Eight-year-old Devaki Nair waits in anticipation for the school bell to ring so she can rush home. Today, like most days, she has a lot to relay to her mother Kavita — how her day went, the new topics she learnt at school, and the names of the friends she made. Luckily for her, the school is a short walk from the Parijaat Goa Homestay, which is also where Devaki lives with her parents Kavita and Manoj Nair.
Though a sprawling paradise of a place, the little girl does not need to wander much to find her mother. She is bound to be in her pottery studio that sits beside the towering tamarind tree. Right enough, Kavita is moulding wet clay into utensils and delicate urns that she neatly arranges along the studio’s many shelves.
Devaki watches on intently, admiring the alchemy of clay being given life through these items. Then, once she is sure she isn’t interrupting the process, she begins to chat. “This is my favourite part,” she tells The Better India. “Another favourite part of my day is playing with my friend Deep.” As Kavita explains, Deep is the caretaker’s son who has grown up alongside Devaki on the land.
“We pretend play, swing, do gymnastics, run, skateboard,” Devaki continues, thoughtfully adding, “I am always looking out for the animals and birds. Sometimes Deep and I act as the animal rescue team.”
You’d agree that Devaki is a lucky girl. Not many are fortunate to grow up away from the chokehold of technology but instead surrounded by paddy fields, flower beds, and streams. In 2020, when Kavita and Manoj decided to take the plunge and quit their corporate roles — Kavita was working with Vodafone and Manoj with HDFC — they were sceptical about how this would change the trajectory of their lives.
Today, in hindsight, they see it as the best decision. “Devaki appreciates everything we do for the land, including growing our own vegetables. She is exposed to so many new things; topics that go beyond traditional education,” shares Kavita.
Letting us in on another fun fact, she says, 12 years ago when she and Manoj bought the land where the homestay now stands, they meant for it to be a space they could retire to or vacation at. Relocating wasn’t on the cards.
What changed their minds?
“The place is so beautiful, you have to see it to believe it,” Kavita coaxes me. She goes on to add, “I believe homes are meant to be lived in. But when we built this place six years ago, it was only occupied for around a month every year; when we came here for a holiday or when we let our friends use the place. It stood empty otherwise.”
It seemed a waste; a gorgeous place like this demanded an audience. And so, in 2020 the couple shifted addresses from Mumbai to Goa, where their labour of love was waiting for them. In an attempt to welcome people from across India and the world to experience the magic of Anjuna, they started the homestay concept that year. And since then, the house hasn’t seen a dull moment.
Hearing their guests, who flock there, raving about the homestay, is music to Kavita and Manoj’s ears for more reasons than one. The land has almost been like their baby; one that has grown up with Devaki.
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Twelve years ago, the couple recalls standing on the same spot, staring at a 150-year-old dilapidated house, which was infested with termites, as they soon discovered. It eclipsed the beauty of the land, one which had immense potential, according to the home’s new stewards.
“We couldn’t restore the house; it was in a very bad shape,” Kavita shares. So, they decided to take it down once they bought the land, preserve the walls, but build a new home from the ground up. Using stone and broken tiles along with other construction materials, the couple completed this house and an adjoining guest cottage.
They then proceeded to make the land arable. Manoj, for one, has learnt a lot while working with soil. “It is indeed a great leveller. You can’t predict it; the permutations and combinations are insane, and I have learnt patience and the art of trying even after failing countless times.” But when the family enjoys sweet mangoes and pulpy vegetables at the dinner table every day, Manoj is reminded of how the land always repays kindly.
It is amazing how a land once uncultivable is now a thriving oasis. “We had to mulch the soil using vermicompost which we purchased from the locals and then learn the planting cycle that works well in the region,” Manoj explains.
Their caretakers were of immense help. “They have grown up learning these things. I think we make a good team,” Manoj smiles. “There’s me trying to bring some science and logic to the table, and them with their practical knowledge.” The raw finesse exuded by the fields is a testament to the efforts of the staff.
Guests marvel at the scores of butterflies here. The honeysuckle is a draw for them. Kavita, who has tended to the flowers through these years is amused. “Many people advised us that we’d have more flowers if we used chemicals to fertilise the land. But, I thought that if I could contribute in some manner to the land that I own by not putting any chemicals into it, I should.” She adds, “Soil has a mind of its own, and so we’ve had to learn everything from scratch.”
Today, Parijaat Goa Homestay is self-sufficient in coconut, black pepper, turmeric, mint, spinach and tamarind. “We also grow seasonal vegetables,” Manoj says, adding after a pause, “if the peacocks allow them to.” The pompous birds make frequent visits to the land, sometimes looking for food, other times for company. And guests are more than thrilled with these visits.
The flowers are beckoning
Eight years ago little Devaki planted a parijaat flower on the land. Known as night jasmine, the flowers have a stark fragrance, a time capsule for Kavita who grew up under the watchful eye of her grandparents. “My grandmother used to love these flowers for the aroma they gave off. While growing up there was a parijaat plant in front of the house too.” Thus, the conflation seemed apt and made its way to the homestay’s name.
Guests who have stayed at the homestay are in awe of it. “From watching sunrises through the branches of the mango tree, the charm of traditional Kerala heritage and architecture of the house with its lush greenery and tall coconut trees, our Goa visit became more special because of Parijaat,” Vanshika Sethi, a guest, notes.
During your stay at Parijaat Goa, you will be put up in the guest cottage that features two double rooms — Magpie Robin and Drongo.
These are endowed with amenities — such as a king-size bed, a writing desk, air conditioning, a luxe bathroom, and books — and interspersed between them all is an old-world charm. The rustic magic of old Goan homes is sustained at the property, the stained glass windows that strategically filter in the Goa sun that snakes its way through the palm trees ensure this. The coconuts, explains Kavita, go into making coconut oil and milk for the food prepared here. As do the mangoes. The pickles and muraba (a sweet preserve) can testify to this!
The peels of the produce go into making compost that nourishes the land. “A circular economy,” Kavita proudly declares.
When she isn’t busy humming around her beloved flowers, Kavita can be found in the pottery studio. “It gives me great joy,” she goes on to share an amusing story. “The tamarind tree has been on the property for years now. And recently I had the pottery studio built in front of it. I have many guests who visit the studio for classes, and I am certain that this spike in human interaction in the past year has in some way influenced the tree. Because now it is giving us so much tamarind, much more than before!”
This further fuels her theory that homes and nature also need company sometimes.
At the Parijaat Goa Homestay, food is always prepared fresh and the guests swear by the shakshouka and poie (eggs poached in a flavourful sauce and eaten along with Goan bread), appam (a thin pancake) and stew, and their idli, sambhar, and chutney.
The Nair family treats every guest like their own. Through the years, the kind of response the homestay has seen has been a nod to Kavita and Manoj’s efforts. “I remember when we first saw this piece of land, it was way beyond our budget,” Kavita shares. “But I saw potential in it. Once you come to visit us, you will believe it for yourself.”
Edited by Pranita Bhat
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