Haanji, gulab jamun ki sabji banti hai.

Gulab jamun. Those fried dough balls dipped in the super sweet chashni are just to die for. Some enjoy this delicacy with ice cream, others with rabri, and some as it is. But have you ever wondered how gulab jamun would taste in a sabji? Difficult to imagine, isn’t it? But a dish in Rajasthan does this job for you! The Gulab Jamun ki sabji from Jodhpur is an absolutely delicious and unusual take on this sweet, and adds a new dimension of flavours to it.

A savoury gulab jamun, with a rich gravy, this dish is quite popular in the Jodhpur region. It is one of the most delicious vegetarian Rajasthani delicacies.

The Gulab jamun balls are made with khoya and maida. Sometimes, to add a more savoury flavor, paneer is used.  To add some richness and typical Rajasthani flavor, sometimes rose water is added too. Like the usual gulab jamun, these are then fried till golden brown. These are not dipped in the sugar syrup (chashni).

The gravy is actually a typical yogurt-based gravy. The special thing about this recipe is the use of desi ghee, which makes it extra yummy and adds a special desi touch to it. The main ingredients in the gravy include onions, ginger garlic paste and curd. The spices are the usual cumin, red chilli, dhaniya, haldi, garam masala, lemon juice and some fresh coriander leaves as a garnish. If you like the tangy tomato, then you can add some tomato puree too. The spices, along with some maida are typically whisked into dahi.

There are a lot of variations in this recipe. Some like the usual yogurt curry, others like the tomato-onion gravy, and some like cashew gravy, which is quite rich. So it depends on you which one you like, and you can accordingly use that one.

This dish is closest to kofta perhaps, but it has khoya and so it is richer. These balls are still slightly sweet. The Gulab Jamun ki sabji is a great way to experiment with gulab jamun. It will definitely add a new take on this dish. So enjoy this lovely dish soon!

Butter Chicken ki kahani

Butter chicken. Buttery, creamy, a bit tangy at times, with the right mix of spices, served with succulent and soft pieces of chicken. I absolutely love it. Don’t you? But have you ever wondered where it even came from?

Butter chicken was born in Old Delhi around the 1950s. Tandoori food and kebabs were highly popular in Delhi at this time. The succulent chicken and mutton kebabs, marinated in a unique blend of spices, and cooked to perfection, were savored by almost every single person from Delhi. The marinate of these kebabs was a mixture of spices like garam masala,jeera, coriander, chilli powder, tej patta, salt and pepper. This mixture of spices was rich in flavor and gave these kebabs their strong flavor.

One fine day, a restaurant owner decided to mix the leftover flavourful marinade with some tomato puree and loads of butter and cream. Hence our dearest, most favourite butter chicken was born. It was eaten either with naan or the paper-thin roomali roti. The owner didn’t know that he had invented what is arguably the most well-known Indian dish over the globe.

Now, the chicken is marinated in lemon juice, dahi, and spices which also include the ginger-garlic paste. The chicken was earlier cooked in a tandoor, like a kebab, but now it may be grilled, roasted or even pan fried. The gravy is a mixture of tomato puree which is spiced and cream and butter are also added. The gravy is simmered until smooth and until much of the water has evaporated. Sometimes, kaju paste is also used to thicken the gravy. The spices of the dish vary with the region.

Butter chicken may have been born in Old Delhi, but now it is a dish that India and the whole world loves. It is almost impossible to imagine a life without butter chicken. Butter chicken is everything we Indians love, butter, cream, chicken and fat. Kudos to this lovely dish!

Mystory

The clinking sound of footsteps on the iron staircase echoed in my ears, but the sound of my excitement persisted. Those eager murmurs on the first day of third grade made it even louder. A new class, new teacher, new friends, and most importantly, new subjects! Third grade was the first year we got to study History & Civics and Geography.

Before third grade, history had been all about watching TV shows about Jhansi ki Rani or Chandragupta Maurya, with the extravagant sets, sharp swords, powerful dialogues and glorious fights. And the whole idea of studying more about these legends made me very enthusiastic. I knew I wouldn’t just read about them, but my imagination would take me to them, sometimes clad in the same saree as Lakshmibai, other times as Queen Victoria perhaps.

