Bengali

Dudh Puli Pithe

8:23 AM




Dudhpuli or puli pithe is another famous pithe which are prepared on the eve of Poush Sankranti. This pithe has an outer shell or the khol made with rice flour and is filled with sweet stuffing made with coconut and sugar. Then these dumplings are either boiled in thickened milk sweetened with jaggery or steamed and eaten with liquid date palm jaggery. The commonly found shape is of the half moon shape (like North Indian gujia) or the crescent shape, but one can do a lot of experiment with the shape and size. We generally give it three shapes the normal half moon/crescent, the sun shape and the Singara/ Samosa or triangle shape.

Bengali

Poush Parbon er Pithe: Nalen gurer Patishapta

11:27 AM





It is a well-known fact that we Bengalis are crazy for our mishti or sweets. Not only we love to eat sweets but we love to make sweets too and one such kind of festival when we crave for homemade sweets is called Poush sankranti. Poush sankranti or Poush parbon is observed on the auspicious day of Makara sankranti or the last day of Bengali month Poush. Not only in Bengal but all over India this day is regarded as a very special day and various traditions are followed. Like in south India they celebrate Pongal, in Punjab it is celebrated as Lohri, in Bengal people gather at the holy place of Gangasagar where the river Ganges meets the Bay of Bengal to take a dip in the morning. It is believed that by doing so one can get rid of all sins.

Memoir

11:50 AM


Spring is here…the colours from my window.
Again the time of the year has come when I long for being with my family in Santiniketan…those new green leaves, the clear sky, the green fields, the murram roads towards the ashrama, the bright yellow of Palash (Butea monosperma) flowers, the ‘adda’ (chatting) sessions under the shadows of the trees in front of the girls hostel, the music in the air, the sudden burst of laughter in the rehearsal rooms, the roadsides abiir (gulal/ dry colours) vendors and the tired us after a daylong dance practice for Basantotsav,…I miss those days and I want to go home.
This Friday afternoon when I was having my lazy lonely lunch on the drawing room couch and was daydreaming of those good old collage days I suddenly looked through my window and saw a riot of soft green colours. The tree besides my gate has started having new leaves…soft, tender and shiny. It made my day, gave me a feeling of being close to something that I cherish most.

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