AWAD – Smallwonders 3

Cinema, Lyrics, Food and the Celebrations We Remember

We retain certain memories not due to their extraordinariness but because we experienced them, passed them on, and remembered them.

During the third episode of Small Wonders, Anuradha Nayar and  KG Manoj, the founders of The Language Mill, reflect on a series of ordinary experiences such as the lyrics of films and cinema, wedding feasts, the customary method of eating a Kerala sadya, and the way in which celebrations eventually become part of personal memory.

The topic starts by looking at cinema, songs and the experiences connected with them, then goes on to cover the sensory aspects of a Kerala wedding feast. There is some talk about the unspoken rules concerning how to eat a sadya, the situations surrounding it, and the memories that food brings. Celebrations like Deepavali and Thrikkarthika, with the warmth of lamps illuminating houses and the evenings, are also mentioned.

The talk slowly moves beyond Kerala and goes back to Chennai, to an earlier stage in their lives. At that time, Anuradha was employed at MEPZ and Manoj was working at the Office Tiger in Spencer Plaza. The evenings then bring back a different sort of memory—namely, Anuradha walking over to Spencer Plaza, spending time in the shared areas, browsing and buying books in the bookshops at Spencer, and enjoying simple snacks like pocket samosas.

The memories in question make the conversation extend beyond simply being a list of them. Cinema, lyrics, food, books, places of work, friendships and occasions all act as small signs of different periods in their lives.

A small conversation about the things experienced, the places remembered, and the ordinary moments that quietly become stories.

Small Wonders — Wake up with Small Talks.
A programme from AWAD by The Language Mill.