Fast Food vs. Footpath Food

Baba Umar
RISNG KASHMIR
Srinagar, Dec. 12


With the fast food items like Chicken Manchurian, Butter Chicken, Chow Mein, Chicken Rolls, Fish Rolls and fried rice increasingly finding their place in the Kashmiri market and attracting well-off foodies, there are those who find the indigenous cooking dished out at roadside stalls much better than their foreign matches.

Just a close glance near city’s Clock Tower (Ghanta Gher), you would stumble upon two men who from decades are se
rving traditional wazwaan to the passers-by. Tariq Ahmed Dar, 50 and Ghulam Hassan, 28—bracing icy winds and drizzling rain are both witness to political changes that took place in the heart of city during years of conflict. However, they say, the taste buds of valleyities are still intact.

“I didn’t find any change in the food habits of my customers. They like wazwaan at roadside stands,” says Tariq Ahmed Dar, who is done with the first customer of the day. “Thank God,” he sighs.

The container is full of ristas and gushtabas (mashed meat balls), a plate from each for 80 Rs. Bulky pots are to be relieved by evening. The mercury is constantly dipping. Both vendors are expecting a good catch as it’s finally started raining after a long spell of dry winter. However, a roofless stall is a no-good sign. And the carnage gets doubled with the municipal committee’s surprise raids.

“We might have to close our stands,” as Hassan predicts a downpour.

And as the showers slow down till permanent halt, both stalls are visible again followed by the customers who drop in two’s and three’s. But what about the municipal committee hounds?

“Actually this space is meant for footpath, and that irks Municipal authorities,” says Dar. “Whatelse can we do? It’s through this place only that we have managed to earn our living for decades.”
Both the vendors love to read Kashmir related news from newspapers, however they hate scribes. The reasons being couple of wazwaan related stories on FrontPage days back and the subsequent authorities’ wrath.

“They (scribes) interview us and click our pictures,” says Dar. “And that catches municipal committee’s attention towards us. “ We want to work while hidden from their view.”

Tell them the foreign food stuff has invaded the valley. The information turns them red but unmoved. “Every one is not loaded with money,” Tariq puts up in a wee bit of fury. “We cater to middle class of Kashmir.”

And this statement gets proved when two young guys order two plates of gushtabas. Shivering with cold, they put their hands near the stove on which the container is laid.

“Having rista or gushtaba here on pavement is a real fun,” says Mukhtar Ahmed an auto rickshaw driver, barely 20. “I relish it.”

Ask them about fish rolls and chicken Manchurian, their curved lips answer back.
“I can’t afford those foreign dishes,” says one of them while ridiculing the fast food outlets. “Would they serve us ‘patre’ ( footpath) ristas and gushtabas?,” he laughs.