About KnowYourRoots Foundation
The mission of our foundation is to impart leadership, character, and life principles of Indian Sanatana Dharma to the next generation of Indians globally, by educating and making them aware of the cultural, spiritual, and dharmic roots they come from.
We organize cultural trips, and experiential retreats, produce music & dance productions and organize expert lectures. We also support projects of other foundations that align with our mission and values.
Our foundation came into existence miraculously during a visit to the sacred city of Kanchi in Tamilnadu, India. We were in a conversation with Kanchi Peetadhipathi Sri Sri Sri Vijayendra Saraswati Swami when we were sharing how important it is to do programs for Indians living globally so they don’t lose connection to their Indian roots and we suggested the name ‘KnowYourRoots’. Swami varu blessed us and later gave us the Sanskrit name ‘Dharma Moolam / धर्ममूलम्.
Founders
Vani is an art director, teacher, and mentor. She conceptualized, directed, and produced Indian music, dance, and spiritual shows for over 15 years in the USA, Singapore, Cambodia, and India. Some of her dance productions have also been delivered globally via online platforms (especially during 2020 and 2021)
Vani produced over 50 shows – from stage dramas to broadway show-styled full dance productions, with children, youth, and adult artists from the USA, Canada, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, Russia, Malaysia, United Kingdom, and India. Her shows’ themes have centered on Lord Shiva, Ramayana, Annamayya, and Saint Ramadasu.
Majority of the dance shows she conceptualized, directed, and produced are on the theme of SivaPadam, a collection of over 1,000 lyrical poems by 21st-century Vaggeyakara, Brahmasri Dr. Saamavedam Shankukha Sharma Garu. Her SivaPadam dance shows have been presented in many global locations: San Jose, Milpitas & Sacramento in California, USA, Srinivasa Perumal Temple’s PGP Hall in Singapore, Angkor Wat in Cambodia, Kanchi Peetham in Kanchi, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan in Hyderabad, Siddhartha Kala Toranam in Vijayawada.
In 2021 and 2022, she conceptualized and led Global SivaPadam Singing Competitions with over 500 Indian and NRI children from 15 countries participating.
In July 2021, she produced a historic SivaPadam dance production ‘Jyotirlingam’ whose lyrics are also written by Brahmasri Dr. Saamavedam Shankukha Sharma Garu. This is a historic composition on 12 Jyotirlingams, many centuries after Jagadguru Adi Shankara composed Jyotirlinga Stotram.
As a leader on SiliconAndhra’s Vaggeyakara Team, she organized numerous music festivals, USA-wide competitions, celebrating the divine music of legendary composers Annamayya, and Ramadasu.
One of Vani’s focuses has been to demonstrate ‘ONENESS or ADVAITA’ by bringing together multiple artforms and dance styles onto one stage and presenting the beauty of Indian art forms in their diversity of expression and rhythm. Her dance productions have included Indian dance art forms – Kuchipudi, Bharatanatyam, Kathak, Odissi, Andhranatyam, Manipuri.
Beyond her work in Indian arts and music, Vani is a teacher by profession and founded The Turning Point Academy where she taught and mentored over 1,000 K3-12 students in India & USA. Vani was a founding member and teacher for over 7 years at SiliconAndhra’s Manabadi program.
Dr. Ravi Gundlapalli deeply values his roots in the Indian Sanatana Dharma, considers Jagadguru Adi Sankara as his mentor, and works closely with Brahmasri Dr. Samavedam Shanmukha Sarma garu as his guru and life mentor. Ravi is a technology executive turned entrepreneur and founded MentorCloud with a mission to impact 100 million people with the power of mentorship. Ravi is the author of the book ‘The Art of Mentoring’ and is a globally renowned speaker on the topic of mentoring who delivered keynotes in the USA, Canada, Mexico, Spain, Switzerland, UK, South Africa, India, and Malaysia.
Beyond mentoring, Ravi has delivered talks on Innovation, Entrepreneurial Mindset, Guru-Sishya Parampara, and the famous Bhagavad Gita. Ravi draws inspiration from Bhagavad Gita, the conversation between Lord Krishna and Arjuna, which he studied as an amazing mentoring conversation that provides profound wisdom on life, leadership and decision-making.
Ravi helped create the Global Festival of Oneness (GFO) as a month-long conference starting on Adi Shankara Jayanthi to spread the life and works of his adopted mentor, Adi Shankara. Over the last 3 years, the GFO has hosted over 250 speakers with several thousand people attending.
Ravi did his B.Tech in Naval Architecture from IIT Madras, Master of Science and Engineering from Florida Atlantic University, and a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Ravi is from the river town of Vijayawada in Andhra Pradesh, and currently lives in Silicon Valley, California.