Narali Purnima

And The Food History Of The Koli Fishing Community

Quick Summary

Narali Purnima marks the end of the Shravan month, a time of fasting and festivals, and is observed by the fishing (Koli) communities along the Konkan coast in Maharashtra and Goa. This day is observed on the last day of Shravan and marks the end of abstinence for the fishing community before they venture out into the sea. With this period come certain food rituals and their history intertwined with this full moon festival; this article takes you through them.

Deep Dive

The Koli are among Maharashtra's oldest coastal communities, with settlements, known locally as koliwadas, sprinkled along the shoreline from Mumbai through Thane, Raigad, Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg. The Kolis are believed to have migrated south from Gujarat generations ago in search of greener pastures along the coast of Maharashtra, particularly in Mumbai. They are among the city's earliest recorded settlers, and while fishing remains their defining occupation, the community is not solely reliant on the sea. In the coastal talukas of the Konkan, many Koli households also cultivate rice, coconut and cashew on the land bordering their fishing grounds, so what ends up on their table is a mix of what comes from the sea and the land. Goa has a similar fishing community, and there, the community is known as the Kharvis, who differ in their food habits and work, but everything around Narali Purnima is strikingly similar.

Narali Purnima Marks the End of the Calm

The weeks leading up to Narali Purnima are marked by a religious fast, shaped by the Arabian Sea, which turns rogue during monsoons, making fishing a risky affair. It is also said that a lull period is needed, and this occurs during the monsoons, when many fish species breed. If you are looking for a monsoon fish guide, read this. To enforce this, state fisheries departments also enforce a seasonal fishing ban, which usually runs from June to August.

For a community where an estimated two lakh fishermen and workers in Mumbai alone make their livelihood from sea catches, this is close to three months without fishing income. Accounts from fishing families on islands like Elephanta describe households living through the ban on savings set aside earlier in the year, which is exactly why Narali Purnima, the day the ban is lifted, boats return to open water, carries as much economic weight as spiritual meaning.

How a Season of Waiting Shapes the Konkan Kitchen

Since fresh fish is scarce during monsoons and, by custom, largely avoided during Shravan, Koli households eat what was preserved in the preceding summer. Kolis have, for the longest time, salted and sun-dried fish during the dry months, specifically to have something to fall back on when the sea turns rough and fishing pauses. This preserved catch, broadly called sukat, takes several forms and varies by the seafood:

• Bombil, or Bombay duck, is salted and sun-dried until they turn firm. They are coated in semolina or gram flour and shallow-fried into a crispy side dish.

• Jawla and sode are tiny, deshelled prawns that are dried whole and cooked into a coconut-based curry called kanji.

• Vakti, or ribbon fish, is dried without salt and then cooked by simmering it with a bitter vegetable like ivy gourd to make it palatable, as it can be quite pungent.

• Khare, or anchovies, are dried alongside prawns and are often prepared as a stir-fry with a quick tempering and an onion-tomato base.

Dried fish is central to this community's diet, prompting research into its benefits. It is a healthy and sustainable dietary choice that eases pressure on fish stocks during their breeding season. Drying and selling the surplus catch has also become a livelihood in its own right within the Koli community. In fishing hubs like Khar Danda, Koli women can be seen buying unsold or damaged fish specifically to dry and sell them, a good source of household income during the lean months.

What the Feast Looks Like Once the Fast Breaks

Narali Purnima itself falls on the full moon of Shravan, usually in August, and takes its name from ‘naral’, the Marathi word for coconut. At high tide, Koli families gather at the shore in their traditional attire, carrying coconuts, garlands and rice to the water's edge to offer to Varuna, the sea god, seeking blessing for a safe and plentiful season ahead. The coconut’s three eyes are read as a reference to Shiva's third eye, and cracking it open is treated as an act of surrendering ego and fear before the water. Moving to the kitchen, during Narali Purnima, here’s what the Koli communities prepare: 

• Narali bhaat: this is Maharashtra’s version of coconut rice, a rich rice dish in which soaked rice is fried with whole spices, then cooked in coconut milk and jaggery, and finished with fried cashews and raisins. This is the dish every household makes as naivedya, or bhog, the food offered to the deity before it is shared.

• Undre: This is the Koli community’s version of the beloved modak, where the sweet wraps around a filling of coconut and jaggery, and the name refers to ‘lump’, which is exactly what this sweet is.

• Naralachi karanji: another sweet dish that looks very similar to gujiya, naralachi karanji is prepared the same way, with a typical coconut and jaggery filling inside a half-moon pastry, with no sugar glaze.

Once the offering is made, fresh catch returns to the dining table, and you will find an array of seafood prepared with kala masala, the Koli community's roasted blend of black pepper, cloves, cinnamon, poppy seed, and dried red chilli. This spice blend is used in curries like tisrya (clam) masala and stuffed pomfret, alongside solkadhi, a kokum-and-coconut-milk drink that has always accompanied a Konkan meal.

Maharashtra's Koli and Goa's Kharvi

The gesture of offering a coconut to calm the sea before boats return to it is common in both communities. What shifts is how Narali Purnima is celebrated: the Maharashtrian celebration is loud and colourful, while the Goan version is quieter and more of a family affair than a community one.

To the Fishing Nets and Into the Water

What makes Narali Purnima significant for the Koli community is well understood through food, which is what is also the basis of their livelihood. Coconut and jaggery form the base of their meals on this day, with many preparations featuring these two ingredients, as both are abundant in the state. Their food history is also well understood through this: before the fishing nets are arranged and loaded onto the trawlers, the fishermen bring home a boat filled with fresh catches from the sea, and the fresh seafood returns to the markets again.