In this episode, we discuss the festival of Sankranti which is celebrated by Hindus in various parts of Bharat with slightly different names and rituals. We present here, a conversation with a Hindu parent regarding the observance and celebration of this festival in the Telugu states of Andhra and Telengana. It is a conversation where the parent reminisces on the celebration of this festival in times gone by and how the celebrations have evolved over the decades. This should help Hindu parents and in this case, Hindu Telugu parents revive some of the modes of celebration of this important festival. General Information Subscribers are requested to look for The Hindu Parenting notification emails for new podcasts/posts in their email promotions/spam tab and personally move these into the main inbox. Thereafter all posts will be delivered to their main inbox. Thank you! For questions that you’d like us to address, please use the form below: Hindu Parenting Questions For comments and suggestions, please use the comments tab or write to us at [email protected] Please note that questions will not be answered on email. Do subscribe to our substack and follow us on our social media handles Twitter: hinduparenting Instagram: hinduparenting Facebook: hinduparenting Transcript [0:03] Rekha: Namaste. Welcome to the Hindu parenting podcast. With Makara Sankranti around the corner, today's episode features a discussion on the festival. Makara Sankranti is celebrated, when the sun Surya enters the makara rashi known as the astrological sun sign of Capricorn in the English calendar. As with all Hindu festivals, Makara Sankranti, is celebrated all across India, parts of Southeast Asia, Sri Lanka and Nepal, but with specific regional variations in name and customs. The festival is called Pongal, Bihu, Lohri, Uttarayan, or simply Makar Sankranti, depending on where you live. To help us understand how Makar Sankranti is celebrated in the Telugu states of Andhra and Telangana, we have with us a special guest, a parent. namaskar Shashank garu, welcome to the podcast. [1:00] Shashank: Namaste. Thank you very much. [1:02] Rekha: So, let's start with your earliest memories of the festival. Where did you grow up? And what can you remember? What are your earliest recollections of Makara Sankranti. [1:14] Shashank: So I grew up in Hyderabad. And I was fortunate though to have part of my family from the coastal region of Andhra. So, you know, my mom's side is from the coastal 100 region. And Telugu people will understand why I'm making this distinction because within the Telugu states, there is quite a bit of variation. So I grew up in Hyderabad and you know, everybody, I think from Hyderabad, if you ask them what your memories were about Sankranti I think they would immediately mention kite flying. Right. And that was…My memories of Sankranti really are vivid around flying of kites. You know, my dad's side, they are third generation Hyderabadis. So in their family, kite flying, this is something that, you know, every generation participates in, and they get very passionate about it. We have lots of memories. [2:14] Rekha: Yeah, it is a simple introduction to a child, I think because kite flying is so inherently, you know, such an active thing to do, that it instantly hooks children onto the festival. So it's probably a good way to get a child interested in this festival, right? [2:35] Shashank: Absolutely, absolutely. So if you had asked me, you know, what is your favorite festival, it would be a very tough call between Diwali and Sankranti. That is how big Sankranti was for us. And exactly for the reason that you've mentioned! Because kids, you know, for us, it's it's very exciting. We have our winter holidays. And then soon after, you know, you have your Sankranti and the whole family comes together and does it so you're right. Yeah, for a kid I think even though you don't think of it, as really a religious thing that you're doing