The Odd Gumnut Couple

Living life to its fullest is what most of us aspire to do. We bring you a couple doing just that. Laura & Kunal Khanna are living their 'organic' dream, working hard, having fun

Text & Photographs: Farzana Contractor

Now here is a story about a young couple bubbling over with such an enthusiasm for life, it is a delight to spend time with them. Laura gurgles like a tripping brook, talking away with her mouth, eyes and hands; she does have amazing body language. Her thought process is high-speed and her expressions, both physically and figuratively speaking are rather evocative. If Laura is a happy brook, Kunal is like a strong gust of wind – beneath her wing. And he roars around with confidence. He certainly has an entrepreneurial streak in him. Both complement each other, totally.

They live in Panchgani, on a one-acre organic plot called The Odd Gumnut Permaculture Farm. And they are always so busy. Apart from tilling the soil, growing all kinds of produce, they also make kombucha – a healthy drink, extracted from tea. Rise Up, it is called. Guess that’s their leitmotif; Rise and Shine!

So, what did Laura and Kunal do before they came to live at this farm a couple of years ago? Where did they meet, fall in love, marry? What is their story?

Kunal first. He went to school at New Era in Panchgani and later to Australia, where he studied economics at the University of Melbourne. After five years of being there, he landed up with a government job, something much sought after in Australia. He worked for the state of Victoria as an economist. At just age 22 he was into macro-economics, writing various policies for consumers in the Department of Treasury. But he was soon disillusioned, as he says, “Economics does not really consider the holistic aspects of the realities of the world, for example, the environment does not get its due… Economics is all about GDP!” Kunal started to question the various theories he was educated in and felt he needed answers to all the questions going on in his mind. So, the urge to travel, explore, find his own level prompted him on a new path. At 24, he quit his sound job, became footloose and fancy-free and went out yonder, into the world, for 16 months. From Australia to India, Nepal and then Europe. In Chamonix, France, he did a basic course in mountain climbing and went trekking up Mt. Blanc. In Nepal, he indulged in extreme Alpine climbing and scaled Mt. Amadablam at 6,500 metres. But India, where he spent six months travelling from Calcutta to Orissa and then down the coast to Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and around to Kerala, were the most fruitful. He indulged in eating all kinds of food and ended up discovering and falling in love with the dosa and of all things, the lungi, both of which went on to play an important part in his life.

Returning to Australia, this music festival junkie figured there had to be a better way to indulge in his passion of attending music shows, an expensive affair since tickets were always costly AND to make money, while there. Voila! Overdosa was born. He would serve dosas at these jigs! In an age where music and drugs were in a pretty compatible marriage, with all the partying and overdosing, Overdosa was the perfect name to grab eyeballs. Plus, our dosa is a magic snack which works for every meal and every place in the world. Ditto in Australia, where it became a rage. Kunal found the perfect location; a vintage bike store in Fitzroy, Melbourne’s trendy and most happening suburb. He asked the owner if he could share his space and was told, “Sure.” “And just like that,” pipes in Laura, who was all ears, beaming at Kunal’s narration, “there was Kunal, spinning dosas, having the Australians eat out of his hands. The vibe was so cool, so groovy!” I love how she says, ‘spinning’ dosas! In any case spreading out a dosa on a hot iron tawa, in my opinion, is extreme talent.

After establishing this dosa joint, Kunal extended himself to pop-ups at music festivals and his dream of free entry and making money was realised. Rather creatively Kunal even went on to fuse India and Australia, by substituting the aloo masala (potato filling) with three alternatives; kangaroo curry, aubergine and pumpkin!

Like I said, Kunal owes the dosa, big time. He not only found a new livelihood, but also his wife-to-be! Enter Laura, into Overdosa. A food blogger, she had read about this popular Indian snack place in Broadsheet, a local newspaper and landed up at Overdosa with her friend, where she said she ate, “the most delicious meal.”