Miss Kelkar walked into the class. Her jet black, long hair was tied elegantly into a lot plait. Her simple blue and purple salwar-kameez complemented her deep brown eyes and little black bindi perfectly. She came in, introduced herself, and told us to remove our history textbooks. I opened my textbook to the first chapter, and it was called ‘What is history?’. We learned basic terms like historian, archaeologist, inscriptions, emperors, etc. And then began a journey back in time, a journey to the past, which I live in the present.

I travelled to so many lands in that one year. Colonial India, Ashoka’s peaceful empire, Shah Jahan’s , stunning Taj Mahal site, all were covered in one year itself. 

Further, I came a veteran traveller to the lands of the past. I bathed in the Great Bath, sat in Tutankhamun’s court, traded along the Silk Route, and even saw the Code of Hammurabi right before my eyes. I attended a session in the diwan-e-aam, walked in the Dandi March with Gandhi, heard Nehru’s Tryst with destiny and even saw the bloody partition of my nation.

I have come a long way from words like historian, archaeologist, inscriptions and emperors. Words such as power, perspective, revolution and society have become a more significant part of history for me.

History evolves. Just like we all do. History also has a future. A future of the past, a future of the rich customs, traditions and culture of the past. We need to revive that past. We need to learn from it. We need to put it into current perspective to understand contemporary issues. The true essence of history isn’t the extravagant palaces or fancy costumes of the past. It is the rather lessons. Lessons from past mistakes, from the rich societies of the past, from how we have become who we are today. History teaches us why some are rich, some poor, some unequally treated and some specially treated. Once we understand the ‘why’, we need to look for the ‘how’ and identify solutions to solve such loopholes in the society. Not just the Indian society, but each and every society in the world faces some or the other social, political or economic issue. I want to study history as a solution, as a source which explains the root cause of the issue.

I want to read the story of the dead and derive morals for the living.

His Shadow?

Today, 2nd October, 2019, we celebrate the 150th birth anniversary of Gandhiji. But we often forget one very important person. I would like to dedicate this day and this poem to her:

His white dhoti shines,

His serene eyes talk.

Is he a vision or is he true?

I see him cleaning his spectacles,

And caressing his charkha.

Gandhi is just a name,

He is a symbol,

A symbol of hope,

Of peace,

Of truth.

But who is she?

That pillar of support merely?

Her white saree,

Her strong demeanour,

Her fierce eyes,

All talk to me.

The woman who walked with him,

Who knew all his flaws,

His known,

His hidden,

His soul,

His heart

Evaporates.

Forms his shadow.

She chose so.

She was his strength,

But above all,

She was her strength.

She was his support,

But we all forget,

The support she gave herself.

She doesn’t hide behind him,

She is him.

And she chose so.

She chose to be empowered.

And self-enlightened.

In Search of the Cradle of Civilization: A book review

Once upon a time, the Aryans, utopian, blue-eyed and intellectually ‘superior’ beings of the West, invaded the Indus Valley Civilization, a peace-loving and serene settlement. Sounds like a short and simple story, doesn’t it? Unfortunately (or fortunately for mystery lovers), it isn’t that simple. The so-called ‘Aryan invasion’ has been debated extensively in the past century with various new theories coming up. Droughts, floods, massacres, diffusion of cultures are few of the theories which scholars have come up. The Aryan invasion has often been criticized citing ‘Western worldview’. ‘In Search of the Cradle of Civilization’ by Subhash Kak, Georg Feuerstein and David Frawley makes an attempt to erode the widely accepted Aryan invasion theory, and put forward the ‘Eastern worldview’ on the issue. The authors propose that the Indic and Vedic people were, in fact the same.

The book is divided into two parts: the first one elucidating the main argument regarding the decline of the Harappans, and the second one focusing on the spiritual heritage of India.

A great introduction to the book and the concepts keeps the reader gripped to the first part. The language is quite analytical, and forces the reader to question what she is reading, for every argument is unique and almost unheard of by most common readers. The first part describes the similarities between the Vedic and Indic cultures, the ambiguous definition of the word ‘Aryan’, the excavation of the Indic cities, etc. A perfect summary of the arguments is the last chapter of this part, which is named: Why the Aryan invasion never happened: Seventeen Arguments.

The second half of the book describes the cultural and spiritual legacy of India. Everything from spiritual heritage, Vedic psychology, astronomical basis of myths, and the birth of Vedic science is covered. This part focuses more on explaining the metaphorical aspect of the legends and writings, rather than the common literal aspect. Spectacular revelations about so many common legends are made, and they will leave you spellbound.

