Onam is celebrated in Kerala to honour King Mahabali for his good governance. It is a festival celebrated by all, irrespective of faith and community. The 10 – day festival is celebrated with a lot of cultural activities like pookalam making (flower rangoli), boat race, traditional dance like Thiruvathira, Puli kali (tiger dance) etc.
The high point of Onam is the sadhya or fest consisting of ~32 dishes!
Our Malyali co – residents ensured they celebrated Onam notwithstanding the thousands of kilometres between here and Kerala!
Lakshmeesh Kamath (10083) remembers fondly, “All communities come together at Onam to participate in all the activities. It is beautiful!” He, along with his wife Sumitha and daughter Lavanya, celebrated with traditional dresses and meeting friends.
Arushi, Deepa and Sivaprasad (7161) went the whole mile with a beautiful pookalam, kasuvu and mundu. Sivaprasad says, “For any Malayali, Onam brings back childhood memories. I still remember the taste of sadhya served on plantain leaf, the smell of fresh flowers plucked early in the morning, the fun of making pookkalam with my siblings…”
Sivaprasad and his family try to celebrate Onam as close to traditions as possible to honour these memories.
Even in her busy schedule, Swapna Gopinathan (7171) couldn’t forego celebrating Onam. She opted for a quick and small pookalam and a Sadhya with close friends. She says, “I admire those who celebrate Onam the traditional way in spite of being so far away from the mothership.”
These pretty pookalams and Sadhya talks have made us, the Samvada team, desirous of being part of Onam celebrations!
