Celebrating Onam: Kerala Diaspora Keeps Traditions Alive in the Middle East

This report focuses on the vibrant Onam celebrations organized by the Kerala diaspora across the Middle East, particularly in the UAE. It illustrates how expatriates from Kerala meticulously recreate the traditional harvest festival, complete with elaborate Onam sadhyas (feasts), pookalams (flower carpets), and cultural performances. The story highlights the collective effort to preserve and pass on these rich cultural traditions to younger generations born and raised abroad. It emphasizes the festival's role in fostering a strong sense of community, nostalgia for home, and cultural pride among the Malayali population far from their ancestral land.