Thursday, November 19, 2009

Can you hear me?


A year ago, I started blogging with the following post.



"Fingers- so important to us, yet so neglected, we seldom do realize their importance.



If only index finger is shown- it can spell eternity to a sportsman and can send him back to the pavallion. Raised in air, it can mean to indicate the presence of the only God, if kept on the lips, it can spread silence. An indelible mark on it can mean we are free and are a part of democracy. It's the finger on which Lord Krishna carried his Sudarshan Chakra and eliminated many evils.


Just next to it is the middle finger, which flaunts an objectionable abuse.



And the very next finger is connected to heart, the wedding ring is flipped into it of all the five fingers.



The little most finger indicates answering the nature's call.



The thumb, can up and cheer the mood, downwards it can boo off. Through it we key-in the mushy, sometimes sad text messages on our handphones. Its suck can make a baby sleep.



Two fingers of the same hand in the air mean victory, two fingers of different hands mean a sixer or a simple gesture of a dance, dance of joy, fun and celebration- the celebration of being alive.



Together, these fingers can make some people express them more passionately.



Holding these fingers we grow up. Holding the tiny ones, we show path to our tomorrow.



They strike the chords, creating music, music that transcends borders. Their right movement on a bamboo stick create percussion.



The gap between them create a space for someone to come and fill in them .. with fingers.



They can feed a hungry stomach, these fingers can show the door to get out, they can slap and punch, they can rise in supplication to God. Blind men's eyes, mute people's tongue.



One day I decide to run them on the keypad like a maestro directing a chorus. A new journey commences ... my blog starts."



November 19, 2009 .. I have something more to add to it.



Your "friends" and people close to your heart, leave these same fingers when you are in distress, when you are in crisis. And you walk alone, with these fingers rising up in supplication, sometimes crossed with the hope that help in the form of a mere moral support would come soon.



The last nine months have been the most painful time of my young life. The pain and agony have been amplified with the attitude of people I considered close to my heart, sometimes as close as my real brother.



They have turned their back on me.



I have always respected them, looked upto them, fought for them, bruised myself for them. But when my time came, they dont even listen to my cries .. my cries for help .. my cries for a support.



It is only unfortunate they dont realise that when we are in distress, we reach out to people we cosider close to our hearts and not to any Tom, Dick and Harry.



Technology has brought all of us closer and together. We are just ‘fingertips’ away from our nears and dear ones, atleast from those who we consider nears and dears. But then, it takes a finger to disconnect a call and maybe.. to disconnect more than just a phone call. Sad!!



My really good and genuine friend, Simran rightly says, "Zaini, if they can not reciprocate, people should atleast respect the affection you give them."



There are some people, who I fought for, in the battle I had nothig to do with. Today I feel I have been used as a proxy or maybe as a puppet. Same people dont even answer my call, let alone do a small favour on me.



I have never felt so lonely in my life as much as I feel today. If I dont call them for days, they dont even bother to find out if I am alright, if the crisis I was in has got over.



However, ironically the help has come from an unexpected person, someone who I had very professional relations with, somene who I didnt even invite when my brother got married, someone whose call I always missed, he’s my hairdresser- Sarfaraz.



He not only calls me from time to time to find out how I am doing but also tries to place me well. He has a client, who is a big boss of a big company, in which my brother-like brother works. What my brother-like brother couldn’t do, Sarfaraz did. He organised my interview there. Sarfaraz, today I have another reason to bow my head in front of you. Hats off!



This time will pass off. But I will forever remember these heady days.



Onward,



Zain

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Dassehra

Dassehra was celebrated with great pomp and show, epitomising the victory of Good over Evil. Effigies of demon king Ravan, his brother Kumbhkaran and son Meghnad waited to meet their nemesis.

Demons could be seen across the country's capital. Many people burnt their inner evils alongwith the effigies. There were, however, few exceptions.

