I remember an Onam years ago. Early in the morning, my children were eagerly waiting near the gate with the coconut leaf umbrella. There was the rangoli made with flowers. But they were only interested in staring at the road. I asked them why.

My son said that he was waiting for Mahabali to come. "When he gets off the train, he'd be walking down this way. I want to meet him," my son said. My wife and I burst out laughing.

We live in Chennai. But I always love to see those elaborately decorated flower rangolis. My son is now in Class IX. We continue to live in Chennai.

Paalada Pradhaman continues to be my favorite dish.

I'm not going to say anything that hasn't already been said. Everybody is going to continue celebrating the festival for a very long time.

There was a time when we had flowers all around us. On Onam, we used to gather at the local sports club and play football. Now, a palatial house resides on the land. Everybody is busy chasing their own dreams and goals. We all are in a hurry.

'Seethakalyanam' will be my Onam release. This is a musical love story.

Samvritha Sunil is in Ernakulam these days for shooting. "On Onam, I'm going to be at home with my parents and the rest of my family," she says.

"There were plans to release 'Chocolate' for Onam, but they have now postponed the film to Ramzan."

Samvritha is mighty pleased with her academic results. She had scored first-class in Communicative English. She has plans to pursue an MBA now. Her debut film in Telugu had turned out to be a blockbuster hit but she isn't that keen on pursuing a career in Tollywood.

"My all-time favorite food had always been ice cream. Her mother had promised her to get a nice big tub of ice-cream after she completes the Onam feast.