Laura, a girl from Seattle, was doing exactly what Kunal had just finished doing. Seeking answers to her own questions via the one wonderful way of doing so; travelling. She and her friend, Cassedy had bought a pre-owned station wagon and were travelling through Australia, working on farms, in restaurants, earning and moving on.

For a while though, after her tryst with the dosa and meeting with Kunal, Laura stayed on in Melbourne from where she wrote a glowing review of her experience at Overdosa. That in turn started a friendship between the two and after a few music festivals which they went for, and met and parted and met and parted over the next couple of years, which included a chase across a few continents between Seattle and Bombay and Melbourne, the two finally decided they were made for each other and as Laura puts it, “I followed my man to India, where he belonged and wanted to live…”

It’s a unique story with all the intriguing factors thrown in. Dosa got Laura and Kunal together in Sep 2013, a few months later it was going to be Christmas, a season of joy and romance. Laura and Cass were wondering what they would do when the publicity for a festival at French Island popped up. They decided to go for it. Overdosa and a pizza guy were the only two caterers there. The festival rocked but the girls could not stay overnight since they had to get back to their jobs. Money had to be earned! But as luck would have it a storm brewed and the boat was cancelled and they had to return from the ferry wharf back to the festival venue. “Just as well,” says Laura, “for love started its stirrings and we eventually stayed on for two days!”

The two then met on and off, “The promise of a free dosa was great motivation to meet Kunal,” quips Laura. However, three months later the girls were on their way to the Gold Coast. Byron Bay, beckoned. But soon, a lovestruck Kunal flew down. Clearly it was now beyond a light, travelling, casual romance. Says Kunal, “It was becoming special for both of us…,” and Laura continues “… but we still did not define ourselves as a couple.” Adds Kunal, laughing, “Laura had her fears that my mum must be out looking for a girl for me, as per tradition and she also wondered about fitting in...” So once again they went about pursuing their own lives.

Six months later, Kunal was in India with Tyson, his business partner and three other friends; Evie, Luca and Daniel. They planned to go to South India and shoot videos to make a documentary on the dosa. They travelled to Bangalore, Mangalore, Udipi, Mysore, Madurai and ended up in Kerala. This is when Kunal got a brainwave, he thought why not invite Laura to India! Laura, who was just concluding her travels in Vietnam, Lao, Cambodia and Thailand was at a loose end. With no plans in the offing, she happily accepted Kunal’s invitation. And they all ended up in Himachal Pradesh. They trekked, lived in shacks, ate simple food, lived simple and obviously true love happened, in the 18 days of bliss. “Well and proper. The magic of the mountains, the temple bells, the sheep and the goats and the people… it was beautiful,” says Laura. Adds Kunal rather solemnly, “Now we were certain. We knew for sure we wanted to spend our lives together.” So, after both of them came to the conclusion, 'this is it', they happily went back to their respective lives. As it happened, while the temple bells rang clear and loud, the sound of wedding bells was still in the distance.

Laura went back to America, this time to live between New York and Philadelphia, working at Lululemon (an athletic clothing company) by day and a restaurant by night. Kunal returned to Australia, continuing with Overdosa, simultaneously enrolling for a Masters degree in Environment and Sustainability.

Once again Christmas was approaching and Laura decided to join Kunal in Australia. “I bought the cheapest ticket I could, probably $300 or something and travelled 70 hours to be with the man I was now fully in love with.” Yup. She flew from Seattle to Vancouver to Tokyo to Singapore to Melbourne, changing flights, spending hours and hours in transit! Headphones on, smile intact.  Once in Melbourne, she took a tram, a train, a bus, a ferry and again a bus to reach French Island, where it had all begun, 12 months ago! “To find me, at the same stall, Overdosa, waiting for her with open arms!” says Kunal. “It was brilliant!" Laura exclaimed, "I couldn’t wait to see him. All through the journey, my thought was, ‘I am going to meet my man and here he was."