In the Ramayan-reversal of sort, Ravana was the first one to go- apparaently by mistake. Asardar Sonia Gandhi was here with Sardar Manmohan Singh. With the spectre of elections looming large on Haryanvi and Maharashtrian horizons, the duo must have thought to uproot their biggest enemy first- the way Ravana went up in flames first.

Kumbhkaran ate flames and slept- forever.

Meghnad followed his father and uncle. The crowd cheered.

In another Ramlilla, just a few days before the third anniversary of complete ban on child labour, these kids could be seen making human chain, protecting any intrusion or suspicious people.
The kid in blue, guard-like uniform is not participating in any fancy dress competition as I first thought seeing him. When I spoke to him, I got to know he has never been to school and has seen very little of Ramlilla performance as most of the time his back is turned towards the stage. Reminds me of a story, masons build our big houses but themselves live in shanties.


Dilli 6 looked nice, even as Allah and Ramleela coexisted.
Ram must have smiled as the exile he started on December 6, ended in Delhi 6.
Happy Dassehra to you all.

Friday, February 27, 2009

Foodaholics


Hi all,



It is my pleasure to introduce to you 'Foodaholics', a cake and dessert company owned by my very good friend Kishi Arora.



As your cakesmith, she has come up with a range of cake/dessert/pudding assortments of exotic flavours from Blueberry to Orange Chocolate; Vanilla Bavarian and more which are made to order.



And to add the sweet touch to those Special Occasions there's nothing better than desserts laced with French and Belgian chocolate.



Hate the hassle of facing traffic jam to get your favourite cake/dessert??



Foodaholics has just the option for you-- Just email or call and the cakes will be delivered to your doorstep! The Cakes/Desserts/Puddings come in different sizes, listed below:



4" serves 2-4 people
6" serves 6-8 people
9" serves 10-16 people
12" serves 16-20 people



And if you have any reservation about eggs, Foodaholics has the eggless ones to offer you. So, become a foodaholic!! Order now, eat your cakes and have the icing too!!



Cheers!



Zain

Monday, February 9, 2009

Looking for Work


*A Japanese doctor said, 'Medicine in my country is so advanced that we can take a kidney out of one man, put it in another, and have him looking for work in six weeks. *



*A German doctor said, 'That's nothing, we can take a lung out of one person, put it in another, and have him looking for work in four weeks. *



*A British doctor said, 'In my country, medicine is so advanced that we can take half of a heart out of one person, put it in another, and have them both looking for work in two weeks. *



*A Pakistani doctor, not to be outdone said, 'You guys are way behind. We took a man with no brains out of Nawabshah, put him in the President House, and now half the country is looking for work.'*

Thursday, January 22, 2009

Duah



Arziyaan sari mein chehre pe likh kay laaya hoon

Tumsay kya mangu mein tum khud hi samajh lo maula... Ya maulaaaa


Maula Maula Maula Mere Maula

Dararein dararein maathay pay maula


Maramat mukdar ki kar do maula ... Mayray Maula


Ek khusbu aati thi


Mein bhatakta jata tha


Reshmi si maya thi


Aur mein takta jata tha


Jab teri gali aaya


Sach tabhi nazar aaya


Mujh may hee woh khusboo thi


Jissay toonay milwaya


Maula Maula Maula Mere Maula


Tut ke bikharna mujhko zarur aata hai

Varna ibbadat wala saroor aata hai


Sajday mein rehnay do


abb kahin na jaunga


Abb jo tumnay tukhraya to


Sawar na paunga

(Courtesy: Delhi 6)

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Nihari thi, Nihari hai, Nihari gi


One misty wintery morning of January, after the Fajr Namaaz, eyes wake up. It’s too lazy to get out of the warm quilt. An aroma attracts. You slip on to your jumper, wear a woolen cap and start walking towards Kaali Masjid.

A sweeper is cleaning the narrow and dingy lanes; box rickshaws carrying school children are streaming the galees and koochas of Purani Dilli. As you walk a little bit, groping your way in the foggy roads, a clink of a larder attracts your attention, the aroma grows even stronger. A Nihari shop is found.

