Happy Ugadi (New Years day for South Indians)

Wishing my Rangkatha family a very "Happy Ugadi" ( శ్రీ జయనమ సంవత్సర ఉగాది శుభాకాంక్షలు ) .

Yugadi (or Ugadi) festival marks the new year day for people who follow South Indian lunar calendar, pervasively adhered to in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Goa. Ugadi is celebrated with gatherings of the extended family , friends and a sumptuous feast.

Any Indian festival makes me alive as it takes me back home in terms of my memories. Coming from South India this was one of the auspicious festival I have celebrated growing up. There are so many memories of this festival that comes to my mind and too many favourites to list them. But one that is worth mentioning is the lingering aroma of newly harvested fresh green Mangoes. Month of Ugadi marks the beginning of Mango harvest season in India and usage of Mango leaves to Mangoes itself during this festival defines mood, color and decor of this festivity and celebration.

Definitely Ugadi is all about elaborate feast with various delicacies sharing them with family and friends. But day starts with eating a special mixture of six tastes (షడ్రుచులు), called Ugadi Pachadi (ఉగాది పచ్చడి) in Telugu and Bevu-Bella (ಬೇವು-ಬೆಲ್ಲ) in Kannada which symbolizes the fact that life is a mixture of different experiences (sadness, happiness, anger, fear, disgust, surprise), which should be accepted together and scientifically this combination of mixture is supposed to flush away toxins out of your body.

The special mixture consists of:
Neem Buds/Flowers for its bitterness - signifying Sadness
Jaggery and ripe banana pieces for sweetness - signifying Happiness
Green Chilli/Pepper for its hot taste - signifying Anger
Salt for saltiness - signifying Fear
Tamarind Juice for its sourness - signifying Disgust
Unripened Mango for its tang - signifying Surprise


When I came to United States some 16 years back I had to struggle finding ingredients to make Ugadi Pachhadi. My mom would dry neem flowers and send it to me from India. For past few years I have found all the ingredients needed here in US for celebrating Ugadi, including Neem flowers to mango leaves. While I was getting ready to celebrate Ugadi this year, I had to go to around 5 Indian grocery stores to hunt for Mango leaves, not because they didn't carry, but because they ran out and this is definitely a wonderful problem to have, as this can only mean that there are so many more people in this area i live who are celebrating Ugadi this year and that feeling makes me feel at home.

I hope and wish that you all my dear readers who celebrated Ugadi this year had a wonderful Ugadi celebrations ..

Before i take off.. i would like to share some of my celebration snippets with you all..

Thank you all for being part of my celebrations this year...
Would love to see and hear about your celebrations...

Until I see you again.. Many many wishes on this new year.. may this new year brings to you all the happiness and health you can ask for.


@CopyRight: Images here are taken by me and are from my home and are subject to copyright. Please do drop me a note if you like to use them.

Happy Ugadi!
~Prasanna

Home Tour I - An Colorful and Eclectic home on the Adriatic Coast.

Remember the post Splash on White ? Didn't get to read yet? Go here to read it. Today's post is an perfect extension of that. I have seen this home first on ELLE DECOR's March issue and cannot wait to share with you all.

Vibrant Colors on white walls is what makes this home as beautiful as it is and is a perfect portrait of Holi, spring festival also known as the festival of colours and love.

As a Tribute to Holi I bring to you this Katha(Story) of Rang(Colors).

Beautiful vacation home on the Adraitic Coast in Puglia, Italy. Which is a three-hour flight from London but centuries away from the corporate bustle- A perfect getaway for London-based fashion designer Liza Bruce and her husband, artist Nicholas Alvis Vega, who have chosen this to be their vacation home.

Moroccan wood screens surround a veranda; the pillows are covered in ikats from Uzbekistan.

ROOF TERRACE, An Ethiopian bed under an awning made with Kenyan fabrics on the roof terrace; the cushions are by Lysa Bruce herself. Everything has been deliberately kept simple and light, with as little furniture as possible

In a sitting room, both the table and hand-carved wood chair are Ethiopian, the shell chandelier is from Bali, and the straw rug is Moroccan.

