Once you get to any of our Culture
Aangan homes, you will experience the real essence of
our philosophy and culture. As true Indians and in keeping with
our deeply ingrained upbringing and hospitality our hosts allow
for no compromises here.
Your stay with an Indian family will be a veritable exciting
cultural experience. The cultural journey will be equally enthralling
for the host family as it's going to be you. At home, you will
get to observe and partake of the various daily happenings of
a traditional Indian household.
The Spiritual Sanctum
You will experience and understand the significance of the daily
morning pooja or religious ritual, the lighting of the diya
or oil lamp followed by the burning of fragrant incense sticks
and offering of fresh flowers, the tinkle of the little bell
or blowing of the conch. You will hear the invocation prayers
of Lord Ganesha, the Elephant headed lord who is widely worshipped
in this part of India and moreover will understand why Lord
Ganesha is truly considered to be the protector of the family
and the home.
You will also realize the significance of small culture specific
habits such as: why footwear is not worn inside the home or
why the pooja room is considered to be the sacred Sanctum Santorum
of the home, which one never enters until one has had a morning
bath or shower and a change into fresh clothes.
The Indian Housewife
In time you will subtly learn why the Indian woman is the pivot
of her household, and how there is a definite but tacit role
division between the man and woman of the home. The family structure
in India is very well defined and it is intriguing to see how
several generations live harmoniously under the same roof. It's
common for brothers even when married with their own nuclear
families to live as a single large family unit with well chalked
out duties for each of the members and an understated but a
well understood hierarchy.
The Aangan - The Hub of a Traditional Home
Most old traditional homes have an Aangan or courtyard, which
is the rich preserve of Indian household traditions. Children
gather and play as well study there before their examinations.
Every school going child must have well kempt oiled hair and
it is the prerogative of grandmas to sit in the Aangan to oil
the hair of her granddaughters, whilst narrating traditional
folklore poetry and stories, or passing down age old family
traditions and beliefs. The Aangan is also normally well shaded
with fruit bearing trees, so in season children pluck mangoes
and sweet berries from the trees. In summer, papads, chilies
and pickles are dried under the sun in the Aangan
And of course, the Aangan can bare testimony to many a secrets
and gossip stories of women, or share views on heated debates
about current and local affairs and politics discussed by the
men in the evenings and equally be witness to joyous occasions
such as marriages, festivals and birth related ceremonies. So,
as you may have already realized that the Aangan is almost considered
the nerve center of every village household.
Traditional Eating Habits
You will also experience how even when cutlery is available,
eating food with your hands and on some festive occasions even
off a banana plantain leaf (of course it being an ideal eco-friendly
option amongst other advantages), although may seem messy at
first adds to the pleasure of relishing an Indian spread. If
you wish to try it out you could also experience the traditional
way of sitting on the floor and eating off a plate or plantain
leaf. This ancient Indian tradition has a lot of merit to it
as you never overeat even if greatly tempted and the stomach
never seems stuffed or heavy when you eat sitting cross-legged
at floor level.
Your own cultural journey
Besides the experience of local culture based on observation
of traditions and customs, our hosts will be very happy for
you to enjoy a Personal cultural experience. This would be serendipitous
and spontaneous which would make it all the more thrilling so
don't hold back to make requests.
Special requests
On special request, ladies could be draped in a sari for perhaps
an evening outing; men could wear the traditional turban or
head gear. If you so desire, you could request to watch the
lady of the home make certain specific dishes that you may have
enjoyed and you could also purchase homemade spices, pickles
and squashes from them or exchange recipes. You could also learn
to make "Rangoli' patterns or traditional decorative designs
made with colored powder on the floor.
Requests suited to your interests
The options are manifold but to site some examples, for those
who are musically inclined, a special outing to the local temple
can be organized where on certain specific auspicious days,
groups of men called bhajan mandalis gather in the evenings
and chant religious hymns or bhajans to the beat of the
dhollak and the melody of the harmonium. You may also
wish to sail into the deep seas with fishermen or work or wander
into the fields to see how paddy is cultivated in India. Needless
to add, if there is a wedding or traditional festive occasion
in the village, you will certainly be invited and would most
likely be treated like the Guest of Honor!
