Yes! This is it !

 It’s been a year since I wrote a blog. Just as seasons change there is so much change that occur in our lives. We change places, jobs and so on. People who were with us yesterday are no more today. In this past year we changed place from Kerala to Karnataka. And we lost so many people this year. And one such person is MJ. It was totally an unacceptable news. And now after four months here we are…                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    MJ’s movie is in theaters…my better half said, adding he wish to see that but then asking himself, will he be able to watch it? He is an admirer of MJ, a fan who grew up listening to the tunes of the magician musician… (I say so, because of the command he had on his compositions and the ease with which he used to perform….)

  Then, we went to the PVR cinema, yet not so sure of watching it, but after all we listened to our hearts and we got the only 2 tickets available!!

MJ’s unfortunate and sudden demise is something which will never sink in… And this movie made it sure…. he is and will be alive forever. His love for music, love towards the fellow human beings and love for nature is to stay forever…

  In this world whoever is born has to go back one day, how great a person is, death spares none… That is why we are all mortals. But I say people like MJ are immortals…  He will be heard over and again through his music… Oh god, with how much passion he desperately wanted to reach out to his fans one last time… but it never happened… strange are the lives of man!

  At the end of the movie my eyes were moist… that’s all I could feel… all else was frozen.

Movie shows clippings about the passion and enthusiasm with which he prepared himself and his team for his comeback. What we feel is only the humble man who just knew to love, and love and love… that’s all. And yes he is very much alive, whoever loves his music can only say these words “I just can’t stop loving you…” That’s what he used to say and wanted to say to everyone.

  In the end one thing that comes to my mind is – As the sun shines and immerses everything with his glory, so did MJ immerse everyone with his love and music. This is it!

Onam was Everywhere….

   

Pookkalam

Onam is the festival of prosperity, harmony, feasts, flowers, sharing , enjoyment and welcoming the King who is believed to visit his people every year.

Onam is the festival of Kerala, of every individual Keralite. Onam depicts the arrangements for and the arrival of the king Mahabali, who long ago used to rule this region.

Writing anything about Onam will be complete only when its purpose is emphasised. So let us get to know about it.

    King  Mahabali ( though a demon king) was very powerful, wise and kind. His time was marked with prosperity , harmony and happiness. He got so powerful and loved by all people that, he was ready to take over all the world under his control. Sensing the danger of its impact, God MahaVishnu, from prayers and pleadings by heavenly Entities came in disguise of Vaamana ( one among the Ten Avatar) to the king. Vaamana – a short young brahmin.          

Being so generous, King Mahabali was ready to give anything that is asked by this divine one. It is said that the king came to know about the truth behind this disguise, but was humble enough to give away everything. So when Vaamana asked for 3feet of land, the king was ready and soon Vaamana grew so big and huge that only his single foot covered the whole Earth. Another foot up to the sky and heaven, had left with one more foot of land as promised by the king. So then the King very humbly asked Vaamana to place that last foot over his head , and as done, the King was gone to the paatala , to the depths. The king loved his people so much that he prayed to Lord MahaVishnu to grant him the right to visit his people every year on that day.

So that is the day people all over Kerala, celebrate as Onam, welcoming their beloved king and pleasing him by floral carpets, feasts and showing him that all of them are happy.

For some Onam is all about the lavish yet very divine feast, for some its all about floral carpets and swings, for some its wearing new clothes.

As my memory goes I had enjoyed every Onam with my creations of floral carpets. Now living in Kerala, I understand the importance of the feast. For ten long days every home will have floral carpets in front of their homes and on the tenth day is the feast. Arranging the flowers as well as the feast is very divine.      

                                               

Getting up early , wearing new clothes, arranging the flowers and going to temple, preparing the lunch, it was all a very nice experience for me this time.

I was very happy to dare to prepare the lunch successfully. I must thank my H for his support and my foodie blog angel Seena for helping to trust myself. The feast was simple and comparatively small yet was fulfilling! the important thing is , traditionally no onion or garlic is used in the recipes, it is done without tasting anything while cooking, and is served first to the King in plantain leaf complete with payasam and water, in front of the lamp. For me it was a very divine feeling of welcoming the king and serving the food and praying! Really a cherished one!  

                                                                             

                    

And after feasting to our hearts content it was time to go visit the places of celebration in many venues and delight at the illuminations and enjoyment. It was like everyone forgot all their sorrows and everyone was so indulged in merriment!… Off course, those who were with pain due to many reasons were in my mind all the time.

                                                                          

So one more Onam had come and gone … bringing a new meaning for all the celebrations, deep inside my heart! So thought of sharing the happiness and divinity that Onam brings….

Chicken Biriyani.. Kerala style!

       Whenever I want to eat something delicious.. the first thing that comes to my mind is Biriyani. And the chicken biriyani my favourite. The aroma of the spices used in it always reminds me of the feasts, marriages and nostalgia related to it.

But how much ever I craved for it, was not lucky enough to have it.

     So now, as I have grown old enough and uncompromisingly have to cook for my family, thought of finding a good recipe, which will be simple. I searched in my fav foodie blog , and there it is!! As my mood was good, I tried. What happened?  It turned out to be a wonderful delight!! And I swell up with pride when the praises were showered on me… But I definitely thanked the one who is responsible for this, the foodie blog angel. 

Here is the biriyani,                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      which is the recipe from Seena of Simple and Delicious! . This recipe is from Kerala, God’s own country and land of many delicacies!!

          This is my dream fulfilled !! Never thought of preparing biriyani myself ! as the list of spices seemed to be too long for me, but when i started to do it, i knew how simple and easy it is!

          One reason which had kept me out trying any recipe of the biriyani is the fact of using curd/ yogurt in its making. Even though lot of people use it in cooking, according to Ayurveda, the curd should never be heated or mixed with anything hot. I am yet to find a substitute or solution to avoid it. As and when I get that it will be updated. And I look forward to present the reason, behind avoiding heating of curd, in Ayurveda .

Until then, enjoy the biriyani and be happy!!