The morning in Acton had dawned clear albeit a bit cooler than usual, with a crispness that hinted summer was coming to an end. The weather was perfect to bring out the child within and “Jokulatige 2018” was the perfect occasion. Jokulatige literally means child's play in Tulu language. New England Tulu Koota (NETK) Boston USA, an organization of people living in New England Area with roots in Tulunadu, an area around Mangalore spanning Dakshina Kannada, Udupi and Kasaragod districts in Coastal Karnataka and North Kerala, celebrated the fun-filled Annual Picnic at the picturesque NARA Park in Acton on September 9, 2018.

Since the inception of New England Tulu Koota, picnics have been a platform to showcase the culinary range of Tulunad delicacies and to help in reviving the slowly disappearing Tulunadu folk sports and games. Needless to say, this is an opportunity to take a quick break from ever busy work schedule, mingle with people, socialize and relax. A two month old baby to elderly people preparing to celebrate their centuries were present at the event.

A unique program of member introduction brought out the hidden talent of oratory skills of the new members. President of the New England Tulu koota Bhaskara Sherigar Mala, General Secretary Puja Shetty and Treasurer Sharath Amin and Executive Committee members Madhura Acharya, Dr. Usha Rao, Ranjitha Hegde, Raghavendra Kudrethaya, Dhanraj Kotian, Sulekha Rao, Dr. Sudhakar Rao, Fredrick Fernandes, Elias Mendonca, Sudhir Prabhu, Vivek Hegde, Roshan Puttur, Raghuchandra Kinnigoly, Anish Puttur, Anand Rao, Ashwin Shetty, Krishnaprasad Shetty, Lakshmi Puranik, Shalini Shetty, Soumya Puttur, Sachita Kotian, Prasanna Lakshman, Deepak Jain, Kavita Shetty, Dr. Suraj Shetty and Prabhakara Bhat were present and thanked all the volunteers and members for making this picnic an unforgettable event.