Sunday, May 10, 2015

Potato Heroes....


Many click masala dosas. But some click masala dosas so wonderfully that they convey a message, besides a sense of great taste,  and a triggering of huge appetite.

One applauds Deepak Amembal, for having the patience to click his breakfast , in the face of such an amazing photographic  invitation to imbibe.

It certainly brings to mind the Life and Times  of a Potato and its relevance to current events  .

Sometimes, food imitates, and improves on real life.   But do we learn ?


बटाटा असणं सोपं नसतं …

कधी तेलात फेकलं जाणं ,

कधी सुरी नावाच्या व्हिलनने
बारीक डोळे करून सपासप केलेला
पातळ काचर्या अपरिहार्यपणे
फोडणीत पडणं ,
कधी "दो कोळसे बारा ज्वाळा " स्टाईल
जळत्या शेगडीत
लाल निखार्यात आयुष्य घालवणं ,
तर कधी
वाफ़ॆच्या अतिरेकात ,
कातडी निघेपर्यंत
शिट्ट्यान्च्या संगीतात अडकणं ,
आणि जरा राग निवळ्ल्यावर ,
कुणा एका नायकेच्या फुंकर मारण्याने
दंग होउन ,
अगदी तुकडे तुकडे होउन पडणं,
आणि मिरची कढीपत्ता वकिलांच्या बरोबर
महाग तेलात
उच्च कढईत गरागरा फिरण.

आजकाल काही लोकांचं असच असतं .
कायद्याने शिक्षापात्र ठरवलेला गुन्हा करून
निर्लज्जा सारखे घरी येतात ,
आणि आईचा हात धरून
"भक्तांना " अभिवादन करतात .

बटाट्याच आयुष्य सिनेमासारख असलं ,
तरी जेव्हा लोकांना भेटायची वेळ येते,
तेव्हा तो
हिरवी चटणी लेवून आलेल्या ,
डोसा आईच्या पदराखाली आरामात बसून,
हळूच डोकावतो ,
आणि
खावैय्याना अभिवादन करतो .

एक भक्तांवर जगतो , तो सलमान खान
दुसरा भक्ताना जगवतो , तो मसाला डोसा

It isn't easy being a potato.

A wild fling into the oil;
sometimes,
a thin sharp villainous
cutting and stir frying,
helplessly uniting
with a  tadka;
sometimes,
a deadly roasting
amidst the red embers
of fate
a la the movie
"Two Charcoals Twelve flames "
and sometimes,
helplessly smothering
in loads of steam,
losing skin
as mercenary whistles happen
all around you.

Then a patient cooling
of temper,
a gentle blowing of air
by a culinary heroine,
and a helpless falling to pieces,
only to
be forced to move in High Places
at huge oily costs
with the Mirchi Kadhipatta Attorneys.

These days
some folks live a similar life.

Convicted in the law
of crimes of causing death,
they manage to return home,
and wave to their  fans,
from balconies,
holding fast to their
mother's arm.

Cinematically,
the Potato life
although similar,
ends much differently.

The Dosa Matriarch,
layered with a chutney
simply arrives,
takes the potato
under her palloo,
and he waves to his fans too,
inviting them to partake.

The one who lives
at the cost of fans,
is Salman.

The one who lives
to make the lives of fans happy,
is the potato
in the Masala Dosa.

2 comments: