The mallu girl 💛

Kerala for me was only 10 days of vacation and what my parents talked about.
I always heard my parents talk about Kerala how they walked miles, their neighbourhood , their school life, and in fact there were times I envied them when they tell how they enjoyed walking to school. ( while I don't even like going to school)
But I always held pride in saying, "I don't know much malayalam"," I am a Bangalorean " and I used to take it as a compliment when somebody says ,"I don't look like a Malayalee". Until I was 18 and I moved to kochi, It was not easy for somebody who was in Bangalore all their life to move to a hostel Life in Kochi, there were times I cried saying I wanna go home, I can't stay here .
There were times I found the art of small talk no more an art rather something really annoying.
I didn't know whether to take it  as an offense when people laughed when I spoke in malayalam.
Eventually I started loving kochi, be it Kappa or chakka .
Be it the beach or the bus rides everything had a thrill in them .
The chettan  and cheachi on the road were much better than Google maps .
I forget phones and instantly was able to connect with the person sitting next to me in the bus.
Within a year things started changing , I started crying everytime I went home 🤣
Porotta and beef became a real emotion, my evenings became so incomplete without dosa kada and Motta bajii, my hunger was never satisfied until I got rice and papadam,
Kuliki and lime soda were my addiction .
The 3 years in Kerala has molded me so much that my conversations are so incomplete if I don't use the words like powli, scene, and Kopp .
Now draping kerala saree, going to a mallu restaurant, somebody asking me,"are you a malayee ?" , "natil evideya ?" gives me some sort of a happiness.
I always thought culture is some oldie concept my ancestors talk about , but honestly culture is something that talks for me at those times I feel so homeless.