Carers at a Seaton care home treated residents to a day of Indian festivities and food in celebration of the festival of Onam.
Four members of staff from The Seaton care home brought in home-cooked Indian dishes and shared Indian songs and dances with colleagues and residents.
Onam is an annual Indian harvest festival, celebrated over ten days in August.
Southern Healthcare administrator Kelly Boweren explained: “Our colleagues, who joined us from India, wanted to share some of their cultural festival of Onam with us. They put together a movie style presentation to explain the festival and they shared songs, dances, and food with us. It was a truly lovely afternoon.”
Greshma Gireesh, Jaicymol John, Jomit Joseph and Jithesh Balakrishnan wore traditional dress to celebrate the Keralan festival. The festival pays tribute to the homecoming of King Mahabali, and the harvest season.
Onam continues for ten days, with several rituals assigned to each day. During the festival, people wake up early to wash, deep clean their homes, decorate rooms with flowers and lights, and paint intricate designs on their front doors.
Onam Sadhya or Onasadya is a major part of Onam celebrations, featuring over 26 dishes prepared with the help of all the family members and eaten with hands on a banana leaf.