You got to be a Malayalee to get the full meaning of the word manakkotta.. Literal translation would be castle of dreams, but it doesn’t have the same pizzazz !
A very dear friend and I share the same birthday ( different years). We even have similar eidetic memory, like the same artists, watch the same movie over and over. There is only one difference so far I have found. He is a realist and I am a dreamer. I can dream about anything and everything. Leave me alone for a few minutes ( without books) and I will start weaving my dreams..my manakkottas..
Unfortunately my kids haven’t inherited my manakkotta creating genes. They are true to the bone realists.
When Yaya came home from school after her extra lessons, I was in bed going through the bills/mails. “I am so cold” She said and climbed in to my bed and snuggled next to me.
“Whatcha doing?” She asked, while shoving her semi frozen feet between my legs. Before I used to chase her whenever she tried to shove her cold feet between my warm legs..Not any more.. Who will rub her cold nose on my cheeks to show me how cold she is or push her feet between my legs once she goes to Uni? I moved the bills to one side, so she could lay down comfortably, that is when she saw the envelope.
“What is that?” She asked
“Wedding invitation” I replied.
She looked at the envelope..my name was written by hand.
“Can you believe Mom, in about 10 years, you will be writing the address on my wedding invitations?”
10 years? I quickly calculated, she will be almost 27 !
“Yup” I replied.
“You know mom, I never really thought about my wedding”
“I have” I replied
“What did you think” She asked
“My beautiful princess walking down the aisle wearing a purple wedding gown” ( When Yaya was about 2, my sisters used to hunt all the shopping malls for purple dresses because she only wore purple, even undies had to have purple in them. She still likes purple, though not as obsessed as before)
“Purple? I am not wearing purple, I think I will wear a Vera Wang, But I want the venue to be decorated with purple and yellow flowers, lilacs and daffodils !” She said
“Then you have to have a spring wedding” I replied “Spring Indian wedding, 10 days of dance, Indian music with all the dum dum sounds, live Indian band, the whole 9 yards !” ( Yaya’s idea of Indian wedding is similar to the wedding at Bend it like Beckham, except for my cousin’s wedding that she attended when she was in grade 3, she has never been to an Indian wedding and I convinced her that all Indian weddings are like in the movie ! What is the fun in a typical Jacobite church wedding??)
“Mom, I want to get married, not scare my future family”
Did anyone notice the implications of what she said? She has got it all down pat, that one day she will get married and that will be her family. As her mother, for me that is the hardest thing to accept..but accept I must.
So my mankkotta ends the day she walks down the aisle and I hand her over to the man and his family.
Oh! Stop it! She will always be your baby!
This is her mannankotta! When she gets married, she will realize that Moms are not replaceable with mom-in-laws!
One of my friend’s Italian friend has two daughters and he is very happy about it.. Hi reasoning..when the girls get married, they will come and visit him every Sunday.. he says that his girl’s will tell their husband and kids..”Get your ass in the car and let’s go”.
MS: I am hoping that she will at least visit me once a year !!
She will visit you more than that. She will come home for soul rejuvenation. she will come because she needs help baby sitting. She will come because she does not know what to do with some issue and needs your wisdom. She will come because she needs some ‘mommy’ made food. She will be visiting you more than you can count. She will visit you ‘just because..’ 🙂
MS: I hope she does..I just can’t imagine a life without her in it.
Haha ironic as I was thinking about this just yesterday.
I was actually watching a mallu wedding ceremony on YT that happened a little over a week ago in NY yesterday and really liked it. It was in a Malankara church I believe (the groom was a Malankara priest/pastor (very young though) and found it appalling..didn’t think priests could marry especially orthodox). Compared to the usual weddings you would see in Kerala where they would have the church wedding and then have the reception where you just eat and take photos only (and then leave), this wedding and other Indian weddings I have been to both in family and family friends had a nice Indo-American mix to it (the bride and groom are both US raised I’m sure..hence why it’s like that). When thinking of what type of wedding I would love to have if I were to get married (letting fate decide that), it would be a Indo-American (or Indo-western as it’s probably elsewhere too) mix where you do the traditional ceremony and the reception would be the fun part with music blasting, with the DJ, lots of dancing dancing (drinking?)..etc etc. I envision wearing a white bridal dress for the ceremony and then don in a nice slim sari, or nice Indian attire for the reception. I personally favor Indian style weddings that has those spice and flavor to it..they’re so much fun ! 😀
So that’s my “manakkotta” (in terms of marriage) :D. Def am curious if it will happen lol.
Hope Yaya gets her dream though ! Looks like she has her life already planned for her 😀
J1206: I like your manakottas.. Mallu weddings are such a bore..It is like a chore that needs to be done. I would love to host a large party (good music and food) with all my friends lasting days to celebrate my children’s wedding..
Awww!!!
Nimmy: 🙁
mana ottakal nilam pothanum eluppam.
Bipin: Isn’t that why we call it Mana kkotta and not Kutub Minar or Taj Mahal or great wall