Foodiestan Pune – Memories of Cookery Legacy

A few days ago we went to see a movie at City Pride Satara Road Pune, and since there was some time for the movie to start, we decided to take a stroll and suddenly I saw a board saying: “Today’s Special - Dahi Ice Cream”. 

We entered Gujar Mastani House and I straightaway ordered Dahi Ice Cream while my less adventurous wife ordered her favourite Bajirao Mastani. 

The moment I put the first spoon of Dahi Ice Cream in my mouth my mind harked back to relish Dahi Ice Cream served by Bua in the heart of the city. 

Ice Cream is always a special treat, and there are four  famous Ice Cream Parlours in the city, each with its Signature Flavour – Bua for unique Dahi (Curds) Ice Cream which I have not tasted anywhere else in India, Ganu Shinde for its inimitable Amba ( Mango) Ice Cream and Kaware for its unmatched green Pista Ice Cream and ofcourse Sujata Mastani House for its peerless mastani’s. 

Sujata's Mastani

All these places served churned ice cream (made in a similar way to the “pot” ice cream we made at home).

Like Dahi Ice Cream, Pune had many signature dishes which could be called the heritage cuisine of Pune. 

If you wanted to relish the inimitable Non-Veg Puneri Cuisine like Mutton Rassa with Poli or Bhakri you went to Asara Bhojanalaya in Shukrawar Peth or to Jeevan on Tilak Road or Poonam in Deccan Gymkhana. 

Asara has shut down, Jeevan has metamorphosed into Grahak Peth Departmental Store and Poonam is now a pure vegetarian hotel. 

Sweet Home, on Kumthekar Road, which was famous for its Upaasachi SabudanaKhichadi and Piyush seems to have vanished 

Upaasachi Sabudana Khichadi 

Places like Bedekar (the original Puneri Misal joint) and Santosh Bhuvan are fast becoming relics of the past and so are the numerous khanawals and bhojanalayas in the heart of the city which are dying a slow death because of dwindling patronage. 

With the proliferation of Kolhapuri and Malvani eateries all over the city I wonder whether you get assal Puneri Non-Vegetarian Cuisine anymore? 

While Shreyas and Durvankur are still going strong, slowly but surely, Gujarati and Rajasthani Thali restaurants are outnumbering Maharashtrian Thali restaurants.

Bedekar's Misal

 In the Pune I once knew, legacy cuisine was not restricted to Maharashtrian Cuisine – it also included all sorts of dishes from various cultures which were unique to Pune. Like Shrewsbury Biscuits from Kayani Bakery, the inimitable Chinese Dishes served byKamling on East Street, Dorabjee’s Biryani and Parsi Food, those delectable Mutton Samosas at Naaz, West End’s Soda Fountain – so many places, many of whom could not withstand the cookery invasion. 

You had a number of Irani Restaurants, most of whom have shut down, except for Good Luck which is still going strong. It is rewarding to see so many pretty young things (PYTs) from the nearby colleges thronging to Good Luck which in yesteryear Pune was strictly an all-male preserve.

One of the saddest days of my life was when I noticed a coffee shop in the place of my beloved Naaz. 

Latif, another heritage restaurant on East Street, also seems to have shut down. 

Chitale's Bakar Wadi

A few places are still stoically holding out, some even flourishing, like Chitale (for its matchless Amba Barfi and Bakar Wadi), Kayani Bakery, The Place (the birthplace ofsizzlers) on Moledina Road next to Manney’s (which too is downing its shutters),Burger King and many more, but many heritage eateries have found it difficult to withstand the Cookery Cultural Invasion from the “Tandoori Chicken and Paneer Makhani” North and “Idli Sambar, Dosa, Uttapam” South, and now, with the increasing “metropolization” of Pune, we have an overwhelming onslaught of international cuisine as well.

Pune was once a pensioners paradise. Pune always welcomed persons from all over but everyone who settled down here and made Pune their home smoothly and harmoniously blended into the culture of Pune. 

It was the rapidly proliferating IT Boom which began in the late 1990s which suddenly altered the demographics of Pune and started transforming Pune into a faceless metropolis. As a result of this, Pune’s unique cookery culture was overwhelmed as restaurants opened to cater to the huge number of upwardly mobile techies who yearned for pizzas, burgers and pastas and popular national and international cuisines. 

The opening of private educational institutes and the concomitant influx of a large number of well-to-do students from all over India and abroad has also contributed to this cultural transmutation of Pune. 

Thus, today you find Punjabi, South Indian, Bengali, Gujarati, Kolhapuri, Malvani and a variety of International cuisines proliferating rapidly to the detriment of Puneri Cuisine and the unique signature dishes of Pune are slowly but surely disappearing. 

