It’s that time of the year again…When Onam, a festival of abundance, charmingly accompanied by the luxurious monsoon drops, comes calling in the Malayalam month of Chingam, and Malayalis scattered across the globe throw themselves into celebration mode. Onam is a celebration of celebrations that teaches you to shed the worries of yesterday and have the taste of a joyous life once in a while. It reminds you of a world where honesty and equality ruled the roost; where each citizen lived happily, breaking the barriers of religion, caste and money in a welfare state ruled by noble king Mahabali. ‘Kanam vittum onam unnanam’ (Have the feast even if you sacrifice your valuables) goes the adage. When the mythological king visits his erstwhile state every year, a Malayali gets ready with the feast of good times. ‘Thiruvonasadya’ which is known for being one of the most famous sumptuous feasts ever prepared by mankind. It’s often the temptation of the sadya (feast) served on plantain leaves with more than 15 curries that makes every Malayali head home during Onam. ‘Bangalore Malayalis’ may be away from the flurry of celebrations in God’s own country, but they keep the spirit alive by making pookkalam (flower rangoli) and preparing the best of the vegetarian delicacies at their homes. Those who cannot catch the Keralabound train or bus this time and prepare a feast at home are not desperate either.
They have the option of tickling their taste buds without travelling all the way to Kerala. With an eye on this sadya-hungry lot, many restaurants have already started preparations for special Onam food. Offers are aplenty. This time, many city food outlets promise the typical Kerala red boiled rice along with more than 20 curries and atleast four varieties of payasam . A few have roped in Kerala-based expert cooks to supervise the preparation. Balakrishnan, a bachelor, who works at a multinatonal company, is looking forward to taste the lip-smacking dishes from a city hotel with his friends on Thirovonam. Though he could not make it to Kerala last year, he made up for the loss by having sadya from a popular restaurant.
It is the hazardous task of preparing the traditional dishes that drive many nuclear families and students to the restaurants in the IT city. Chartered accountant Arun and family think the luxury of having fun with relatives and friends is a bonus while celebrating Onam outside. IT couple Santhosh and Emily have already given order for sadya from a premium hotel in Ulsoor.
Though Emily has proved her culinary skills, she does not want to sweat it out in the kitchen on the ‘precious holiday’. Malayali associations and many community forums organise get-together of their members at hotels on
this special day. For them, it is a celebration of the feeling of nostalgia too. Some believe the golden days are gone, but the memories linger on. For a few, it rekindles the hope that a world with no worries is yet to come.