When is Onam 2025 and how is it celebrated in Kerala and around the world?

For 10 days later this month, Onam celebrations will take place across the South Indian state of Kerala and among Malayali communities around the world.

The important Keralite harvest festival falls in the Malayalam calendar month of Chingam, which corresponds to August or September in the Gregorian calendar. This year, it will be celebrated from August 26 to September 5.

Although it is a Hindu festival, it has taken on such cultural significance that people of all religions in Kerala now celebrate it to some extent.

History of Onam

Indian students wearing traditional dresses perform a folk dance of Kerala during Onam celebrations. EPA

The festival celebrates king Mahabali's return from the underworld. The mythological king was considered a great ruler; legend has it that when he ruled, there was no discrimination based on caste, and no corruption or crime.

It is said that the great king was later sent to the underworld by lord Vishnu or Vamana, but was allowed to visit his people once a year, and Onam thus came about.

The Kerala government made it an official holiday in the 1960s. The area in Kochi called Thrikkakkara is particularly significant during the festival, because of its temple.

There are public holidays in Kerala every year for the festival, with families spending time together and many people getting up early to pray.

The harvest festival of Onam is not to be confused with Vishu, which was in April this year, and marks the Malayali New Year.

What is Onam sadhya?

Onam sadya consists of nine to 30 different dishes, all vegetarian, served during the festival. Photo: Address Dubai Marina

One of the highlights of the festival for many is the Onam sadhya or feast. Vegetarian food is often served en masse in the community, in restaurants or at homes, and is always presented on a banana leaf.

The most important feast is served on Thiru Onam, the key date of the festival, which this year is on September 5. Nine to 30 dishes can be served, including curries, dal, pickles, poppadoms, banana chips and more.

This particular kind of feast is generally only served during weddings or Onam, and so is cherished by all at this time of year.

Pazhamkootan, a stew made from leftovers of the Onam sadhya, is another popular dish in Malayali households.

The performances and events

Performers take part in a mask dance, part of the annual Onam festival celebrations in Kerala. AFP

There are many different performances and events as part of the Onam celebrations. One major event is the snake boat race. The vessels are similar to dragon boats and are the region's traditional war boats that date back about 500 years.

Another important event is the Kummati Kali dance through the streets, particularly in the Thrissur district. The dancers wear colourful masks and cover their bodies in grass. Theyyam performers – considered to be direct lines to the gods – are also commonly seen during the festival and often perform at temples.

On the fourth day of Onam, performers dressed as tigers and hunters entertain people with their colourful costumes, dancing along to drums and emulating the hunt. It is believed that the Maharaja of Cochin introduced the tiger dance as an Onam tradition about 200 years ago and that he appreciated the macho spirit of the event.

The flowers and the clothes

Indian women wearing traditional dresses prepare a flower carpet or pookkalam in front of their house as they celebrate Onam in Chennai. EPA

Much like during Diwali, people place flower arrangements called pookkalam around their community and outside their homes. They are considered auspicious and are placed to welcome king Mahabali.

Women wear a kasavu two-piece set, or a sari, during Onam, which is cream-coloured with a gold border. They also wear flowers in their hair. Meanwhile, men wear the traditional mundu wrapped around their waist.

Other traditions

There are lots of colourful variations of traditions and dances during this time of year. Many people buy new clothes to wear during the holidays and, just like during Diwali, lamps are lit during this time.

After Onam, the pookkalam flower arrangements are often placed in nearby rivers or bodies of water.

Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

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Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

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Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”