Includes comedian Dan Nainan.
Six Indian Americans will be recognized by the National Federation of Indian American Associations (NFIA), at their 19th Biennial Convention in Seattle, Washington, scheduled to take place from September 30-October 1.
The six are, according to a press release: comedian Dan Ninan; Dr. Harkeerat Singh Dhillon, an orthopedic and hand surgeon; Jagdish Sharma, chairman of Washington State Commission on Asian Pacific American Affairs (CAPAA) since 2013; Ramulu Mamidala, a Boeing-Pennell Professor of Engineering and Professor in Mechanical Engineering; Sunil Singh, a businessman; and Vishwa Prasad, an IT entrepreneur.
Dan Nainan – The Performing Arts: Nainan, an Indian American, with Japanese roots too, and an engineer with Intel Corporation, got his start by taking a comedy class to overcome nervousness on stage. An accomplished musician, he sings and plays piano/keyboards, guitar and drums. Featured in “The Hoax”, with Richard Gere, “Slumdog Millionaire” and the Daily Show, Nainan has also starred in commercials for Apple, NBC, MDA Telethon, and Nickelodeon. He has toured 28 and entertained the likes of CEO’s of Microsoft, Adobe, and MasterCard, according to the NFIA.
Harkeerat Singh Dhillon – Public Service and Philanthropy: Dhillon is founder and president of the Riverside International Film Festival now in its fifteenth year, in Riverside, California. He has produced a Hollywood feature film Beyond Honor. He is the author of two books of poetry, ‘Invisible Hands’ and ‘Misty Darkness.’ Dhillon, along with his wife, Deepta Dhillon, has endowed a Ph.D. research fellowship in Sikh and Punjabi studies at University of California, Riverside.
Jagdish Sharma – Community Service: Sharma has been a member of Ethnic Heritage Council in Seattle since 2007 and was conferred the “Spirit of Liberty” Award by EHC in 2013. He founded the Indo American Friendship Forum, and was its chairman
Ramilu Mamidala – Applied Sciences: Mamidala has a B.E (1974) from Osmania University, M.Tech (1977) from Indian Institute of Technology, New Delhi, and a Ph.D. (1982) from University of Washington. His professional contributions reflect multi-disciplinary technical leadership in advanced aerospace materials, mechanics and manufacturing engineering. He has published more than 350 technical papers, the NFIA said.
Sunil Singh — Entrepreneur: An engineer who owns a chain of six pizza shops and a few Tropical Smoothies Café franchises, Singh’s real estate holdings include 40 businesses located in Washington, D. C., New Jersey and Texas. He has been mobilizing the community and helping the community organizations through his participation and donations.
Vishwa Prasad — Information Technology: As a professional, a manager, and a visionary CEO, Prasad has been a role model for many of the brightest minds that comprise his successful company, People Tech Group, the NFIA said. He went on to acquire Ramp Group in 2009 and Lipta and CodeSmart in 2014. He also acquired MakeUrCareer in 2012-13.