At the Kandath Tharavad homestay in Palakkad, Kerala, retired psychologist from New York, Roy Peterson, leans back in his chair and stares into the distance. It is a tranquil environment: a rolling green lawn, leafy trees, the buzz of bees and the occasional cawing of a crow. Added to this is a sense of history; the house is 250 years old. On this wintry morning, 81-year-old Roy is glum. A headline in an English newspaper before him says, ‘Win for Donald Trump’. “I am deeply disappointed,” says Peterson.
Kandath Tharavad’s owner K S Bhagwaldas smiles.
The 66-year-old has been running the homestay for 16 years. His guests are mainly from Britain, France, Australia, Belgium, Switzerland and Japan.
Toshio Akai, a professor at Kobe Gakuin University, Japan, has been coming here for seven years. “Bhagwaldas’s hospitality introduced me to the slowly flowing time of rural Kerala, in which my body and spirit are able to rest. I relish the chance to do nothing. It allows me to be myself,” says Akai.
Guests get immersed in the Kerala culture by visiting a basket-weaving village and the three-century-old Palakkad Fort, going fishing and trekking, apart from day trips to the Lord Krishna temple at Guruvayur and the Kerala Kalamandalam arts centre. “The big difference from other homestays is that I accompany the guests,” says Bhagwaldas.
The food is pure Kerala fare: appams, dosas, jackfruit, tapioca, rice and fish-curry meals. On some mornings, Bhagwaldas takes his guests to a nearby village called Ramassery. “It is famous for making a special type of idli,” says Bhagwaldas. “We go with tablecloths and have breakfast with the locals.”
All this costs `7,600-12,600, depending upon the room.
The Kandath Tharavad homestay hit the media spotlight when it hosted the wedding of Mollywood superstar Prithviraj and Supriya Menon on April 25, 2011. “They were looking for a quiet place, and it was booked by Prithviraj’s father-in-law, who lives in Palakkad,” says Bhagwaldas. “Prithviraj arrived with his immediate family consisting of 50 people. It was a very private ceremony.”
Most of the money Bhagwaldas earns is plowed back into the maintenance of the house. It belonged to his great-great-grandfather Kuppevelan, an agriculturist. “Since it is a family inheritance, I have to ensure that I look after it well for future generations,” says the father of two.