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Karikidaka Bali Tharpanam

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Bali Tharpanam: Remembering Those Who Came Before Us There are rituals in every culture that remind the living that life did not begin with us. We are part of an unbroken chain of generations, shaped by people whose names, faces and stories may slowly disappear, but whose lives made ours possible. Bali Tharpanam , also known in Kerala as Vavubali or Karkidaka Vavu Bali , is one such deeply rooted Hindu tradition. Observed on the Amavasya, or new-moon day, of the Malayalam month of Karkidakam , usually falling in July or August, it is an ancestral offering performed for the departed. In Kerala, thousands gather at riverbanks, beaches and temple ghats, while many families perform the rites at home. Major centres include Aluva, Thiruvallam, Thirunavaya, Thirunelli and Varkala. At its heart, Bali Tharpanam is an act of remembrance. Cooked rice, black sesame, water and sacred grass are among the traditional offerings. The rice is often shaped into smal...
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Jallikattu

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Jallikattu – Chaos as Cinema, Cinema as Chaos Jallikattu (2019), directed by Lijo Jose Pellissery, is a visceral, anarchic action-thriller set in a remote high-range village where a buffalo escapes just before it is meant to be slaughtered for a local feast. What begins as a practical problem of recapturing a runaway animal quickly mutates into an uncontrollable descent into collective madness. The film is driven by a simple but potent motivation: the villagers’ desire to capture the buffalo before it disrupts their ritual, their economy, and their sense of control. But as the animal runs deeper into the forested terrain, it drags the entire community into a spiraling confrontation with their own primal instincts. The Inciting Incident and the Spark of Disorder The story is set in motion when Varkey, a butcher, prepares a buffalo for slaughter as part of a village feast. In a sudden act of resistance, the animal breaks free from its tether and escapes into the dense, ru...
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The Meaning Of Marriage Changes As You Age

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Marriage: From Romance to Renewal Marriage rarely begins with a discussion about responsibilities, compromises, school fees, ageing parents or household routines. It begins with something much lighter: romance. There is attraction, curiosity, long conversations, stolen glances and the excitement of discovering another person. Dating and courtship create a little world of their own, where both people present the best versions of themselves. Differences are charming. Habits are overlooked. Even imperfections seem endearing. The future appears wonderfully uncomplicated. Then comes the wedding. For a brief moment, two individuals become a family. There are celebrations, promises, photographs and the intoxicating feeling of beginning a new life together. The honeymoon extends that magic. Away from ordinary life, the couple gets to enjoy each other without the interruptions of work, family and responsibility. Then comes the first three months of actually living together. This is ...
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We Are Alive Because We Are Still Becoming!

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Not Arrived. Just Becoming. There is something profoundly beautiful about the little plant in this visual. It is fragile, unfinished, almost insignificant against the old wall and the vastness beyond it. Yet it carries within itself an entire future that cannot be seen. Perhaps that is the most honest metaphor for a human life. We spend much of our lives believing that one day we will finally arrive. We imagine that there will be a point when everything will fall into place: our ambitions achieved, our questions answered, our relationships settled, our responsibilities fulfilled, our identity complete. We keep moving towards that imaginary destination, as though life were a project with a final completion certificate. But life does not work that way. We are always unfinished. The child becomes a student. The student becomes a professional. The professional becomes a parent, a partner, a leader, a mentor. Success brings new responsibilities. Failure brings new wisdom. Relati...
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Some Codes For A Life Less Ordinary

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11 Codes for a Life Less Ordinary A fulfilled life is rarely built through one dramatic decision. It is shaped quietly, through the small choices we make every morning, every conversation, every challenge and every relationship. These eleven codes may appear simple, even playful, but beneath their humour lies a serious philosophy: do not sleepwalk through your own life. 1. Shower like you are washing off yesterday’s version. Every morning offers a small rebirth. Leave behind the failures, disappointments and excuses of yesterday. Learn from them, but refuse to carry them unnecessarily into today. 2. Brush your teeth like the dentist is watching. Excellence begins with doing ordinary things properly, even when nobody is looking. Discipline is built in these tiny, seemingly insignificant acts. 3. Get dressed like photographers are outside. Not because you need an audience, but because how you present yourself often reflects how you value yourself. Carry yourself with dignity,...
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Perspective Is Everything

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The Same Moment, Two Realities The image of a mother fishing for food while her children wait in the boat appears simple at first. A mother is trying to provide for her family. There is nothing unusual about it. But look beneath the surface, and the picture suddenly acquires an entirely different meaning. The fish she is trying to catch is not merely food. It is another mother, desperately trying to protect her own young. The scene has not changed. Our perspective has. And that is precisely what makes this image so powerful. The Invisible Side of Every Story Life rarely presents us with the complete picture. We see the portion that lies before our eyes and instinctively construct a story around it. We decide who is right, who is wrong, who deserves sympathy and who deserves blame. But there is almost always another side that remains invisible. A decision that seems selfish to one person may be an act of survival for another. What appears cruel may be necessity. What feels l...
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Are We All Living In Naive Realism?

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Understanding Naive Realism: The Illusion of Objective Perception ​ Naive Realism is the psychological bias wherein individuals believe they perceive the world around them objectively and without bias, while assuming that those who disagree are uninformed, irrational, or biased. ​Origins and Core Tenets ​The concept was formalized in social psychology by Lee Ross and colleagues in the 1990s. Grounded in cognitive and social psychology, Ross outlined three core tenets that define the phenomenon: ​ Belief in Personal Objectivity: People assume their perceptions, beliefs, and preferences are direct, unbiased reflections of objective reality. ​ Expectation of Common Consensus: People expect other reasonable, open-minded individuals to arrive at the same conclusions when presented with the same information. ​ Attribution of Bias to Disagreement: When others fail to agree, they are viewed as uninformed, lazy, biased by ideology, or acting in bad faith. ​Everyday Exa...
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