A Space to Pause

Let me help spell it. It is "கம்மங்கூழ்"-"Kammang" + "Cool", but the "L" here should be pronounced by folding the tongue inwards to touch the palate as far as you can. It is a tongue twister that adds beauty to "Tamizh" and "Malayalam" languages. Kambu (  in  Tamil)   is called "Pearl Millet" in English and Bajri in Hindi. I cherished eating kambu  as a child for breakfast, and this continued after coming to the US too. I replaced cornmeals and oatmeals for breakfast, and kambu  took an irreplaceable place in my breakfast menu during summer. This dish captures those unforgettable moments of my childhood. Where do I get this? I get it shipped from India. I usually get 5-7 Kgs shipped per summer, and since it is only me who consumes this for breakfast, it lasts the whole summer. As a child, I drank quite a good quantity of this thick drink for breakfast accompanied with mild pickle or shallots. It is believed to coo...

Happened to watch the movie "2 States"..... I read the book a few years ago, but not until I watched the movie recently, I felt how close and special those bygone moments are. I gave a glimpse of how I married a North-Indian in an earlier post. This time, for a change, I got reminded of the days we spent together in Bangalore. I recently happened to speak with a dear friend of mine after many years. We took a plunge into those student days, revisiting the fun, the frivolous attitude, silly pranks and mindless chatterings. It was then I decided to come up with a post, pondering over those memories, etched deep into my heart. I had to dust them hard to bring them to light. It was Summer of 2004. As always, we, as a group of scholarly to-be-PhDs, decided to set off for a crazy expedition. We decided to go for a trek to Ramnagar, a rural area, close to Bangalore where a few scenes of the movie Sholay were shot. I thank Kavitha Siva, the craziest of all, for organizing and...

I was caught up with a thought of doing something different for lunch on an active Saturday. I just felt like eating Briyani, after a long time. The best part of cooking is that, a craving immediately turns into a meal without any second thought!! The moment I thought about mushrooms, the only thing that came to my mind was those childhood days when I and my sister ventured out with my older cousins to hunt for farm mushrooms. They were not cultivated, but they grew densely by themselves after a good rain. There used to be heavy competition for picking those. Even before it was dawn, there were groups who set out for such expeditions. The rule was that the mushrooms belonged to those who found them, does not matter whose farm it was on. Few days were really yielding and exciting. Those wild mushrooms were white, umbrella mushrooms, and only few experts in the family were able to differentiate between the good ones and bad ones, as there were few poisonous ones too. Later, mom or ...

Well, Coconut is not a true nut, but a drupe. I fancied a rhyming title, therefore, went for it. South-India is famous for kaappi (coffee), dosa , kanchipuram saree and coconut. Once someone asked me "You apply coconut oil on hair, pour it in some food items such as Avial and  koottu   and apply it on skin, so what is it all about coconut?" That made me think. There is a conception that coconut meat and oil have high cholesterol, and, therefore, consuming it in any amount is not advisable. Agreed! It is rich in saturated fats that increase the LDL levels in the blood. On the contrary, there are numerous health and wellness websites and Health food companies that promote coconut-based food by highlighting its goodness. Some even claim that coconut may cure conditions from indigestion to autism and Alzheimer's. Which of the above claims is true? The first one has been proven scientifically, but the latter part of the second one lacks evidence, as it is all about clinica...

In summer of 2007, just four months after we first arrived in the US, my husband and I were at Penns landing, celebrating India day. That was the first ever-big Indian gathering I attended since my arrival in the US. I was gazing at the stalls, the colorful Bollywood dance and the number of Indians who thronged along the riverbank. I liked it, and was lost in the noise and the mixedness of the event. I did not know anyone there, but got to know a couple of them with whom I am still in touch. But, least did I expect that I would be writing an article for a person whom I happened to notice there, but really got to know and interact much later! I saw this beaming face carrying loads of smile and radiance, walking around. Then I noticed her huge tummy, which she carried at ease. Till then, I thought pregnancy was a tough thing, and there will be more of grimaces throughout than smiles. Her fast-walk, smile, radiance and confidence attracted me. No wonder why Baby P has that sweet, all...

Life before wedding  was unencumbered, tangle-free and straightforward. But after we all started with our own families, each one of us is mired into varieties of tasks. We keep running without a pause. We think that running without a break is admissible and would not harm us. We do not realize that the effect of running hard without a break is associated with an eventual, sudden breakdown. Those who pause and think before proceeding become alert and end up in a reduced damage, and those who do not, suffer later. I am not talking about the damage that occurs to our material possessions. It is all about our own Beautiful body!  I wanted to touch this issue when I decided to write. This is a topic that draws my interest, always. While the component I am going to deal with, in this post, is absolutely essential for all age groups, I want to emphasize it mainly on Women's Health. Most of us are in our 30s, few in the late 20s, and the rest in the early 40s. We all perfor...

Once there lived a Raja who was preparing for a flamboyant wedding ceremony of his daughter. He invited people from all over the place and from across kingdoms. He wanted the ceremony at its best. On the day of the wedding, surprisingly, there was no enough Sambar  to be served. Worried Raja called the Cook to discuss over the shortage. The Cook sowed some hope in Raja  and told him not to worry. Later, the Raja was flabbergasted to taste a delicious dish the Cook came up with. The painstaking effort of the cook to come up with a scrumptious meal out of minimal resources pleased the Raja , and the Cook made a fortune out of it. I do not remember the identities of the Raja , Cook, and the Kingdom, but all I remember is the dish that was born out of serendipity! It is called Rasam,  an indispensable item of a Southern Indian meal! I happened to hear this story of  Rasam  when I accidentally ran into the "grannies' club" of my village on a lazy aftern...