The NRI Onam

Lavanya Varma: It has been over a decade since I celebrated Onam with my family. Back in 2011, when I was doing my M. Arch in the UK, I spent most of my time in libraries and architectural studios. My mom called me up and wished me a ‘Happy Onam’. There I was, covered in green sawdust and Styrofoam trees, exhausted after three sleepless nights, sipping on my 6th espresso, trying to stay awake and finish my models. Thanks to my gorgeous team mate’s Greek vitality and my (sometimes scary) optimism, we decided to prepare a little something. We had about 6 hours to the deadline. We rushed back to my apartment, made a Sambar (without tamarind and okra), Parippu, Payasam (had to use thin wheat spaghetti instead of ‘semiya’) and rice. Walkers chips and Doritos served as Pappadam and the ‘Payasam’ moonlighted as ‘Pachadi’too. The dishes turned out to be alright! Who would’ve known? And to think about all the times I made a fuss about the color of the pappadam back when I was home with family. (Mom, my sincere apologies) But hey, that’s an NRI architect’s impromptu Onam. Here I’m doing my Architecture PhD in the US, reminiscing about the weirdest Onam I’ve had, while having an espresso and grading papers. Makes me wonder if things have changed at all… or whether I’m living in an infinite loop called life, like the Ouroboros. I wonder what’s in store for me this Onam!