Meet the Odisha-born Londoners feeding 200 strangers on Rath Yatra day

Three Odisha-born entrepreneurs now based in London came together on Thursday to serve more than 200 free traditional Odia meals to devotees and homeless people in the Borough of Bexley, marking the occasion of Rath Yatra. The event was held at a restaurant in the borough and drew a mix of the local Odia diaspora, curious neighbours and residents in need of a hot meal.

Guests were served a full traditional spread that included ‘arna, kanika, mitha dali, saga muga, besara, pachedi’ and ‘khiri’, prepared by Subhakanta Das and Sasmita Pattnaik, who spent hours in the kitchen making sure every dish carried the authentic taste of home.

Arun Kar, one of the organising entrepreneurs, said the gesture was their own way of taking part in the festival from thousands of miles away. ‘Not everyone can travel to Odisha and pull the chariots in Puri. But every one of us can serve humanity. Feeding people with love, without discrimination, is one of the greatest forms of devotion,’ he said.

Idols of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra were placed at a decorated corner of the restaurant for the evening. The celebrations opened with an Odissi performance by Soniya Patnaik, followed by semi-classical dance pieces set to Jagannath bhajans performed by Sabita Pradhan and Upasana Padhi, according to Partha Panda, another of the organisers.

Vijay Meher, an IT consultant who attended the event, said it briefly transported him back to Odisha. ‘Although we are far away from Odisha, today I felt as if I was celebrating Rath Yatra in Puri. Seeing Lord Jagannath and Odissi performances, besides sharing traditional Odia food with others, made me feel proud of my culture,’ he said.

The evening was also attended by the Mayor of Bexley, Lisa Moore, her consort Justin Moore, and Bexley Council cabinet members Brian Bishop and Rags Sandhu. Moore later praised the restaurant on social media for providing warm, nutritious meals to Bexley residents who needed them most.

Rath Yatra, Puri/Wikimedia Commons — by G.-U. Tolkiehn