I love Diwali. Apart from the common traditions, I have my own ways and means to celebrate. I tend to buy a lot of locally made clay lamps, and I love experimenting with paints of different types. I love them bright and clean; glitter or shimmer is not my thing. This year, I picked small…
Tag: Indian Traditions
Celebrations of Life
Like I’ve mentioned many times before, India is incredibly festive as a country; we look for reasons to cook, dress up and celebrate with everyone around. Many of these recipes are an indication of the region you belong to and the season the celebration is in. Since I have lived in Bombay since I was…
Celebrating Life
Festivals in India is fun, festive and brimming with food. As you’d probably know, if you’ve been around a while, I get to celebrate 3-4 harvest festivals because of my lineage. I’m a Tamilian, who’s parents belong to either sides of the state’s border, and I was born and raised in Mumbai, which celebrates the…
Sukhkarta Dukhharta … Suravaravandana
Sukhkarta Dukhharta Varta VighnachNurvi Purvi Prema Kripa JayachiSarvangi Sundara Uti ShendurachiKanthi Jhalake Maala MuktaphalanchiJai Deva Jai Deva Jai MangalamurtiDarshanamatre Manakamana Purti Salutations the giver of joy, the remover of sorrow, and the one who eliminates hurdlesthe one who spreads love and grace everywherethe one with a beautiful body smeared with vermilionand the one who sports…
Mahalaksmi Ashtakam
Namasthesthu MahamayeSree Peede, Sura PoojitheSanka Chakra Gadha HastheMaha Lakshmi NamosthutheReverential Salutations to You, the Primordial Cause of Creation; Who Abides in Her Transcendental Abode and is Worshipped by the Suras,Who is adorned with a Conch, Discus and Mace in Her Hands; Reverential Salutations to You, O Devi Mahalakshmi. Namasthe GarudarudeKolasura BhayamkariSarva Papa Hare DeviMaha Lakshmi…
Ram Leela
Like I’ve mentioned before, I am one of the luckiest souls to be born in a very diverse Indian cultural mix. So from Raksha Bandhan to Holi and Ramlila to Vijayadashmi to Diwali and Christmas, we get to witness and celebrate everything under the sun with much fanfare. Most Ramlilas in North India are based…
Festive Food
Food and festivities go hand in hand. Festivals in India are actually aligned to the seasonal changes that happen in the region. As an agrarian country that is the 7th largest in the world, every part of the nation has a different season and flavor to celebrations. Navratri for us is a was to celebrate…
Navratri Fanfare
I LOVE stories.. it is the butter, jam, jelly, caramel and pickle to my bread. As a story teller, Navarati is most certainly my most favorite festival of the year (well, second to Diwali, which is usually birthday time!). For the past few years, especially since I moved to Bangalore, I look forward to setting…
Onam Ashamsakal
I feel privileged to be born and raised with a very cultural diverse background. My parents were born in two different ends of Tamil Nadu, my father’s ancestral village is on the border of Kerala. I am Bombay-bred, and grew up with people from all walks, cultures and ethnicity of the world. Being an agrarian…
Holi Hai!
I must admit, Holi isn’t my favorite festivals in the world. It’s messy and uncomfortable, to say the least. But for some strange reason, I miss being home this year for the slush fest. I miss being with crazy buddies, especially when it’s time to celebrate. Where I now live, celebrations are a very private…
Snapshots of my World 