In the kitchen and dining area, a Moroccan folding table is topped with a tin tray, the stool is African, an Italian baroque-style lampshade is made with an African fabric, and the straw mat is Moroccan.

In the master bedroom, the bedcover is made from African textiles, and a remnant of a shield from Papua New Guinea was painted by Alvis Vega.
In Guest Bedroon, a woven screen from Burundi serves as a headboard in a guest room; the bedcover is of West African kente cloth, the wall was painted a custom color to match, and the floor mat is Indonesian.

In the living room, a painting by Alvis Vega hangs above a Moroccan straw sofa; the wood screen doors, hexagonal table, and straw rug are Moroccan, and the chair is Ethiopian.

These colors are an absolute eye candy, what do you all say?? ... They sure are for me and the vibes of these colors are definitely making my week brighter in the middle of dull, gloomy and C-O-L-D weather .

Until I see you all again, Wishing you my dear readers a Very Happy & Vibrant Holi and a Vibrant week ahead!

Credit - Picture Credit @ ELLE DECOR & Google Images. Complied and presented by RangKatha.

bye, Prasanna

Bougainvillea Beauty!

Thought of Bougainvillea ... takes me back to memory lanes of my Grandparents place which holds a very special place in my heart! As a child i have visited their village every summer holidays and the time i have spent at my Grandparents village with my cousins and other relatives is memorable in every way. There are one too many memories of mine attached to that village and one of them is that of Bougainvillea ..

Besides lush green landscapes of paddy fields which you cannot miss, there is another color that you will prominently notice, that is Red! Red of Bougainvillea, creeping not just in the courtyards of almost every house in that village but also along side of dirt roads leading in and out of that village. Sight of these colors was the first sign of warmth I would feel of that place.

Bougainvillea is a genus of thorny ornamental vine, which can be trained as bush, tree or bonsai, which has flower-like spring leaves of various colors near its actual flowers which are white. There are about 18 species of this flowering creepers. Bougainvillea are native plants of South America, from Brazil, west to Perú and south to southern Argentina . But you will see that it has very well adopted to any tropical landscape. The species of bougainvillea are very low maintenance, in terms of tolerance to drought, pollution, and is also almost pests free.

As tired as I am of this prolonged cold weather this year and as I eagerly wait for spring, recollecting some of my profound memories of one of my favourite colors of life... Bougainvilla! As i recollect this beauty, I would like to bring to you some snapshots of what a magic this species of flora can create to your landscapes and homescapes !

Beauty and Magic of Bougainvillea........... Magic that it creates throughout the year with its beautiful blooms...

Treasure Hunt Series - I

I have weakness for artifacts and cannot stop myself from collecting things which fascinates me .. Now that i have you all, my wonderful readers to share my collections with, I thought of coming up with this series so i can bring my little treasure hunts to you.

During last week i stumped upon this little online boutique DreamCanvas and found couple of lovely artifacts( Vintage Vase in white metal and a Brass fish shaped soap box). Best thing about these finds are that I instantly got connected with them and was sure they would bring charm into my home which are sure to create stories of their own.

First find- Hand crafted vintage vase (Lassi Glass) Adoring a corner of my house along with my adorable Nandi(Carved in Black Granite)

Second - Fish shaped soap dish, made in brass, adding glamour to this corner of my house!

And together the charm they are creating is amazing!

During my last trip to India couple of years back I found this Jewellery Box (one on the top) on one of Delhi's street markets. My husband said, don't you think you can find this anywhere then why to carry it all the way from here? Then I couldn't explain the instant connection I felt with this Jewellery box (besides the fact that I can never have enough of Jewellery boxes). Every time I looked at it I always wished that I could have grabbed one more. Almost 2 years later I found a Jewellery box with the same pattern, here in USA. Now i feel that this combination is complete. What do you say??

Hope you will enjoy this new series..
Until i see you next time, have a wonderful week!


Images: Taken in my house and are property of Rangkatha. Subject to copyright, please do not use without prior written permission.

Ciao,
~Prasanna