Ah, the luxury of youth! Five months of living together in Melbourne even had Laura working at Overdosa. Since she had worked in dozens of restaurants, making dosas came easy for her, a natural cook. And yes, she earned a salary for ‘spinning’ those dosas. And then the two decided Kunal would join her in Seattle to check out her home city. Three months later when it was time for him to leave Seattle, Kunal went down on his knees and proposed! “Oh my, was I stoked! My excitement was just too much. To top it off, Kunal said we could settle down in Seattle, he loved the city!”

But it was after two years and many backpacking trips (to Greece, France, Mexico), the two finally said goodbye to both Seattle and Melbourne and moved to Bombay. Once here, they were married but decided they did not want to live in Bombay. Kunal’s family also had a home at Bhilare in Panchgani and that was the perfect solution. Kunal’s mum was only too happy to let them have a run of it. For Laura, a farmer at heart and by upbringing, this was great. She applied herself to the task and soon Khanna House was rechristened, The Odd Gumnut and the farm started to take shape. Back in the US of A, Laura grew up on a five-acre farm on the island of San Juan, located between Seattle and Vancouver. Her entire family; parents, brother and sister, and nieces and nephews are all earth people who love gardening and farming. And Laura, stamped with this DNA brought along a lot with her from her experiences. So, if the pathways back home were strewn with empty hazelnut shells, here she got hold of groundnut shells which line the walkways. At the end of each monsoon the shells compost and the soil beneath is enriched. Likewise, Laura and Kunal have cultivated the rest of their land and are rewarded with organic produce which they sell.

Laura is many things rolled into one. A permaculturalist, a farmer, a chef, a teacher. Her strength lies in the fact that she believes in a regenerative lifestyle. Having studied Food Politics at the University of Washington she is a believer in food sovereignty. Which is basically a system in which people who produce, distribute and consume food, also control the mechanisms and policies of food production and distribution. In contrast to the system where the corporates control it (exactly what our farmers were fighting against and thank God the government gave in and agreed to repeal the three silly laws).

Well, Laura went on to create the first major at her university specifically on Food Studies, covering everything from the anthropology of food to the depths of its politics (Big Agriculture, Farm Bill, World Hunger, Green Revolution, GMO, etc.). When Laura was in Australia in 2013, she dove into permaculture, learning in Melbourne from Stuart Muir Wilson and later completing her teacher training with Rosemary Morrow.

No wonder then she is happy in her kitchen – fermenting, brewing, grinding, kneading and laughing and singing along the way. By the way, I must mention, she plays the ukulele. Her grandfather was a master crafter at making that sweet little musical instrument which looks like a baby guitar. But before you conclude that she is a child of nature alone, she clarifies, “Listen, I may love being in the mountains, jungle, seas and rivers but I love being in a big city just as much! Bright neon lights and partying hard is something I also enjoy tremendously!” Alright Laura, we are listening. You both are the camping, hiking, paragliding, mountain biking, scuba diving kind, who also love to go dancing, partying, meeting friends, staying up half the night, having fun!

Must admit, it's a wonderful balance that these two young people have struck. And their contribution to the organic world will soon be noticed. They are permaculturists on a mission for a more resilient future for everyone. They advocate reskilling, recycling, renewing, regenerating. They not only grow their own veggies, make their own bread and soap, have free-range eggs, brew kombucha, but they help you do the same. They make and sell robust live cultures like wild yeast starter for sourdough bread and kombucha SCOBY (Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and Yeast) so that you can bake your own bread or brew your own kombucha at your own home.

In addition to all this nurturing at their one-acre farm, Laura and Kunal connect through education, workshops, tours and consultancy. Including offering you a farm- to-table dining experience and homestays with an opportunity to learn, hands-on. They really do walk the talk; listen to them speak, “We are two people on the path of living well. Of connecting to our food. Of community building. Of upskilling. We hope to be beacons, mentors, inspiration for all others that feel the urge to leave the conventional and see what else is possible. We want to work together for our planet and home. Real change is critical for our collective future – and we work to be the agents of that change.” Nice.