Happy Onam

If someone said, "Happy Onam." to you. Would you know what they were talking about? If the answer is "no", read on...

Onam is a special time of the year in Kerala, and it's a mix of Thanksgiving and Christmas. Onam is similar to Thanksgiving because it is about celebrating and embracing all cultures and all peoples. Onam is similar to Christmas because it is about buying things on sale and giving the cheaper item to a friend. There are also lots of lights hanging from buildings which creates a festive mood in the city...with the end goal of making you buy something.

Onam is a 10 day event, and there are many events happening all over the state of Kerala. One Onam tradition is the flower mat or Pookalam. The design of the floor mat starts on day one, and continues until the tenth and final day.

This is the Pookalam at the Riverdale.

 

This is the Pookalam at InfoPark (thanks for the picture Vijay, but is India time really 6 months in the past?  Maybe this is why people drive in such a hurry, they are all very late to work).

 

Learn more about Pookalam here:

http://www.onamfestival.org/pookalam.html

 

Another part to the Onam festival is Onasadya which in English means "mini buffet on a banana leaf". There is an intricate ritual around how the food is served, but most people don't follow this anymore. I'm saving my Onasadya photo for another blog post, but here is another pic to wet your appetite.

 

Liby asked me to visit her family for a Onasadya lunch, and I happily accepted the invitation. I never turn down a free lunch, and a lot of other people in India don't turn down free lunches either, but that's another blog post...

Here is what she served on the banana leaf:

• Rice - Kerala style
• Sambhar
• Dal
• Ghee
• Pavaka thiyal- Bitter gourd cooked with fried coconut
• Ully thiyal- Small onion cooked with coconut
• Aviyal- Vegetables cooked in curd and coconut
• Pachadi- Raw mango with curd and mustard
• Inji curry- Ginger fried and cooked
• Mooru kachiyathu- curried curd
• Papadam
• Banana chips
• Sharkara varati- raw banana dipped in jaggary
• Banana
• Paal Payasam- sweet milk porridge

Liby said all  the meals were made from scratch except the Payasam. That is a lot of work in the kitchen, and a lot of preperation time during the morning. It was really a privilege to eat such an authentic Onam meal...many thanks Liby.

Onam is a very elaborate festival, and it's on par with Christmas as everyone greets you with "Happy Onam". There are a few stories behind the origination of Onam, but the best description I found is here:

http://www.onamfestival.org/the-legend-of-king-mahabali.html

In Kochi, there
are musical performances by popular artists, dance recital's, the Malayalam playback singers, Karakattam at the main venue, recital's of Mohiniyattam, dance performances, concerts, fusion music, Kaaralsman Charitham, Music Nite, Kavadi and singarimelam, it goes on and on. Now multiply that times other cities throughout the state of Kerala.

Here is a lyric to an Onam song:

When Mahabali ruled the land
Everyone was equal
Happily they lived
Danger befell none
There was no falsehood, or fraud
And no untruth.'
 

Here are some other links to look at.:

http://www.onamfestival.org/

http://www.onamfestival.org/what-is-onam.html

http://www.onamfestival.org/legends-of-onam.html

http://www.onamfestival.org/king-mahabali-onam.html

http://www.indiangiftsportal.com/india-shopping/occasions/onam/mithais/

 

Happy Onam everyone.