The Malayali migration to Manitoba started in the early 1960s with the arrival of Dr. Mohan Panikar and P.K. Nambiar in Winnipeg, via East Africa.  A steady stream of Malayalis mostly Engineers, Doctors, and Nurses who were recruited by the federal and provincial governments arrived in 1964/1965 followed by students and people of other qualifications.  

The first official gathering of Malayalis of Manitoba was to celebrate Onam in 1973 organized by Omana & Anthony Thottingal, C.Sreekumar, and Dr. Panikar and was held in the basement hall of Fort Gary United Church, Winnipeg. Malayalam movies were screened at the Veterinary Diagnostic Center and other auditoriums in Winnipeg, and the celebration of Christmas every year, were other occasions for Malayali gatherings.

As the community grew in size, Jose Tharayil, Gopi Nayar, Ken Eapen, V.T. Chacko, Joseph Mannil, and Thomas Thomas took initiative and started an Association to organize the Malayali gatherings and a Malayalam School for children. A Constitution was created, and the Malayali Association of Manitoba was officially registered with the Province of Manitoba.  

Over the years, MAM has regularly organized Onam, Canada Day, and Christmas celebrations. Vishu was added in 2013. Bowling, cards, carroms, badminton, cricket, volleyball, and football tournaments have been added to the repertoire of activities. These are great opportunities for the Malayali diaspora to get together and socialize while indulging in tasty Kerala culinary creations as well to showcase their artistic talents especially in classical and modern dance, music, and skits. Sheila and Varghese Cherian have coordinated the Kerala display at Folklorama for several years in a row. Our ‘Thiruvathira’ and other dance teams have participated in the annual Diwali Mela.

MAM has also organized blood donation drives and fundraising for charitable causes. One of the major fund-raising events was in 2018 for supporting rehabilitation and reconstruction after devastating floods in Kerala. 2020 was a challenging year due to Covid 19 restrictions but MAM quickly responded by successfully organizing physically distanced and virtual events.