Pongal and Pot

With a day for Pongal, the harvesting festival of Tamils uplifts the mood quite. Being an admirer of festivals, Pongal has a special place in my heart and the value of tradition being preserved at least during this time feels happy. Pongal is not only farmers festival but people who survive, eating their harvested grains should celebrate to thanksgiving the farmers and their close associates of cattle and the natural resources. People in cities mostly celebrate the festival (almost every festival) in front of the televisions and Pongal (boiling of milk and rice, which overflows to be believed as a favourable outcome) is also cooked on cookers rather the traditional way of mud pots.

For more than a decade we have been making Pongal on mud pots, but except couple of times on the firewood’s it was the gas stove mostly. The Pongal cooked in mud pots has a distinct flavour and I enjoy having it so much.  Though having a spacious courtyard, we didn’t arrange for firewood last year unlike 2015, as our city was going through difficult time due to floods, I have requested mom to prepare for a traditional Pongal this time. I really love to celebrate Pongal in a village atmosphere where true festival essence exists. But living in city it’s quite difficult even though I try to visit villages or travel around the countryside to capture the glimpses of Pongal celebrations on the Mattu Pongal or Kaanum Pongal, the successive days of Pongal festival that highlight bulls and entertainment consecutively.   

Among the four days of Pongal festival, tomorrow marks Bhogi Pongal where the houses are cleaned and old things are replaced by new or disposal of unused. For last few days our house has been going through much cleaning and mom and dad had taken care of the task. Though it was a difficult job for them, I really got to recover and cherish many things (that I have quite forgotten) while cleaning has left me with ideas which I think of using in coming days.  

Btw. The mud pot and stove was captured at a restaurant in Kodaikanal and it was placed on the sunshade. It was raining that time and the picture had little grains, so I used oil paint filter and it gives a nice feel. Wish you all Happy Pongal