The book is quite well-written and an interesting read overall. However, it isn’t particularly neutral. It is quite focused on eroding the Western worldview, and emphasizes on this idea quite frequently. The reader, hence needs to be cautious. If you wish to read this book for research purposes, read it from a neutral point of view, without any biases. Do not get swayed by the Western view or the Eastern counterviews on the issue, rather study the evidences in both cases and come up with your conclusion. Forget the Eastern or Western worldviews, or any such other biases, and read the book from a state of mind which allows you to take in information and evidences, not opinions. The book is quite old, and a couple of theories put forward become either more substantive or unacceptable citing the recent discoveries such as Rakhigarhi or Bronze chariots. So, do not read blindly. Research, revise, understand, question and interact with the ideas in the book. That’s when it becomes fun.

What are you waiting for? Get that copy now and go on a horse ride with the ’Aryans’ to the ancient past!

If Ashoka was Egyptian

Egyptian history is among the most interesting ones in the world. After reading about the various miracles that these people did in the past, one gets awestruck! After seeing the various monuments in this wondrous country, and after reading a bit about the history of these, I have decided to twist history a bit for this article.

I have written articles that have described my absurd idea of some famous international personalities being Indian. Today, I am going to twist it a little. So let’s see how Ashoka would be if he was Egyptian.

First, let’s go through some statistics. Ashoka’s reign started in 272 BCE. Ptolemy II Philadelphus was his contemporary Egyptian pharaoh. This pharaoh belonged to the same dynasty as the famous Cleopatra, and was half- Greek. In fact, he is mentioned in one of Ashoka’s edicts.

During Ashoka’s times, Egypt followed a religion that comprised of polytheistic beliefs. Many Gods were worshipped. Unlike India, where various religions were followed, only this religion was followed in whole of Egypt. So if Ashoka was Egyptian, we would see him worshipping Gods like Osiris, Ra, Isis, Horus, Anubis, Thoth, Sobek, Noot, Iris and many more. Ashoka would possibly not be the king who propagated Buddhism to various parts of the world.

Also, in ancient Egypt, the king was considered the son of God, and sometimes God himself. He was considered a living form of Osiris, the son of Amun-Ra (king of Gods). Some kings were even worshipped and temples were built in their remembrance. Perhaps we would see a temple dedicated to Ashoka.

Ashoka wore something that was similar to a dhoti. We wore a turban or pagdi and wore various ornaments. He had shoulder-length hair. If he was Egyptian, his ensemble was subject to change. Egyptian pharaohs used to put a false beard to highlight their manliness. Their heads used to have a huge crown.  They wore a bottom similar to a petticoat that Indian women wear. Sometimes they wore a kalsiris, which was basically a large piece of cloth, worn with or without a gown. It was draped in many ways. Even they wore a couple of ornaments.

Egyptian pharaohs had a desire to expand their kingdom and to conquer new territories. Ashoka wanted to make peace with the surrounding areas and not conquer the areas. Perhaps Ashoka might not be as peace-abiding as we see him now if he was Egyptian.

I think that it would be great to imagine Ashoka to be Egyptian, but if all this was real, our country would lose one of its greatest kings.

I hope you all enjoyed this article.

The Indian killing machine

I have been obsessed with Adolf Hitler lately.  I was introduced to Hitler in the second chapter of my History textbook this year. I was in awe of
 the aura of World War II. Everything about the war fascinated me, but this monster called Hitler has been draining all my energy for the past few months. All I can think about is possibilities of different Hitler theories. I guess the thing that fascinated me the most about Hitler was this question: How did an aspiring artist turn into a killing machine?

For the past few months, I have been reading Mein Kampf and Hitler’s last day: Minute by minute. Apart from this, I Google every new thing I discover about Hitler. I aspire to be a historian, and this takes me closer to my goal.

So all this research work led to the birth of a crazy thought: What if Hitler was Indian? My previous article on such lines, ‘What if Greg Heffley was Indian?,’ was appreciated by a lot of people. So why not bring out the crazy possibilities and change in the course of history if the most famous killing machine of all times is turned Indian?

Historically, if Hitler was an Indian, India would have a conflict between two personalities with extremely different views. Our Bapu would have non-violent, equality, truthful views, but Hitler’s views would be full of inequality, racism, violence, etc. So historically if Hitler was Indian, it would be tough for India to get independence.

