Hemas Partners with Hoppers London to Establish 64th Piyawara Preschool and Provide Monthly Nutritional Support to 1,160 Children
Hemas Outreach Foundation (HOF) continues its collaboration with ‘Hoppers London’, a renowned Sri Lankan restaurant group in London, to extend their “Feed the Future” project, addressing the nutritional needs of vulnerable children on the brink of malnutrition in selected Piyawara preschools.
The partnership was born out of the economic crisis in 2022 and reached a significant milestone in 2023 with the construction of the 64th Piyawara preschool in the remote village of Poojapitiya, Kandy. This endeavor reflects Hoppers’ dedication to support children in need, with ambitious plans to further enrich Piyawara preschools in collaboration with Hemas.
The Executive Director, Hemas Outreach Foundation, Shiromi Masakorala in a statement, expressed pride in their partnership with Hoppers London. She commended their commitment to the welfare of underprivileged children in Sri Lanka. In 2022, the initiative provided essential dry rations to 367 children and families across six Districts in 15 selected Piyawara preschools. In 2023, the project’s scope expanded, offering vital support to 1,160 children and their families in 11 Districts through 34 selected Piyawara preschools.
Launched in 2002 by the Hemas Outreach Foundation, in partnership with the Ministry of Women and Child Affairs, Piyawara represents Hemas’ continued support of the national agenda in developing Early Childhood Care and Development (ECCD) in the country.
“I extend my gratitude to Karan Gokani and the Hoppers team for partnering in our efforts to address a national need and ensure no child is left behind. Their unwavering commitment is truly commendable. I would also like to emphasize the necessity for Sri Lankan authorities to facilitate an environment conducive to potential donors to come forward to support the nation’s essential causes,” added Abbas Esufally, Chairman of Hemas Outreach Foundation
“We setup our first Hoppers restaurant in 2015 as a result of our love for the food, culture and people of Sri Lanka. All these years later, our passion for Sri Lanka has grown manifold, and when the crisis struck in 2022, we were heartbroken and helpless sitting so far away. I was keen to create a charitable project that was meaningful, long lasting and transparent via which Hoppers could make a real difference on the ground. Finding Abbas, Shiromi and Hemas as partners who share our vision and dedication was a dream come true. We couldn’t be more pleased with how smoothly and efficiently the project has gone so far, and are fully committed to growing our contribution and scope of support exponentially in the years to come,” added Karan Gokani of Hoppers London.
About Hemas Outreach Foundation
Established under Hemas Holdings PLC, the Hemas Outreach Foundation has been leading the Group’s efforts to enrich lives through transformative social responsibility. Hemas Outreach Foundation operates as a charitable trust with the intention of creating an inclusive world where no child is left behind. Our aim is to help disadvantaged children across the island to provide world-class pre-school education and improve the lives of differently-abled children with high-quality therapeutic intervention and eradicating stigma related to disabilities. Currently, the collective efforts of the foundation have been able to positively impact more than 100,000 lives of children and families across the country.
About Hoppers
Hoppers was founded by JKS Restaurants and Karan Gokani in October 2015. The first Hoppers in Soho was inspired by toddy-shops, home cooking and roadside stalls of Sri Lanka and South India, and served its namesake Hoppers alongside Dosas, Kothu, Short Eats, Rice and Roasts. The acclaim soon followed with reviews from London Evening’s Standard’s Fay Maschler and the late Sunday Times critic A.A. Gill who applauded Hoppers for its “seductive, come hither menu” and “spectacular, impressive, authentic, confident and swaggering kitchen”.
The restaurant went on to secure its Michelin Bib Gourmand in its first year. Following the success of Hoppers Soho, a second Hoppers at Marylebone’s St Christopher’s Place, themed around the iconic Tropical Modernist movement of the late Sri Lankan architect Geoffrey Bawa, opening in September 2017. Hoppers King’s Cross, the third and largest of the three restaurants opened in February 2020 inspired by the much-travelled coastal journey from Colombo, the island’s capital, to the historical Dutch town of Galle.
The hotly anticipated debut cookbook from Hoppers was released in Autumn 2022 and soon topped the bestseller ‘cookbook’ lists of the Sunday Times, Financial Times, Evening Standard and BBC Good Food . Written by Karan, the book tells a personal story of the inspiration behind Hoppers and the people and places that shaped it, via recipes and stunning imagery.
About Karan Gokani, Co-Founder
Karan grew up in Mumbai and moved to England in 2005 to study law at the University of Cambridge. Even as a practicing solicitor, Karan’s passion for food and hospitality never faded and he spent time in professional kitchens in his spare time. In 2012, he left his legal career at a city law firm to pursue a career in hospitality, traveling across India and Sri Lanka to immerse himself in the food and culture of the countries.
Over the years Karan has written travel features and recipes on Sri Lanka and southern India for major national and international publications including The Sunday Times, The Telegraph, The Guardian, National Geographic, Conde Nast Traveller and various food festivals across the UK. Karan has also appeared on some of the nation’s favourite TV shows including Saturday Kitchen, Sunday Brunch, Celebrity Masterchef and Jamie Oliver’s £1 meals. In the US, Karan has cooked on NBC’s Today Show.
