14 April,2011 10:20 AM IST | | Avantika Patil
This is the song that our Punjabi munda was humming when we went to his house.
Back from a quick two-day visit to his hometown Moga in Punjab, Sonu Sood is full of good cheer as he gets to celebrate Baisakhi, the Punjabi New Year, with his family and friends in Mumbai.
Sonu is all kicked about throwing a lavish Punjabi-style party for his friends and relatives today. Here's what the festival means to the actor:
Colourful time
Baisakhi in Punjab is a very big festival with lots of traditions and beliefs attached to it. Firstly, Baisakhi marks the beginning of the new solar year and also kickstarts a new harvest season. During this time, the whole of Punjab is flourishing with colourful fields, music and happiness. It's exactly like the Baisakhi scene in Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge the swinging yellow sarsoon (mustard) fields accompanied with the colourful and vibrant people around. As kids, Baisakhi was our Diwali. All my cousins would get together and we'd troop out for shopping. It was that one day of the year when we would get to shop whatever we asked for. But now that we shop on a daily basis, the thrill to shop especially for a festival has lessened. Back then, every Baisakhi morning we would go to Gurudawara's to seek blessings and then visit friends and family. After which, a lavish lunch would follow.
Punjabi treat
The tantalising food prepared on this day was and is the highlight of the day. The signature Punjabi dish sarson da saag and makki (corn) di roti was the one to top the menu. And then lots of sweets and motichur ladoos were part of the platter, which was used to welcome guests. The lavish lunch was followed by an exciting and never-ending kite flying session. In the evening, we were served shakar (a sweet) consisting of sugar and ghee teamed with makki di roti again. It is just mouth watering. I used to feast on them freely, but now that I am an actor, I can't anymore. Also, nowadays the whole Bengali sweets culture has taken over the traditional sweets, at least in the cities, and so you're likely to be welcomed with rasgullas.u00a0
A memorable day
Twenty years back, I was visiting one of my cousins in Firozpur for Baisakhi. On the day of Baisakhi, we were taken to the Indo-Pak border in Firozpur and for the first time I witnessed the march past and the flags of both the countries being exchanged. It was amazing to see people from the other side of the border, who often are misunderstood, enjoying the festival as if there was no border in between. After hearing only war-related news with regards to Pakistan, it was a new experience to see them cheering for us and vice-a-versa.
