When Onam Changed: ഒരോണക്കാഴ്ച ദുരിതക്കാഴ്ച്ചയായ വർഷം
2018 changed the way Kerala experienced Onam. The floods had turned a season of celebration into one of loss, relief and rebuilding. At that moment, I had the opportunity to work on an Onam supplement for The Hindu—an assignment where the design had to acknowledge the tragedy without allowing the pages to become overwhelming. The central feature responded to the call for rebuilding Kerala, with the message of joining hands to build a new Kerala.
What made the feature special was the use of caricatures. I should say thanks to K Santhosh who was the editor of the feature pages. Instead of presenting the crisis only through sombre imagery, we brought familiar personalities into the pages through expressive, approachable illustrations. Their individual messages added warmth, optimism and a sense of collective strength. The caricatures helped turn a difficult moment into a message of calm, solidarity and hope.
For me, it was a reminder that visual communication need not merely describe a crisis—it can also help people imagine the possibility of coming through it together.
