sign in or sign up to follow shows, save episodes and get the latest updates.
Select a country or region

Africa, Middle East, and India

Asia Pacific

Europe

Latin America and the Caribbean

The United States and Canada