'A very special Vishu': UAE expats celebrate Indian festival with hope, fervour

Expats from the southern Indian state of Kerala celebrated Vishu, the solar new year on Wednesday. Dressed in their traditional finery, many families prepared homemade meals and spent time together.

A harvest festival and the traditional Malayali New Year, Vishu is celebrated primarily in Kerala. The most significant ritual is the ‘Vishukkani’ - which literally translates into ‘that which is seen first’. The belief is that the first thing a person sees on Vishu morning sets the tone for the coming year. To ensure an auspicious start, families arrange a beautiful display of items and this arrangement is viewed first thing after waking up

For Dubai teacher Lakshmi Supin, the day started off by making sure the family saw the ‘Vishukkani’. “We prepared it overnight and early in the morning, I woke the kids up, covered their eyes and took them to the room so they could see the kani as soon as they opened their eyes,” she said. “The day is a busy one for all us. My husband will be heading off to Al Ain for a meeting and we all have online classes. So we got a bit of family time before everyone got busy.”

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Vishu is also marked by an elaborate feast, much like the one served during the Onam festival. Other key traditions include Vishukkaineetam, where elders give money to younger family members as a blessing.

Special celebration

Udhayan Nair and his family are keeping the celebration simple and close to their hearts at home. “It is a very special one for us, as it marks our son Agastya’s second Vishu and his very first in the UAE,” he said. “We prepared the kani the night before, so that it’s the first thing we see when we wake up in the morning. It’s a tradition we truly value and wanted to continue, even while we are away from home.”

He said that the family got dressed in traditional clothes as soon as his toddler woke up. “These small moments feel very special this year, and we hope to capture and cherish them,” he said. “We will also prepare a traditional Vishu Sadhya at home, just like we would back home. For us, this Vishu is about holding on to our traditions, creating new memories, and celebrating this beautiful festival with our son in a new place, making it all the more meaningful and special.”

For Shivangi Menon and her family, this Vishu comes at a time when they are facing difficulties, but they are grateful for everything. “Different members of the family have been hit with pay cuts and one has been placed on furlough so it is a difficult time for us,” she said. “However, we are grateful for the blessings we have and for being together, safe and sound. We spent the morning preparing the kani and a homemade feast for lunch.”

For Ajman couple Sandhya and Dr. Rashakrishnan, the celebration was small. “Our children are both in India so it was just us and a family friends, Dr. Meera and Dr. Sunny,” she said. “We have been celebrating Vishu together for a few years now. We cooked sadhya together at home.” 

For Dubai couple Anita and Sandeep, this is a special Vishu. This is their tenth year in the UAE. "We had come for a job but now Dubai is home," said Sandeep. "This year, we celebrated the festival with our sons because they were home due to online learning. We all dressed up, saw the kani and cooked lunch together in between school and office meetings. It was a very special day."

Demand for sadhya

Restaurants in Dubai experienced high demand for the Vishu feast, with some outlets preparing to serve thousands of people. “Across all our five outlets, we are expecting to serve about 7,500 people,” said Satheesh Kumar, MD of Calicut Notebook. “We have orders for takeaways of about 5,000 meals as well. We are expecting more people to place last-minute orders today as well.”

He added that the demand was at-par with that of last year. “Our total combined orders are almost equal to last year,” he said. “For us, that is a good sign. After the ceasefire came into effect, business has picked up.”