Skip to main content

Red Kurta and Tamarind Rice

It was 6am and the sky was pitch dark outside. I woke up to another lazy and gloomy day. For those who are wondering why, it is currently fall season here at Canada, followed by winter. So the upcoming 4 to 5 months will be so, except for a very few sunny days in between.

If it had been India, by now I will be in the kitchen helping out mom for Durga Pooja!! Since it is Vijayadasami at Canada today (though we are nine and half hrs behind India, almost all the festivals arrived a day in advance at Canada this year) per astro-calendar, I pushed myself out of the bedroom and got ready. 

Initial plan was to make a small portion of sweet for prasadam and pav bhaji for lunch (as it is quick to make). Another reason is the guilt of eating lot of sweets and cakes over the last couple of months.  Before entering the kitchen, I texted my friends at Canada and US. Surprisingly everyone responded the same - "Thank you. But it is tmrw". We exchanged couple of texts, mostly me explaining the reason behind.

Conversation between me and my friend (next door) was as below.

Frnd: Thank you. What's special for dasami?

Me: Nthg. What are you planning?

Frnd: Nthg. Don't feel the vibe

I had a similar feeling since I woke up (subconsciously was missing the festivities at India). After our conversation, I decided to enhance the mood within me and around. 

I immediately changed to a vibrant red kurta from my track pants. Prepared sweet pongal, tamarind rice and masala vada for Naivedyam (for inner god). 

The real joy doubles when shared, isn't it? We enjoyed the delicacies along with our friends next door. 

Happy Dasara to all those, who are celebrating!!!

Follow me on Instagram and Facebook to read my latest articles!!



Comments

  1. May Goddess Durga shower her choicest wishes over you and remove all evil obstacles in your life. Happy Dussehra!

    ReplyDelete
  2. We are able visualize the scene by your narration , it is almost a Sketch , which is simple to read and popular in creative writing in English , all the best
    Waiting for your next post

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Review: Anex Monkey Smart Watch

Hello Readers,  Welcome back. While browsing through a weekly flyer by Canadian Tire, my eyes got hold of a smart watch, primarily for its name - Monkey Smart Watch. It's original price was $89.99. On account of Father's Day, the price was slashed 70% and offered for just $24.99 (from June 9th to June 16th).  As it was listed on Canadian Tire website, I thought the product should be genuine and googled to know more about the product. But there weren't sufficient reviews online. So I decided to try it myself and booked it online. This smart watch was launched in the last quarter of 2021 as Anex Monkey Smart Watch. Last year, it had been sold for just $19.99 as part of Black Friday deal. Even after 5 days of waiting, Canadian Tire didn't process my order. On the other hand, the stock was vanishing real quick and only 80 watches were available in our near by store. When checked with their customer service executive, I was told to cancel my online order or wait until they p

Book: Sidney Sheldon's The Silent Widow by Tilly Bagshawe

If you are from 80s, like me, it is most likely you would have started your reading journey with a Sidney Sheldon's novel. Hands down, he is a master story teller known for his thrilling plots, inspiring characters, suspense and unexpected twists. Looking at the name of the book  Sidney Sheldon’s The Silent Widow , don't mistake it for written by Sidney Sheldon. Tilly Bagshawe is the author of this book.  Tilly Bagshawe is originally known as Matilda Emily Mary Bagshawe. She is a fictional writer who has written many international best-selling novels like Adored, Flawless, Temptation, The Show, The Bachelor etc.. Sidney Sheldon's estate thought Tilly's writing style is similar to Sidney Sheldon and chose her to write under his name. Thus far she has written 8 books as part of Sidney Sheldon series. Coming to the story of The Silent Widow, Nikki Roberts is the main character and she is a psychologist. She lost her husband in a car accident and since then is heartbroken n

Recipe: Idiyappam | Sevai | String Hoppers

Idiyappam, is a well known break fast item in Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Sri Lanka. It is also known as sevai or string hoppers (in English) and is primarily made out of rice floor. Like idli, idiyappam is made through steaming using no oil, making it very easily digestible and light on stomach.  When I think about idiyappam, I remember 2 instances from my childhood. One of my friend's mom, used to feed her 2 year old with different colourful sevais for evening snack - white, yellow, red along with a liquid version of it too, almost 3-4 times in a week. Later I learnt from her elder daughter (my friend) that they are coconut sevai (sweet version), lemon sevai, tomato sevai and rasam sevai. Though born and brought up in Chennai, we aren't much into idiyappams.  I don't remember eating them until I crossed 10 years. Whenever we visit a doctor with fever, our doctor used to give a list of food items - kanji, bread, idli, idiyappam and rasam rice, which I was usually averse to even

Book: The Art of Happiness by Dalai Lama & Howard C. Cutler

My knowledge on Buddha and Buddhism is limited to my school text books and some documentaries. I always wanted to know more about Buddha, his preachings and the philosophy of Buddhism. Few months back, I reached out to a book recommendation group on FB. Just within minutes, I received multiple suggestions on books on Buddhism, out of which I chose "The Art of Happiness" (the one with the highest number of recommendations). I decided to read it as the first book of 2024.  If you had been following me regularly, you would have known I wasn't successful at meeting my yearly reading goals. So unlike previous years, I wanted to adopt a different approach and goal towards reading, that could enable me to read more. I have explained about it at the end of this article.  For now, let me get into the topic "The Art of Happiness" is authored by the 14th Dalai Lama and Howard Cutler. His Holiness Dalai Lama needs no introduction. HH Dalai Lama is the spiritual leader of th

Cambridge Butterfly Conservatory

As the fall has set in, options for outings get limited, especially when we have kids. We recently visited a Butterfly Conservatory, at Cambridge, Ontario. It is completely indoor, so a plus for us to visit during fall and winters. It was re-opened in July 2021, after Covid-19 restrictions were relaxed. Entry is based on timed tickets (to be purchased online, as walk-ins aren't entertained these days due to Covid-19). 2 hours slot is allotted per ticket and face masks are mandatory, to ensure safety of visitors.   Now, coming to the Conservatory, it is set up in a tropical environment, which is essential for the survival of butterflies. It houses large varieties of free-flying butterflies and moths, tropical plants, birds, turtles, waterfalls and pond. Highlight is, one gets to see the four metamorphosis stages (i.e., egg, caterpillar, pupa and butterfly) of few varieties of the butterflies at the center. There is also a live display of insects and arthropods in the rooms adjacent