When Bravo rebooted “The Real Housewives of New York City” with an all-new cast in 2023, all eyes were on Jenna Lyons, the erstwhile president of J.Crew — but it was Jessel Taank, a fashion publicist and Bravo’s first Indian Housewife, who emerged as the breakout star of the new “New York.” Jessel wasn’t the only Desi who captured the hearts of Bravo fans: Her husband, Pavit Randhawa, quickly became one of the most beloved Househusbands in the Bravoverse. Happy to play low-key wingman —?literally, his Instagram handle is “thewiiingman,” a nod to his love of travel —?to Jessel’s type-A personality, he is a perfect foil to his at-times high-strung wife.
In addition to being hilarious, endearing and totally relatable, Jessel and Pavit also offer viewers a glimpse into a modern Desi household, something that’s new to the American “Housewives” franchise. So with Diwali, the festival of lights celebrated by Hindus, Sikhs, Jains and Buddhists, enjoying a mainstream moment in the US, we decided to catch up with the style-and-food-obsessed couple to ask about their Diwali traditions.
Growing up in London and Los Angeles, respectively, Jessel and Pavit had different experiences with celebrating Diwali. “For me,” Jessel says, “Diwali has always been a big deal. Growing up in London it was two or three days where there’s just this excitement in the air, it’s our new year. It’s our way to really celebrate our culture and be with family and dress up.” Jessel’s extended family celebrated with a big dinner followed by fireworks. “As kids, fireworks were such a big thing. After dinner we would celebrate with fireworks — which was very illegal, by the way — in our backyard. But we did it nonetheless.”
“For me growing up it was actually a little different,” Pavit says. “There are some memories I have, then as I got older Diwali started taking on more of a bigger meaning. It’s funny, what Jessel said about the whole fireworks thing — as a kid, playing with sparklers is one of those memories that’s like, ‘Oh well this is a lot of fun!’”
Now, as parents themselves, the two are committed to remaking Diwali traditions for a more modern age. “It’s become trendy now,” Jessel says. “But before it was like, ‘Oh god, I have to go to a family dinner where I’m gonna sit around in an awful Indian outfit.’ But for the twins we don’t have that same network. I speak to my friends who are Indian and who also are bringing up kids in the city, and we all feel very dislocated from the traditions that we grew up with. So we really want to create that moment again for our children.” Fireworks, however, will have to wait until their 2-year-old twins, Kai and Rio, are a bit older. “Yeah, we’d have to call the entire fire squad because I’m sure our place would be on fire,” Jessel says of the idea of handing fireworks or sparklers to her rambunctious boys. Ahead, Jessel and Pavit share their must-haves for a sparkling great Diwali celebration.
While the use of fireworks and sparklers are on hold until the twins are a bit older, candles — and anything else that creates the appearance of colored lights — are essential to any Diwali celebration. Jessel says she uses these tealight candle holders "to set the festive mood."
Pavit, the foodie of the family, got his passion for cooking from his mother. "Watching her from a very young age, and inquiring about the different spices and what they do, that started my whole interest," he says. For Diwali, he serves one of his signature drinks: a Mango Lassi Margarita. "Well, everyone knows mango lassi, right? What's better than a mango lassi? A mango lassi with tequila!" He uses a double old-fashioned glass instead of a traditional margarita glass to add a modern twist on the presentation.?
Experimenting, and bringing his own modern take to traditional Indian fare, is one of Pavit's great strengths in the kitchen. "He has this tendency to just throw things together," Jessel says, "and it just turns out like a Michelin-star meal. I mean, I don't know how he does it, but he has an incredible talent, and so I no longer need to cook, which is great." One of his tricks is using Tajín, the Mexican chile-and-lime seasoning blend that is used to enhance fruit, including mango, to rim the edges of his mango lassi margarita glasses.?
Pavit's tequila of choice is Clase Azul, which he uses for his signature drink. "Most people would consider it sacrilegious to mix [Clase Azul] with mango lassi, but it's amazing because it has a really great vanilla flavor that just adds a little kick to your mango lassi margarita," he says.
He also recommends Don Julio Reposado as a more reasonably priced tequila for those looking for a budget option. "It's cost-effective," he says. "There's so many tequilas out there, but I like to use a tequila reposado."
