America is a land of diverse cultures. While it might not be as diverse as India, there are still many immigrants in the Land of Opportunities from all over the world. Of course, some Indian folks are also part of this immigrant population living in the US. Some have shifted there just recently, while others have been staying there for years or generations.
The Indians living in the US for some time now have learned many things over the years. Some of these things are about cultural acclimatization. They learned how to survive and thrive in the US culture as it was soooooo different from the Indian culture. They have also found ways and means to celebrate various US festivals without feeling out of their depths. In fact, it was only a matter of time before the two words ‘ Indian thanksgiving’ came together to form something beautiful, or at least interestingly eccentric. The NRIs came up with various recipes to enjoy the mandatory feast. And for those who were away from family, their neighbors and friends were there to celebrate and develop a new tradition with kyunki asli mazak toh sab ke saath aata hai! (no, we are not endorsing the TV channel, Rahul!)
But we will stop here before we disclose the entire matter in the Introduction. We will mention one thing, though: as different as Indian and American cultures are, there are also some similarities that can help bridge the gap between the two. The festival spirit is one of these, especially on the occasion of Thanksgiving.
Why Is Thanksgiving Celebrated?
The tradition of Thanksgiving goes back to 1621 when it was celebrated as a harvest festival. It was also during this festival that the Pilgrims (english colonists) and the native americans first shared a meal together at Plymouth. Since then, the Americans have celebrated Thanksgiving as a “day for gratitude.”
Thanksgiving is on par with Christmas, Easter, and Halloween in the US. However, the ‘USians’ often see this as an excellent opportunity to get together with the family and enjoy a hearty meal. The menu includes Turkey with stuffing, cranberry sauce, some dips, mashed potatoes, and a pie for dessert. Turkey is the hero of the Thanksgiving meal as it is one of the traditional items that even the Pilgrims and the native americans had for dinner on the first Thanksgiving.
Since Thanksgiving is one of the major festivals in the US, many of our NRI friends have also tried to celebrate it and even tried their hand at a few dishes. There have also been many changes or slight alterations in the traditions by the Indians because if there is one thing Indians do best, it is making a nice ‘khichadi’ of anything and everything!
How Do The Indians Celebrate Thanksgiving On The US Soil?
Like with everything else, Indians have tried to bring in an essence of their own to Thanksgiving. You see, as much as you feel that the festival is ‘too white’ and American, you can’t deny that when you are in their country, you need to try and assimilate with them.
So many of the NRIs have come up with many ways to try and mix the concepts of ‘indian thanksgiving’ together.
These ingenious strategies range from preparing a more gustatorily vibrant food to celebrating with more than just the immediate family.
1. Got No Family In The US? No Problem! Have Friendsgiving
While we know you have your cousin’s mamu’s aunt’s daughter in the US, not everyone does. In fact, some people might have no one they know in the US. And while that might be a problem for some festivals, the NRIs have come up with a solution for Indian Thanksgiving.
2. Having Potluck Parties
Not everyone knows how to make a big feast. And even if they do, they might not have enough ingredients. So another idea for our fellow desi folks to celebrate Indian Thanksgiving is to have a Potluck party. As the occasion calls for a feast, why not have one with everyone’s contribution? With a potluck party, the burden of food preparation doesn’t fall on only one person, which makes things easier. Then, there is the ‘customizable’ aspect of the celebration. Since everyone gets to bring one or more dishes that they prepared, the NRI folks prefer to give their friends a taste of their regional Indian cuisine as well. So they make many regional Indian dishes. It does sound like an appetizing experience!!3. Jersey City Gurudwara and The Spirit Of Giving
Indians believe in being grateful to God for everything and helping those who are less fortunate than them. It seems that some NRIs have tried to celebrate Thanksgiving with the same spirit. They celebrate Thanksgiving with the spirit of Giving and charity, and the Sikh Nanak Naam Jahaj Gurudwara plays a big role in this.