Now let’s come to the imaginative part. Just imagine Hitler in kurta-pyjama with a teeka on his forehead. I was just wondering, if Hitler became popular, he’d start a brand. Perhaps, like Patanjali, we would get Nazi dant kanthi. Just think of Hitler speaking Hindi and endorsing his brand on the radio. His brand, Nazi could be a big hit. He might start speaking at gatherings and perhaps become a philosopher. He might make some Indians embrace Nazism.

Hitler, as a popular Indian, he might surely be a part of a Bollywood film or Hindi daily soap. We never know, Hitler could be a superstar like Raj Kapoor or Rajesh Khanna!

Hitler might also turn into a baba like Baba Ramdev. Just think of him with a long beard, saffron robe and chest hair with a packet of Nazi noodles in his hand.

It was Karva Chauth last week. All I could do is laugh as I imagined Eva Braun keeping this fast. Braun married Hitler just a day before they both committed suicide on 30^th April, 1945. But they were in a relationship for 14 years. So I wouldn’t be surprised if my history textbook would have a picture of Eva Braun in a saree waiting for the moon to appear and later doing Hitler’s puja with Nazi agarbatti and Nazi kum-kum.

I am sure we all would enjoy studying Hitler’s history if he was Indian, but Hitler was the Fuhrer of Germany. The world hated him. But imagination doesn’t see hatred.  

An Indian Hitler is definitely a crazy idea.

Ashoka hai, Ashoka tha

Ashoka, if you are an Indian, you would currently be thinking of bravery, Buddhism, generosity, humbleness and a fatherly figure. Yes, I am going to dedicate this article to the great emperor. I am an avid reader of history and becoming a historian in the future is my first choice. Don’t worry; this isn’t going to be a boring, lengthy history lesson about emperor Ashoka, but simply an imaginary article.

Ashoka has always been the hero of Indian history, the grandson of Chandragupta Maurya, another great emperor, and Bindusara, who did conquer a lot of land, but failed to be an influential king. One of my relatives, who regularly reads my articles requested me to write an article on Ashoka. I, and to be frank everyone would think of how the life of Ashoka was, his conquests, contribution to Buddhism etc. But I came up with a new idea. One of the newspapers published an article about how children are finding history boring because of the way it is taught. So here you go, a little dramatic, loosely based on Chakravartin Ashoka Samrat, modernized tale of Ashoka.

Ashoka was a hero Chanakya found when he had been a ghost for 29 years, roaming around day and night in search of a worthy successor for the throne of Magadha. Now he had finally found one. Radhagupt, his favourite disciple was the only person who could see him. He communicated the message, but Ashoka laughed at him. How could a dead person say that he was the correct successor for the Magadha throne? He never liked the emperor of Magadha, this Bindusara, a puppet of his step-mother Helena and elder brother Justin (who actually never existed). Chanakya decided to do some R&D and then came to the conclusion that Ashoka was Bindusara’s son. Ashoka gave him weird looks when he got to know this “fact”. Chanakya decided that by hook or crook, he had to take Ashoka to the Magadha palace. He kidnapped his mother, and asked the poor child to come to the Magadha palace to save him. Ashoka loved his mother a lot, so cried like a bahu from one of the saas-bahu shows and went to rescue her. He didn’t have Wi-Fi at his house as he was poor, so he sent a text message to his friends and they all went to rescue his mother. The soldiers at the gate were all busy with their phones, so it was easy to get in. They kept going; the soldiers saw them only when they had almost entered Radhagupta’s room. Radhagupt showed Ashoka way to his mother, who stood there crying and wasting glycerine which was needed for the other parts of her life. Ashoka was angry at his mother for teaching him values such as, no wasting and she was doing the same. But at the same time, he was relieved that he had finally seen her. He hugged her tightly. Just then, Bindusara entered. His face saw Ashoka’s mother (Subhadrangi) thrice and he was like, “Kya? Kya? Kya?”(If you watch daily soaps, you can visualise the scene). Then he came close to her and embraced her. Just then, Helena entered with dagger…….And "Agle hafted dekhiye” flashes on the screen.

This is just a small part of the “crazy history of Magadha”. Stay tuned in for more. If I get at least over 20 comments on this article, I will make it a monthly. So if you want to read more of the “crazy history of Magadha” and other regions, comment.

*saas-bahu-daily soaps

**kya-  what

***agle hafte dekhiye - next week