SWORAM
Welcome to SWORAM — where Malayali hearts meet in the Pacific Northwest.
SWORAM brings together Malayali families across Southwest Washington and Oregon — preserving our culture, strengthening bonds, and creating a vibrant community away from home.
Join us in celebrating our culture and community through exciting upcoming events.
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Save the Date! Sworam Keralotsavam 2026 is happening on April 25th at Lake Oswego High School Auditorium. KERALOTSAVAM 2026 GUIDELINES 1.Registrations for all stage performances including dance, music, fancy dress, skit/drama etc should be submitted on or before by March 15th to sworamportland@gmail.com. Follow the time limit given in the guidelines (#7). Avoid graphic, distressing or triggering content. Emphasize hope, awareness and positivity if serious topics are included. Please keep themes to align with spirit of celebration, culture and community. Kindly inform us of your theme, if applicable. 2. Please include an introduction write up and a list of participants for the item and send it to sworamportland@gmail.com by April 5th. 3. The background music/score, to be used in any performance including fancy dress should be sent in a medium such asan MP3 file by April 11th to sworamportland@gmail.com. 4. Participants interested in being the Master Of Ceremony(children and adults) , send your audition videos by March 15th to sworamportland@gmail.com. 5. Stage dimensions at Lake Oswego high school areapproximately 36’ in width and 20’ in depth. 6. Participants can participate in only one program. 7. Duration of performance will be decided by SWORAM. Maximum of 5 minutes for dance and music (karaoke and live) and 10 min for skit or drama. 8. No solo performances . 9. In a group performance, majority in the group members should be Malayalees. 10. Music for South Indian classical dances can be in any language. However, movie songs used for the program should be in Malayalam. Please note that movie songs should contain at least 75% or more of Malayalam lyrics. 11. Program order will be decided by SWORAM. 12. On the program day, participants should be ready at the back stage 2 programs prior to theirs. Failure by participants to report at the assigned time will result in their item being cancelled or being pushed to the end depending on the availability of time. 13. All participants are requested to purchase tickets in advance through ticket pre-sale. Team leaders please confirm that all participants have got their tickets and send a confirmation email to sworamportland@gmail.com 14. SWORAM holds the right to accept or reject any program. 15. SWORAM may use the photos and content used or recorded in the KERALOTSAVAM 2026 for promotional activities. Participants/parents are responsible for getting the appropriate copyright.
Read MoreDear Friends, Summer is here again! SWORAM warmly invites the entire Malayalee community and friends in Portland to our annual summer picnic on Saturday, July 12, 2025. This is a wonderful opportunity to connect with other families, enjoy outdoor cooking, participate in fun games and activities, and spend quality time with the community. Here is the picnic evite link: https://evite.me/veN1XT8szz Please RSVP by June 30 and let us know which food item you will be bringing to share. We will be bringing juice and additional items for grilling. Expect an exciting lineup of games and prizes for all age groups! If you'd like to help organize games, do face painting, or volunteer in any way, please email us at sworamportland@gmail.com. We especially encourage middle schoolers and high schoolers to come forward and organize at least two games each – one for children aged 5 and under, and one for children aged 5 to 12 years. It’s a great way to get involved, show leadership, and make the event more fun for our younger participants! This year’s picnic theme is “Malayalam Movie Theme Attire” – so come dressed as your favorite Malayalam movie character or in a look inspired by Malayalam cinema! There will be a fun competition for the best-themed outfit. We’ll also be hosting a homemade Kerala snack competition. If you’re participating, please bring approximately 25 portions of your snack for sharing and judging. Picnic Details: Entry Fee: $5 per person (maximum of $20 per family; kids under 5 enter free) Parking: $5 per car (payable at the park entrance) We look forward to your enthusiastic participation in making this a fun-filled and memorable event! Warm regards, Team SWORAM
Read MoreDear friends, What a vibrant, joyful, and fulfilling day this has been! On behalf of the SWORAM team, we would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to each and every one of you for making Keralotsavam 2025 a grand success. To all the participants and teachers—your dedication, preparation, and talent lit up the stage. Your performances brought Kerala's culture alive and made this celebration truly special. A big shoutout to our amazing volunteer Cuteclicks for the seamless videography, and our volunteer photographers. We’re happy to share that the photo and video links are already available! Keralotsavam 2025 photos: https://photos.app.goo.gl/EBMjtqEnSEvDaWab6 Keralotsavam videos:https://youtu.be/wWjdrofvQwg We are deeply grateful to our event sponsors. Thank you PDX A1 Realty and Venkat Muthu for your generous support, and Vanakkam PDX for sponsoring trophies for all our talented participants. Our sincere thanks also to Karya Jewelry for your valuable sponsorship. A special thank you to Vanakkam PDX as well for catering for our event and making sure that the snacks and dinner boxes arrived on time and perfectly organized. Your support helped us provide a smooth and enjoyable experience for everyone. We would also like to express our heartfelt gratitude to all the volunteers who worked behind the scenes—helping with setup, registration, serving snacks and dinner, and clean-up. Your dedication, time, and energy played a vital role in the smooth execution of today’s event. One of the things we’re most proud of—we started on time and finished on time! In just four hours, we successfully presented 32 vibrant programs, with a short 30-minute intermission. This wouldn’t have been possible without your cooperation, punctuality, and support. We truly value your input and would love to hear your thoughts. Please take a moment to fill out our feedback form. While signing in is required to submit the form, your name and email will not be shared with us unless you choose to provide them. So please feel free to be honest—we are always looking to improve. Please submit your feedback by May 18th, 2025. https://forms.gle/gEufoxgmacuD6yBv9 As we wrap up this celebration, we’re already looking forward to our next community gatherings—our annual picnic and the much-loved Onam Sadya. More details will be shared closer to the events. Thank you once again for your energy, presence, and spirit.Here’s to culture, community, and many more celebrations together! Best RegardsSWORAM
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The summer picnic provides a great opportunity to get out with the fellow Malayalees to one of the local parks in Portland. This is a great networking event with a lot of good food (barbecue included) and games including tug-of-war. Picnic is usually organized on a Saturday in July and starts at 10:30 am and goes on till 6 pm.
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Keralotsavam is the annual cultural event organized by SWORAM. This event, usually conducted in October / November of every year, provides a platform for its members to show their talents.
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Onam, one of the most popular cultural festivals of Kerala, is celebrated in August / September every year. Due to popular demand from the growing Malayalee community in greater Portland, SWORAM has decided to organize Onasadhya starting 2012. Please stay tuned for further announcements.
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Krishna Regupathy
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