Despite it traditionally being a regional Hindu festival, Onam today has come to be a cultural one, one that is embraced by people of other faiths and communities. Linked with the harvest season of Kerala, most Malayalees observe all ten days of the harvest festival. On the eve of Thiru-Onam, MetroPlus finds non-Malayalees too are partaking in all the festivity and merriment.
Bangalore being a melting pot of cultures, Onam is now as popular as any other festival native to the state. Althea Rodriguez, an engineer, says: “When I first came to Bangalore from Goa, I didn’t know what the hype was about but the classic white and gold Kerala sari that women in my office wore were so elegant. The very next year, I purchased one too and so have other non-Malayalees. Now nobody feels left out on Onam!”
Trisha Serrao, a homemaker, says: “We live in a building where there are a lot of Malayalee families. Through the ten days of Onam there is some activity or the other to observe the importance of the festival. The children have pookalam designing competitions organised by some of the female residents. We also have teens enact the renowned fable of Onam, complete with costumes and props, at the clubhouse, after which we have a sadya organised for all the residents of the building. We thoroughly enjoy ourselves every Onam.”
The Kasavu sari and mundu sure enjoy the glory on Onam but it is the Onasadya, the nine course meal consisting of 11 to 13 essential traditional dishes, which is the highlight of the day’s festivities. “Bangalore has so many Kerala specialty restaurants across categories and with each of them offering lip-smacking spreads for Onam, every year my friends and I partake of the sadya. I enjoy sitting on the floor and eating off a banana leaf,” says Rishabh Bhog, a financial analyst.
“What I love most about the festival is that it is inclusive. I have so many Keralite friends who invite me home every year for the sadya. It’s like I’m a part of the family and for someone who lives on her own, there’s no better feeling than that of belonging,” feels Manoj Jha, a collegian.
With cultural and religious lines being blurred like this and the North-South gap being bridged so beautifully, unity in diversity may not be such a far-fetched dream in India!
