Pongal is a much awaited festival in Tamil Nadu. Everyone looks forward to it as it means a cool four-day break from one’s routine. Though sad, it is true that the true spirit of the festival – celebrating the joy of harvest – is lost out on the urbanites.

So, what does a common urbanite do on Pongal ? Wear new clothes, eat a hearty breakfast of sweet and ‘kara’ Pongal, watch television and may be catch a Pongal release. Very rarely does one in a city spends a few moments thinking of the hardships the farmers undergo to cultivate their crops and ensure they fill people’s stomachs.

But for the farmer the four-day festivity is special. Each day is characteristic of an activity that is related to their work and hence they celebrate it with the required gaiety and meaning.

How would it be if we urbanites choose to celebrate Pongal the farmer style, in the farms, with the cows and cattle ? Why not drive to one of the farms this weekend and ask if we can take part in their celebrations ? They are only going to be happy to accommodate you. So, go with your family and celebrate Pongal in the true style.

Coimbatore, luckily, still has patches of farmland in the heart of the city and its suburbs —Karumbukadai, Aathupalam, Chettipalayam, Pollachi Road, Nanjundapuram, and such belts.

Once there, immerse yourself in the farmer’s way of life. Show your children the devotion with which he and his family approach their cattle and land. Even land that is not very fertile is treated with the same respect; they rarely give up hope on Goddess Earth.

It sure will be a great opportunity for not only the children but most of us who would not have stepped on a patch of agricultural land.

And ‘Maatu Pongal’ is a sight to behold. It is a chance for the family to see how the cattle live and how they are treated. Did you know that each of the cattle on a farm has a name? And that he/she responds to it? Each cattle looks wonderfully made-up, the result of a patient wait as those on the farm wash it down, clean it, and decorate its forehead and horns with vermillion, turmeric and numerous other colours.

Also see how the cows are milked. Children who believe milk comes from supermarket shelves will know the ‘real thing’, and learn to appreciate their morning cup of chocolate milk or porridge better.

More than anything else, the farmer will be pleasantly pleased to be recognized for his silent work. It will also be the right way to ring in a harvest festival. You celebrate it with those who actually till and work the land, coaxing it to yield food for humanity.

Decide to have a date with the farmer and his family this Pongal. And, you know what ? You don’t even have to win a competition or write a slogan as you have to do when you have to with a cricketer or a movie star. All that it needs is the will and the attitude.