Dr. Gopinathan Nair and Dr. Ambika Nair hit the top list of the coveted award for their selfless service during the pandemic
Unified Brainz celebrated 2nd anniversary of its international magazine – Passion Vista with most eminent personalities from the globe in its exclusive edition “The Global Icon 2020” which was launched virtually on 30th January 2021. This spectacular event witnessed not only powerful personalities but also leading visionaries from different walks of life.
It may well be the year of the Indian diaspora in the United States of America. While some like Kamala Harris have risen to rule from the front, there are others who are working silently but steadily to make America healthy again. And none have played a part as significant as that of the husband-wife duo, Dr. Gopinathan Nair and Dr. Ambika Nair.
When people struggled to find equilibrium in a pandemic struck world, Dr Ambika and Dr Gopinathan provided relief to plenty through their Santhigram Wellness Ayurveda across the US and Canada. In a land famed for the most advanced developments, just how difficult was it to find takers for the ancient alternative wellness? “Challenging! Primarily because there was absolutely no precedence of running an Ayurveda wellness business in the US. We have overcome various obstacles to establish ourselves in as many as five states namely New Jersey, New York, Texas, Illinois and Wisconsin,” says the duo.
They can look back on their arduous journey with pride. When they began, Kerala Ayurveda therapies were expensive and only available in resorts, thereby elusive for the masses. To make authentic Ayurveda affordable and approachable for all, the doctor couple had to create an entire ecosystem to make their Global Ayurvedic Wellness centres a reality.
From global recruitment strategies to world class product manufacturing, they had to be the pioneers in all to make the customer experience safe and splendid. Consequently, Santhigram was one of the first FDA registered ‘Ayurvedic’ company with FDA compliant products under the brand name ‘Santhigram Herbals’ undergoing strenuous lab testing to ensure they are heavy metal and Pesticide free herbal products. They were also the first to create Ayurvedic products using Hemp oil in the USA. With 2020 forcing all of us into a new reality of online services and experiences, the team at Santhigram was quick to adapt. And now Santhigram is on its way to become a tech enabled and the first HIPAA compliant Ayurvedic wellness company to safeguard client data in this world where cyber security cannot be side-lined further.
To continue with the Nairs, efforts to bring Ayurveda to the mainstream medical stage, they have started ‘Santhigram Foundation’ to fund research and public education programs to validate Ayurveda socially and scientifically. They have created multiple Wellness programs backed by Biostatistics and Health Informatics in partnership with modern medical professionals targeting specific problems such as Non opioid pain management program, Oncocare programs, ADHD Ayurvedic program, Age management programs for Geriatrics. Passion Vista recognized all their achievements and noteworthy contribution during the time of crisis and hence, titled them as one of “The Global Icon 2020”in their collector’s edition.
They go on to reveal, “In order to meet the ever-growing demand of our services and to cater to the shortage of trained Ayurvedic consultants and Panchakarma technicians in the US, we have also successfully established an Ayurveda training school with the approval of the State of New Jersey.”