Let the new beginning be a blessed one with the goodness of nature

A great time to get back to the basics, and get things right! – Ugadi/Gudi Padwa It’s never too late to get back on the right track, to change your direction and flow on the path where you ought to be. And the new year is just another opportunity, and a gentle reminder to take the most dreaded step of doing what might be tough, but is surely right!

And what better time to set things right than during the Hindu new year? As the cold breeze stops freezing every bone of your body, and the spring descends, people from across the country start celebrating their New Year according to the Hindu calendar. The southern Indian states of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh call it Ugadi, while the Marathas refer to it as Gudi Padwa, and the Sindhis observe Cheti Chand, all of which fall around the same time, marking the first day of the month of Chaitra, heralding the advent of spring.

And around this time people are most likely to fall sick due to the sudden alterations in the temperature and the heat. This is probably why our ancestors ensured that we got ample supply of healthy milk every day, and more so on festivals when we were bound to be hyperactive. To make milk consumption interesting and appealing, a lot of sweets and delicacies were prepared out of it.

A typical Ugadi or Gudi Padwa day begins with the members of the family purifying their houses and the surrounding environment with fresh cow dung which is considered pious according to Hindu customs. This is followed by wearing new clothes, offering prayers to the deities in the house, visiting a temple, and decorating the house with colorful rangolis and adorning the entrance with mango leaves. Mango leaves are said to be symbolic of prosperity, and the fresh leaves are said to increase the oxygen levels in the house.

On Ugadi or the day that marks the beginning of a new Yuga, people prepare a special delicacy called the Ugadi Pachadi, which has several ingredients that bring together six different flavors. The pachadi is made mostly using ingredients that are available only during this particular seasonal like raw mango, tamarind, jaggery, neem, salt, and chili. These ingredients are said to be symbolic of the six varied flavors of life like sadness, happiness, anger, surprise, bitterness, and fear, all of which a person is supposed to experience and embrace for a fulfilled life.

Gudi Padwa celebrations begin by raising a Gudi, which is a brass or copper pot, tied in a bright yellow or green cloth, and hoisted on a bamboo pole, which is said to be a symbol of victory. This festival also has a similar tradition like Ugadi, where people consume a mixture Bevu-Bella (Neem and Jaggery), which symbolizes the mix of good and bad in our life and how we need to embrace it all with an open heart. This is followed by consuming Shirkand, a traditional Maratha sweet dish that is made up of strained yogurt and this dish has been evolved from Maharashtrian traditional cuisine. On the day of Gudi Padwa, Shrikhand-Puri (or Poori) is the most important dish.

Shrikhand is not just a festival special delicacy, but also a tasty package of goodness and health as it is a rich source of calcium, phosphorus, Vitamins B1, B2, and B12. This which makes it a healthy treat not just for your stomach, but for your immune system, skin, and hair too. To derive the health benefits of Shrikhand, however, make sure you make it using Desi Cow milk rather than the processed A1 milk. Milk from the Desi Gir cow that is grown in a healthy environment is known as the A2 milk and is naturally sweet and tasty.

But the challenge here is how do you know that the milk you get is healthy and from a pure breed Desi Gir cow? The answer is simple, Klimom has a farm where it rears the Indian Gir cow in a natural and healthy habitat, where the animals are treated with great care and respect. These cows are milked, and the milk is packaged in glass bottles and delivered at doorsteps across Hyderabad in a farm fresh way.

So let’s get back to the basics, and start a healthy lifestyle this New Year, by taking one step at a time with Klimom!

Remember it’s never too late to walk in the right direction and with Klimom your destination of leading a healthy lifestyle begins on day one itself!

Klimom wishes:Let the new beginning be a blessed one with the goodness of nature