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My Top 10 Must-Try Sweets in Odisha
Got a sweet tooth? Never forget to try the delicious sweets of Odisha, whenever you visit next. Sweets have always formed an integral part of Indian Cuisine. Considering the different states in India, you can vouch for a wide variety of sweets to satiate your sweet tooth. The cuisine of each state has its unique taste and flavour. Needless to mention, Indian sweets are almost always laden with clarified butter (ghee), sugar or milk solids which makes it difficult to consume a lot. But, it is definitely worth a try! Today, I bring before you a list of 10 must-try sweets, most popular in the eastern state of India –…
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A Tribute To RATHA JATRA – The World Famous Chariot Festival at Puri, Odisha
Amidst the corona virus epidemic scare this year, Ratha Jatra was like never before! With very strict restrictions and a limited number of people, the authorities allowed the basic rituals to be commenced for Ratha Jatra in 2020. The priests were masked and public attendance was completely banned, followed by some sharp criticism for even allowing this in the first place. While we witnessed the empty streets of Puri on television while the chariots were being pulled, I thought of writing a tribute to this world-famous festival of Puri, Odisha. I did my bit of research and collated whatever little I know about Ratha Jatra so far. This blog…
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RAJA PARBA – The Festival Of Odisha Celebrating Womanhood
Today, I will write about a very popular festival of Odisha – “Raja Parba”, which is going to start from this weekend. And I can’t help but hum this very popular folk-song from Odisha, commemorating RAJA PARBA, while I sit down to write. The first stanza goes something like this : ବନସ୍ତେ ଡାକିଲା ଗଜ ବରଷକେ ଥରେ ଆସିଛି ରଜ, ଆସିଛି ରଜ ଲୋ ଘେନି ନୂଆ ସଜବାଜ । Amidst the current pandemic crisis in the world, social distancing is the key. So, one of the many things that has been hit hard and taken a backseat is – the fanfare and celebrations of Indian festivals. So, I thought of writing about one of…
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Mom, I celebrate you everyday, not just today – #HappyMothersDay
It was a regular sign off from a working day and I was on my way back home. My bus was filled with people from various walks of life and bustling with endless chatter. Luckily, the AC was a huge relief on a typical humid Bhubaneswar evening in the month of March. Just then, a friend messaged me about this beautiful campaign – “From Ma, With Love” by One Future Collective. It was celebrating recollections of feminist tales and lessons, passed down to us, by our mother and a beautiful tribute to moms on Mother’s Day. This reminded me of Ma’s glass of lemonade which must be ready by the…
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Palur Chronicles : “First Day Jitters at Palur Hills”
11 years gone, and still counting! The first day jitters still remain the same. As I sit down today reminiscing about the good old engineering days, all the memories seem to brush past like a whiff of fresh air. It seems like yesterday, when we had first stepped into the magnificent campus of our engineering college at Palur Hills. Boarded on bright yellow college buses, we noticed the sprawling campus from the national highway. This was going to be our second home, for the next 4 years of our lifetime. Since the college was situated in the outskirts of the city, the most feasible means of transport was college bus.…
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Palur Chronicles : “My valedictory to 4 precious years of a lifetime”
“Contemplating about the past 4 years spent in these lush green locales of Palur Hills, we seem to have attained a very peculiar state – a placid persona ready to forgive and forget. The ambience here has definitely nurtured every individual to become the human being that they are.” I penned down these above lines way back in the summer. Sitting on the staircase of the topmost floor, probably waiting for someone, gazing away into the greenery around, the unending sky, I was in a different world altogether – a world of my thoughts, my world of contemplation. Just couldn’t muster enough courage to complete what I’d started. Hearts were…
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A Common Man’s Tryst with Words in Odisha
I had always dreamt of bringing stories of common people to the masses – stories that are common – yet uncommon, stories that are real and inspirational, stories about a nobody who is definitely a somebody, stories about amazing people we meet in our regular lives! And I finally get an opportunity to write about my conversation with a passionate human being, who is one amongst us and a celebrity of his own artistic might. Today, we have with us, a very passionate and young writer from Odisha, who believes in pouring his heart into his words. Despite having taken up law and public services for a full-time career, his…
