12th World Tamils Economic Conference

Reflections from the 12th World Tamils Economic Conference 2025

For a language to prosper, economic incentives must be aligned. It can’t just be an art form or a “nice to have.” It should be integrated with business and everyday life. Languages are key to preserving culture and ensuring the well-being of people. They nurture diversity and identity.

When Elan Thangamani, Founder of Virtualan Software, invited me to moderate a session on Challenges and Successes of Start-Ups at the 12th World Tamils Economic Conference in Washington, D.C., I was excited — and even more so because the conference itself resonated deeply with me. It tied together two things that I deeply care about: Tamil and the economy.

The World Tamils Economic Conference has been held across the world, and this was the first time it took place in the U.S., at the Bethesda North Marriott Hotel & Conference Center. Over 500 attendees flew in from across the U.S. and around the world.

Conversations and Connections

The conference was a wonderful place to reconnect with old friends and make new ones. One of the first people I met was Ramesh Ramaraj, CEO of Red Pulley. I had looked him up briefly before the event, only to realize later that we both went to the same college: Government College of Technology, Coimbatore (GCT). Ramesh was a year junior to me, and we instantly hit it off. I loved his energy and hospitality. He was also one of the key drivers of the event and is local to D.C.

Ramesh hosted a memorable Fireside Chat with Jay Vijayan, CEO of Tekion Corp. It was inspiring to hear Jay’s story and learn about his roots, his journey, and his rise. Thanks, Jay, for a powerful chat, and Ramesh, for your preparation.

I also caught up with my friend EZ Natarajan, CEO of CoreStack — we shared a laugh and a great conversation. It is fun being around him. Some of my readers will also remember him from his episode for the chatwithKC series. 

It was nice meeting author, entrepreneur Soundarya Balasubramani. We talked about her recent experience hosting the Open Atlas Summit and her learnings running the event. 

I had a good chat with my friend Vijay Mohan, the mind behind Investment Insights. I’ve benefited from his YouTube channel, and it was great discussing investments and finance in person.

Meeting Sheela Murthy was a special moment. For anyone who came to the U.S. after the 2000s, her work has had an incredible impact. Almost every Indian immigrant would have benefited from what she built as a lawyer, entrepreneur, and philanthropist,. Thank you, Sheela, for the gift of your book Being Sheela.

I also enjoyed chatting with Andal Balu, Founder of CocoaTown. As we continue to build theGCT brand, it was nice to reconnect with our seniors and fellow alumni too.

With Deva Subramanian, CEO Warrior Tech Solutions (and my Senior in GCT, Coimbatore)

The story of Rajaram Srinivasan was inspiring to hear. He shared about how he came from a small village to the US and is now Director of Engineering at Marriott for over 20 years.

Discoveries and Learnings

One of the most eye-opening aspects of the conference was learning about Tamil communities in Mauritius and South Africa. Many people of Tamil origin there continue to follow the culture and traditions but can no longer speak or understand the language. 

While this is concerning, it’s also an opportunity. The talk by Mauritius Minister Narsingen Rajen was insightful — and fittingly, Mauritius will host next year’s conference. Interestingly, Tamil is even embedded in Mauritius’ local currency.

Power Couples in Business

The panel “Power Couples in Business – Journeys of Success” resonated strongly with me. Sidd Ahmed moderated it brilliantly, keeping the discussion engaging and on track. It was inspiring to hear the founding stories of Business Integra (Prathibha Ramadoss & Selva Jayaraman), VIVA USA (Vasanthi Ilangovan & Ilando Radhakrishnan), and Innoventures (Meenak & Shiv Krishnan).

Saleem S, Creative Editor at Thanthi TV, flew all the way from India to cover the conference. It was awesome connecting with him and later seeing highlights aired back in India. I even showed up in a few frames alongside Vijay Mohan and friends — and received a few calls after. 

A Surprise Mini-Reunion

This event also turned into a mini-reunion. My schoolmate Srinivas S (DB, Egmore), now based in D.C. and running BotTrading.AI, was there too. We caught up and later met more DB alumni, including Ezhilan Ramarajan, five years our senior. It turned into a mini DB get-together in D.C.!

With Srinivas S & Arun Antony

And of course — the food from The Chennai Express was a delight.

Roopan Jeganathan’s Tamil and MC was a treat at the event

The Panel: Challenges & Successes of Start-Ups

Moderating this panel was a highlight for me. What made it extra special was the preparation. We had a couple of Zoom calls before the event and met in person the day before for discussions. This prep really came in handy during the panel.

Our panel was diverse and dynamic:

• Elan Thangamani talked about bootstrapping and how he funds his product business through staffing initiatives — something many founders can relate to.
  
• Muralidharan K (from Saturam, meaning “square”) flew in from Bengaluru. I loved the thought behind the company’s name. They even hosted a small get-together for their customers and prospects.
  
• Navajeevan Rajaiah with Insops shared how his insurance background & expertise for over 20 years translated into a start-up journey.
  
• Uma Natarajan with Juume AI, spoke about how good relationships and consistent work can open doors — “one thing leads to another.”
  
• And we also had Krishna Radhakrishnan, who runs a non-profit in India empowering women to become self-sustaining share her experiences on women start-up challenges in India.
  

I’m really glad we captured a group photo together — a great memory from an engaging session.

Thank you

This isn’t an exhaustive recap — I’m sure I’ve missed many names and contributors. But it’s clear how much thought, effort, and coordination went into pulling off an event of this scale and magnitude.

A heartfelt thank-you to Dr. Rajan Natarajan, Napoleon Duraisamy, Dr. V.R.S. Sampath, Rajaram Srinivasan, Elisha Pulivarti, Selva Jayaraman, and the entire team behind the 12th World Tamils Economic Conference.

Tying Tamil and economy together is more than symbolism — it’s a step toward ensuring our language and culture continue to thrive in a modern, connected world.

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