Having exotic sounding insipid Coffees at one of those coffee shop chains seems to be the “in thing” rather than relishing a rejuvenating cup of Puneri Amrutatulya Tea (Chaha).

Slowly but surely, all this “globalization” and “liberalization” is killing the identity of Pune and destroying its cookery legacy. 

The way things are going, soon Pune will be like any other faceless metropolis. 

You can already see this happening in some localities, especially in the suburbs.

Ask any youngster about eating out and they will tell you that today it is Koregaon Park (and not the Peths or Camp) which is the new food district of Pune. 

But what you get in Koregaon Park is not the Signature Cuisine of Pune – it is cuisine you can get in any cosmopolitan city of India and abroad. 

Every city has its signature food and most cities strive to maintain their cookery legacy. One must introspect as to why Punekars do not seem to be that passionate about preserving their cookery legacy. 

Shanwar Wada

GREAT WALL OF INDIA-RAHUL DRAVID

A man who first stepped into international cricket when unorthodoxy was at its peak with pinch-hitters scoring runs defying the standard shots of cricket-A man who epitomises test cricket and is truly head and shoulders above everyone when it comes to technique and style-Yes,i am talking about the GREAT WALL OF INDIA-RAHUL DRAVID. The skills are as solid as they were 15 years ago,the style seems to have got better and better with each passing year but one thing never seems to change and that is his grit and concentration-Those have been rock solid as ever .Rahul Dravid has been one of the main pillars of the Indian batting line up with his blend of right technique and stylish shots. As he achieved the milestone ,here is a tribute to one of the greatest servants of INDIAN cricket.

22nd June,1996 ,INDIA was up against ENGLAND at Mecca of Cricket -The Lords. A young lad named Sourav Chandidas Ganguly was making a mark in international cricket with his well crafted century. Yet another interesting thing was that another batsman at the other end who was also making his debut was effortlessly churning runs with his exquisite strokes-His shots could have given unorthodoxy a run for its money. Unfortunately ,this slim,handsome lad missed out on a hundred and was dismissed for 95.But his classy innings and the grit to survive in the middle earned him a standing ovation from the crowd at Lords.This was indeed one of the classiest innings they had witnessed in a long time-The man  was Rahul Dravid.

For a man whose affluent essay came out of perfection, temperament and technique, Rahul dravid has been INDIA’s go-to man in pressure situations and till date he has guarded the INDIAN kingdom with whole hearted devotion. He has been undoubtedly the best that INDIA has ever produced-in terms of technique, skills, grit and above all dependability.There is always a relief that INDIA can’t  lose if Jammy is there in the middle. Dravid has earned this love and respect from his fans all over the world. People believe him because he has proved that he is worthy of it-Shouldering the hopes of billion fans is indeed a tedious task but for Dravid ,its an honour.

In a cricket crazy nation like INDIA,where cricketers are DEMI-GODS,and everyday a new controversy pops up,Dravid’s sheer down to earth nature and humble attitude has helped him stay away from controversies in-spite of so much media scrutiny.Rahul dravid started off as a shaky batsman with an apt technique,then came a phase wherein he became the sheet anchor and others played around him  scoring runs freely and now with the advent of t20 , Dravid seems to have moulded himself into a new avatar-a player who now keeps pace with the innings,who not only smacks the bowlers out of the park(pretty unlike the real dravid) but also possesses an attitude that would make him reach the skies. Dravid’s greatness however is not limited to the no of runs he scores on the field.It is a potpourri of character,hard work and a genuinely good heart.Talent and character join hands to make consummate greatness-Dravid is a glittering example of that.A deeper scrutiny of his character shows his commitment towards INDIAN cricket-A selfless soul who always has always been a team-man and hwose personal records have been overshadowed by team heroics.

Now he called off for the day in. Dravid retires,the country will lose the greatest no 3 batsman it ever had, fans will be robbed of the privilege of watching this artist at work,media will mourn that he never got his due but most importantly,his departure will take away with itself a bit of gentle-manliness that the game tries to still portray as its inseparable element.He is a legend no matter what critics say-He has been the man responsible for taking INDIA to the numero uno status in test cricket and he will forver be the ICEMAN of team INDIA.

We’ll miss the toes which rise sweetly in sync with the pace of the approaching ball,standing tall and majestic and in control before disdainfully whacking the ball through the backward point. We’ll miss how he bats and bats and bats and saves the team from a moment of crisis.

Lets get awed by his mastery over something we will always run away from-STRUGGLE.

Long live the legend of Rahul dravid.

Hats off JAMMY!!

Adios