Lankan Square Strengthens Sri Lankan Communities in Canada Through Digital Innovation and Cultural Engagement
Image: Lankan Square’s digital platform. Credit: USA Wire.
A website directory, an employment hub and an events calendar may seem like separate tools, but for Sri Lankans settling into a new city, finding them together can make everyday connections easier. In Canada, Lankan Square is building a digital meeting point for community members seeking local businesses, professional services, job opportunities and cultural activities.
Founded by Canadian entrepreneurs Kamaj Silva, Lilan Samaradiwakara and Chanuka Wijesundara, the platform was developed specifically for Sri Lankans living in Canada. In an article published on 28 October 2026, USA Wire described its aim as bringing community resources and opportunities together in one online destination. The platform’s own About Us page similarly presents it as a way to connect Sri Lankans across Canada with services, businesses and events.
The idea addresses a familiar challenge: useful information is often spread across social media groups, personal recommendations and separate websites. A central directory cannot replace personal advice or the need to check providers carefully, but it can give users a practical starting point for exploring what is available in their area.
A community directory with everyday uses
Lankan Square’s business listings cover a broad range of services, including restaurants, grocery stores, catering businesses, home-based enterprises and domestic service providers. Users can explore listings in cities including Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton and Scarborough, as well as other Canadian locations.
The directory also includes professional services, with listings for doctors, dentists, accountants, lawyers, real estate professionals and tutors. Domestic and household services are represented too. By organising different kinds of businesses and providers in one place, the platform aims to make community-relevant options easier to discover.
That structure may be useful to newcomers who are still learning how local services work, as well as to established residents looking for a provider or business in a particular city. It also offers local entrepreneurs another route to visibility among potential customers. The directory does not constitute an endorsement of individual listings, and users should make their own enquiries before engaging a provider.
Lankan Square’s co-founders Kamaj Silva, Lilan Samaradiwakara and Chanuka Wijesundara. Credit: USA Wire.
Services, jobs and professional connections
The platform’s scope extends beyond business discovery. Its employment section connects job seekers with opportunities that may include full-time and part-time roles, internships and temporary work. For employers, a community-focused listing can provide an additional way to share vacancies; for job seekers, it adds another source to consult alongside established recruitment channels.
Lankan Square also brings professional and household services into the same search environment. Its own site highlights family doctors, immigration lawyers and real estate agents among the professionals users may look for, alongside event listings and ticket sales. The approach is practical: people can search for services, businesses and activities without first needing to know which separate groups or websites might contain the information.
These resources may be particularly useful for people building new networks after moving to Canada. At the same time, the platform’s purpose is not limited to newcomers. Long-established residents may also use it to find local businesses, learn about events or share information about their own services.
From online discovery to cultural gatherings
Community connections are not built through listings alone. Lankan Square also promotes cultural entertainment and event activities, helping users discover gatherings and, where available, access ticketing information through the platform.
Its flagship initiative, Lankan Fest 2026, brought that work into a shared physical space. Held at Woodbridge Fairgrounds in Ontario, the festival combined music, food, local businesses and family activities. USA Wire reported that the event attracted more than 5,000 attendees; that figure is attributed to the report and is not presented as independently audited attendance.
The reported turnout suggests that cultural events can play an important role in bringing people together across generations and neighbourhoods. A festival gives local businesses an opportunity to meet customers in person, while music, food and family activities create a setting in which cultural traditions can be shared. Organisers are preparing a larger edition for 2027, according to USA Wire.
AI-generated illustration of a festive Sri Lankan community event in Toronto; it is not a photograph of Lankan Fest.
Three founders, a shared community focus
Lankan Square was founded by Kamaj Silva, Lilan Samaradiwakara and Chanuka Wijesundara. Their project brings together business discovery and community participation, with an emphasis on making relevant information easier to find for Sri Lankan Canadians.
Co-founder Chanuka Wijesundara is a Canada-based technology entrepreneur and founder of CeylonX, a software development and business technology solutions company. USA Wire reports that his background includes web development, enterprise software, artificial intelligence and business process automation. The founders’ wider ambition, as described in the report, is to develop an organisation that connects Sri Lankan Canadians with relevant resources while creating opportunities for participation and entrepreneurship.
An earlier account by Daily News in 2022 covered Lankan Square as a Canadian website intended to bring the community together. The platform’s current offering (business and professional listings, jobs, events and ticketing) continues to reflect that broad community-building purpose.
Lankan Square’s media coverage page. Credit: USA Wire.
A model of digital community-building
For Sri Lankan readers in Canada, a purpose-built platform can provide a useful directory of local options and a way to keep track of community events. For readers in Australia, the United Kingdom and New Zealand, the initiative offers an example of how community organisations are combining online services with in-person cultural programming.
eLanka also operates a Canada portal, alongside its other country-specific websites, to share news and information with Sri Lankan communities in different parts of the world. Each platform serves its own audience and needs, but the common principle is straightforward: accessible information can help people find businesses, activities and connections within their local community.
Lankan Square’s development illustrates how a digital directory can serve more than a commercial purpose when it brings together local enterprises, practical services, employment information and cultural events. Its next stage will depend on how the platform grows its listings, maintains useful information and continues to connect online discovery with community life. The reported response to Lankan Fest provides one indication of the interest such initiatives can attract, while preparations for a 2027 event offer a further opportunity to build on that engagement.
Sources: USA Wire; Lankan Square and About Us; Daily News.
This article was written based on the sources USA Wire, Lankan Square and Daily News, kindly email us at info@eLanka.com.au if any information needs to be corrected.
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