NRI's Onam

The harvest festival of Onam is back again this year with all the pomp and gait and Malayalis abroad try their best to recreate the effect there. A few NRI's share fond reminiscences on their favourite festival

Onam, the mother of all festivals in Kerala, is expected to be bigger and brighter this year. A lot of NRIs, especially those from the Middle East have already flown to Kerala to partake in the festivities at home. But those that cannot make it to their homeland for Onam, is not left behind. 

     Malayali associations and clubs abroad go all out to ensure that the Keralites living there do not miss their homeland on these festive occasions. Countries like Singapore and UAE have a close tie-up with the Malayalam movie industry, and every year, Onam special stage shows are organised, where television and movie artists perform live to a select audience. Lucy Suja George, a sales professional in Abu Dhabi, rarely misses the stage programmes organised by the Abu Dhabi Malayali association in connection with Onam.“These programmes help us unwind, relax and watch our favourite stars perform live,” says George. 

     It does not end there. Ask any NRI about Onam and they only have fond memories of the harvest festival. Sapna Babu, a home maker and mother of two, who lives in California, feels that once abroad, children miss the whole build up and excitement leading to Onam that happens in India, so one need to make an extra effort to get them to feel a bit of it. “We enjoy dressing up for Onam, clicking pictures in new Onam outfits and laying the pookkalam,” says Sapna. “Every year, I make it a point to prepare the grand Onam sadhya and invite friends over, for the more the merrier,” adds Babu.

   Onam in the Middle East is pretty much the same as in Kerala, owing to the huge population of Malayalis residing there. “Indian Social Centre (ISC) in Abu Dhabi is the hub for all Indians here and almost every Indian festival is celebrated by members of this association,” says George. Parvees A Gafur, CEO, Propsquare Real Estate, Dubai, agrees. “Several Malayali associations compete with each other to have the best celebrations organised along with cultural activities. In the Gulf, celebrations extend to several weeks and the spirit and involvement are much higher here.” He says.

           Apart from this, many countries abroad organise community Onam celebrations where there is traditional food and lot of entertainment. Some charitable organisations distribute food packets in areas with a heavy population of Keralite workers to mark the celebrations. “Onam is incomplete here without the exclusive vegetarian sadhya, pookalam competition, Onam bumper draws and various stage programmes and cultural completions. Supermarkets offer special discounts for vegetables during the season and even has a separate section for all the Onam items,” recollects George.

       All said, it is a fact that Onam is never complete without having close and extended families, friends coming together to celebrate together as in Kerala. Mittu Gopalan, partner, Freedman & Gopalan Solicitors, who is settled in Sydney for the last 20 years, still misses home when it comes to Onam. “I miss all the preparations leading to thiruvonam - the 10 days starting with atham, the street illuminations, memories of putting the flower carpets, preparing the payasams on the big day, the sumptuous Onam sadhya with the entire extended family at our ancestral home in Kochi and finally, recollecting the good old Onam days are still fresh in my mind,” reminisces Gopalan.

          Onam is always special for any Malayali, in whichever corner of the world they may be. Caste, religion or distance does not make a difference at the end of the day. As George put it, “the ten days from athachamayam to thiruvonam, the custom of new dress for Onam, pulikali, shopping hungama, the sheer delight and excitement of the people around the time of Onam is very nostalgic and inimitable, and no other place can give us that feel.”
 
- sherene joseph