For only the Indians know the fun at the corner tea stall...Priced at rs3, the cup of chai with its heavenly aroma, comforting warmth and therine kick garnished with its aural fuming effects this 'amrit ka pyaala' is a reminiscent of freshness. But what brings us to the 'chai ka khokha' is the environment...the latest bollywood song playing on the radio, madhuri and katrina posters on the side walls, the chatty 'ever-greeeting everyone' our friendly chaiwaala, the promising glass bottles of bread-bun, muffins and 'matthi', today's newspaper and wooden bench for the mob to bob upon.
Yes, for the mob to bob upon, with the attitude of a wine drinker, tongue of a pie taster and adjectives of a coffee cupper when an indian uncle sets up the environment (or the 'maahaul' as we call it) starting off with an anecdote of his in the typical style of our own 'gali ki aunty', moving onto latest gossips in the 'mohalla' (colony) while simultaneously commenting upon the genius of the chaiwala and hauling the 'chotu' for the glasses not being clean, slurping upon the ...ah....chai.
Now, any one who has done it would bet a million that 'the best way to taste tea is to slurp your tea'. Noisy as it may be, the preferred method is to get your nose down into the cup you intend to taste and, ignoring your mother’s admonishment to not slurp your food, suck in a small quantity of the tea liquor. The tea should spread across the whole tongue and allow all sorts of happy taste receptors to experience and along with the olfactory influences in the nose and brain and a microsecond later a sweet kick in your backbone...
Marriages have been arranged, prime ministers have been decided, world cup matches have been fixed, brains have been hauled, thoughts have been bent, rumours have been born (and spread..), fates have been predicted and almost everything an Indian homosapien could talk about has been stated,researched and revised and yet revised and the discussed and then stated in future group discussions...all of that over a cup at our oh so lovely chai waala!
Best would although be in the morning, but if the course of the day grows on you, the solution is simple ..a trip for a 'kadak chai'... or simply yet if you just want a feel of the environment there go for the half priced 'cutting chai' version!
Now, any one who has done it would bet a million that 'the best way to taste tea is to slurp your tea'. Noisy as it may be, the preferred method is to get your nose down into the cup you intend to taste and, ignoring your mother’s admonishment to not slurp your food, suck in a small quantity of the tea liquor. The tea should spread across the whole tongue and allow all sorts of happy taste receptors to experience and along with the olfactory influences in the nose and brain and a microsecond later a sweet kick in your backbone...
Marriages have been arranged, prime ministers have been decided, world cup matches have been fixed, brains have been hauled, thoughts have been bent, rumours have been born (and spread..), fates have been predicted and almost everything an Indian homosapien could talk about has been stated,researched and revised and yet revised and the discussed and then stated in future group discussions...all of that over a cup at our oh so lovely chai waala!
Best would although be in the morning, but if the course of the day grows on you, the solution is simple ..a trip for a 'kadak chai'... or simply yet if you just want a feel of the environment there go for the half priced 'cutting chai' version!
No comments:
Post a Comment