When it comes to putting out food to soak up all that tequila, Jessel brings her sense of style to serving pieces. "I love these marble and wood boards from West Elm," Jessel says, calling them "an elevated way to serve naan." She also offers up a little modern Indian grocery secret: "If you can't get the real thing, nothing beats the naan from Trader Joe's! They also have parathas, which is a nice change and flakier."
Indian snack mix, often called simply "snack," is a staple of any Indian gathering. Like potato chips or Chex Mix, snack mix comes in loads of flavors and combinations; Haldiram's is one of the most ubiquitous snack mixes.
Setting out bowls of snack mix is the first order of business for any host or hostess, and metal serving pieces are the perfect thing because they are festive — and because they don't stain. "I love these serving bowls for the spicy chakri mix," Jessel says.
Jessel uses the coordinating serving tray to display appetizers. "It feels elegant yet festive," she says of the tumbled metal server that's perfect for samosas and pakoras, or what Pavit calls "foods you can pick at." He notes that while many people look forward to Diwali sweets (more on that in a sec!), he leans toward those small savory foods like seekh kababs, which can be piled high on metal servers.
Since we're out here spilling secrets, here's another one: Many modern Desi households, even ones with talented cooks like Pavit, rely on frozen samosas. "These samosas from Sukhi's can be found at most grocery stores but also Amazon," Jessel says. "It's the most popular appetizer to serve before an Indian meal and gets the appetite going!"
An abundance of food necessitates a wide selection of serving pieces, and Jessel has a collection of bowls and platters for presenting the fruits of Pavit's (and Trader Joe's) culinary efforts. "I love these bronze steel serving sets for more of a traditional Indian feel," she says.?
Indian cooking, of course, relies on the use of a great many spices. "There are some really beautiful spice racks I want to recommend for people to actually store and label spices," Jessel says. "It should be like a little bit of a display moment because Indian spices are so colorful and so vibrant. I love this metal version so that spices don't stain lids or the holder." When it comes to storing the spices that are ever so important in Desi households, Jessel has some very specific opinions. "A beautiful spice rack is key. I think Indians have this tendency to throw things into, like, old used ugly jars. Like, my mom would use a yogurt container, and then all of a sudden it's on her new spice rack and I'm like, 'What? What the heck is this?'"
As for the spices themselves, online storefronts have been a game changer. "I love cooking," Pavit says, "and one of the go-tos for me is spice mixes, right? Because of course our parents used to make their own spice, but these days there are companies that make all kinds of premium spices that I love." For spice mixes, he swears by Shan, which can be found on Amazon.
Indian sweets are an absolutely essential part of any Diwali celebration, and nothing is more essential than a mixed mithai box ("mithai" means "sweets" or "desserts" in Hindi). "I mean, there's so many sweets," Pavit says, "but I would say that my go-to is you have to get a box of barfis and ladoos from the Indian store no matter what. Even if you don't like barfis and ladoos —?some people do, some people don't —?it's a must-have. Right? Right."
In addition to barfis and ladoos, "We love rasmalai, jalebi and gulab jamun," they say. To serve these desserts, which can be very sweet and very sticky, Jessel reaches for this set of brass bowls. "It's hard to present some of this stuff because it's like, you know, soupy," she says.
"My two favorite desserts," Pavit says, "are probably what everyone else knows: gulab jamun and rasmalai. You can actually get either online — you can even buy on Amazon!" Gulab jamun, fried dough balls soaked in a sweet rose water and sugar syrup, is a traditional Indian dessert that can be found at an Indian grocery or sweets shop, found on the takeout menu of virtually any Indian restaurant or, as Pavit points out, ordered online from Amazon and other retailers. "You can keep them in your freezer," Pavit says. "That's what we usually do."
"Yeah, I'm a jilebi girl," Jessel says of the funnel cake-esque fried treat that's soaked in warm sugar syrup. "I mean, it's crispy, it's crunchy, it's just the best and it reminds me of my childhood, like that overly sweet, somewhat kind of disgusting but also you cannot stop eating. And it's that gorgeous orange marigold color, and it just reminds me of Diwali. Like no matter where and when I see it, it kind of is one of those nostalgic sights that takes you back."