4. Proactive American Indian Youth For Thanksgiving Charity
It isn’t just the elders who focus on helping the poor and the needy. It turns out that even the children are actively participating in charity. A Youth Group called Hope India is a New York Non-Profit organization that goes on an annual Turkey Drive on Thanksgiving. This organization is a youth group for children. The Hope India Non-Profit group collects packets of frozen turkey, bags of stuffing, cans of vegetables and fruits, and clothing for needy and homeless families on Thanksgiving. Hope India’s Turkey drive takes inspiration from and draws upon the value of ‘seva’ and helping the needy. It also teaches children to be thankful for what they have and understand its value.A Few Changes In The Menu – Making It A Blend Of Cultures
While Thanksgiving is a very American concept, it doesn’t mean that the Indians don’t enjoy the day. On the contrary, they have been active participants on the occasion and have even come up with their own dishes to add to the scrumptious menu. So when the terms ‘indian thanksgiving’ were put together, we got a unique blend of spices mixed with many lip-smacking dishes.1. Including More Vegetarian Options In The Menu
The Thansgiving menu is largely non-vegetarian, centered around Turkey as its main course. Of course, there are vegetarian items as well, but they are primarily side dishes and dips. So, the NRIs took matters into their own hands. They went ahead to not only make the dishes tastier (they added more spices because, let’s face it, the American food is good and all, but it doesn’t have the taste variety that is close to even the Indian comfort food of Dal Chawal!) One of the ways the Indians made the menu more vegetarian-friendly was by swapping the ‘big bird’ for something tastier and equally bigger, like a pumpkin with spicy vegetable stuffing. If you are a vegan, you can always make some Tofu dishes like Tandoori Tofu and Tofu Kadai, among many more!2. No Meat But All Taste Main Course
After swapping the Turkey for something vegetarian, the NRIs went on a trip to create an entirely vegetarian main course. The ideas that came out were a full-on Indian meal ranging from a simple dal and sabzi roti meal to shahi paneer and pulao paired with a baked cauliflower head. These combinations make the menu not only a wholesome vegetarian experience but also up the spice game to create dishes with much more taste and a wider reach. Non-vegetarians can eat vegetarian foods, but vegetarians don’t necessarily want to eat non-vegetarian dishes.3. Side Dishes Also Get An Indian Touch
The usual ‘turkey-day’ side dishes are stuffing/dressing, cranberry sauce, and mashed potatoes. While this might be good enough for Americans, for Indians, it is nothing but tasteless items that don’t add much variety to the menu. So, the NRIs worked their magic again. There are very bland side dishes of Indian thanksgiving have had enough of it. So they decided to fasten their aprons (because we are talking about cooking, which is done with an apron) and brought in the classics. The Indian side dishes, like the various chutneys – tomato chutney, cilantro chutney, etc. – along with raita, a brinjal dip, made their Indian Thanksgiving menu debut!4. Indian Desserts Also Enter The Thanksgiving Table
Since every other dish is getting Indianized, which desserts should be left behind? Lo and behold, our desi friends have made some very nice Indian and regional dishes to make the desserts more appetizing.
The traditional Thanksgiving dessert is some kind of pie. But we Indians like to test the limits. So one of our ‘videshi-desi’ friends came up with a unique combination of an American-Indian dish in the form of a Gulab Jamun Cardamom Cake. Then there were some purely Indian desserts like Puran Polis, Malai Halwa, etc. (Is your mouth also watering? Because ours sure is!)
Conclusion – The Indian Midas Touch: Bringing More Variety Into Everything They Experience Or Participate In
If someone knows how to celebrate a festival, it is the Indians. So, it was only a matter of time before they turned their gaze to the American festivals. And while they didn’t necessarily want to change things up much because festivals often have some strong beliefs and sentiments attached to them. But that didn’t stop the mixing of the term – ‘Indian thanksgiving.’ What came out of this mix was a unique way of celebration, which meant terms like ‘Friendsgiving,’ ‘charity drives,’ and even ‘potlucks’ (for bachelors and people with little equipment or ingredients to cook a huge feast).
Since Indian dishes are a culinary delight in almost every Masterchef episode, there was also an influx of more Indian dishes like paneer (shahi and kadhai) as the main course, chaat, raita, or even brinjal dip as the side dishes, and gulab jamun (or a variation of it) for dessert!
In short, while Indians were away from home in a foreign land, that didn’t stop them from trying to become a part of and acclimatize to US culture and its festivals, not only to make them more Indian-friendly but also more welcoming to a larger audience in general!