Nihari is an extremely popular dish among Muslims in India and even Pakistan. The word Nihar has its root in the Urdu word Nahaar, which means morning. Hence Nihari is traditionally eaten in the morning.

Known for its spiciness and taste, Nihari is a stew made from the shank of beef (or mutton) and spices. It is originally more of a delicacy with myriad variations on spiciness and texture.

Legend has it that in the Mughal era, a rich man fell ill with severe cold. A Hakeem prepared a medicine for him to be eaten empty stomach. After the man had had the medicine, his cold vanished.

That medicine kept modifying with time and came to known what now is Nihari.

Initially, it was a dish of the Muslim upper class society in Delhi but soon transcended its aroma to the other classes as Muslim ascendancy and power declined.

Today, Nihari is a rich man's delight and a poor's neccessity.

Famous Nihari shops in Purani Dilli

Kallu ki Nihari, Chatta Lal Miyan, Behind Delite Cinema. It’s undoubtedly the best Nihari in the entire Delhi. Be there at around 4ish in the evening. If you are lucky, you can partake of his 30-kg degh, which cleans-up within barely 15-minutes of Bhai Kallu taking the lid off the degh.

Qadeer ki Nihari, Gali Khan Khana, Inside Turkman Gate. Very authentic, finger licking, ‘intoxicating’. Available early morning. After the death of Bhai Qadeer, his sons have failed to maintain the age-old legacy but it’s not as disappointing as other Nihari shops that have mushroomed up in Dilli 6.

Baradari, Ballimaran. One of the oldest Nihari shops, where even Mirza Ghalib used to frequent- to savor the Nihari and perhaps to pen the couplets.

Baaray ki Nihari, Sadar Bazar. Once a very famous, now trying to live upto its old name and fame.

And finally, the recipe ;)

Ingredients

1 kilogram of Beef (with bones)
3 medium Onions (thinly sliced)
2 tbsp. of All-Purpose Flour (Maida)
1 small piece of Dry Ginger (Sounth)
2 Small White Cardamoms (Choti Safaid Ilaichi)
2 Bay Leaves (Tezz Pattay)
1 Cinnamon Stick (Dal Cheeni)
2 tsp. of Garam Masala Powder
2 tbsp. of Aniseeds/Fennel Seeds (Sounf) (grounded)
1 tsp. Red Chilli Powder (Pisi Lal Mirch) (or to taste)
2 pinches of Nutmeg
½ tsp. Turmeric Powder (Pisi Haldi)
Salt (to taste)
1 small piece of Black Salt (Kaala Namak)
1 tbsp. Garlic Paste (Pisa Lehsan)
1 tbsp. Ginger Paste (Pisi Adrak)
½ cup Plain Yogurt
½ cup Clarified Butter (Ghee) or Cooking Oil

Ingredients for Garnishing

1 medium Onion (sliced, fried to brown and dried) (or a cup of ready-fried onions)
3 Green Chillies (Hari Mirch) (chopped)
1 (2" piece) of Ginger Root (Adrak) (cut in strips)
A bunch of Fresh Coriander Leaves (Hara Dhania) (chopped)
1 Lemon
Nullies
Bheja

Directions

In a pot, heat the clarified butter or cooking oil. Once the oil gets hot add in the 3 sliced onions. Turn the stove down to medium. Fry the onions to golden brown. Remove from oil and put the onions on a paper towel to absorb any excess oil. Crush the onions.

Add the meat and garam masala powder (whole spices), plain yogurt , ginger paste, garlic paste, salt, red chilli powder, bay leaves, cinnamon and turmeric powder, continuously fry by stirring until the oil separates.

Add in the nutmeg, cardamoms, aniseeds and black salt. Stir, add in enough water to cover meat and cook on low heat covered for 2 to 3 hrs.

Once the meat is cooked and tender, add in the flour and cook on low heat for about another 10 minutes.

Garnish with coriander leaves, fried onions, green chillies ginger strips, lemon juice, nullies and bhejas.

Serving Suggestions: Serve Hot with Chapati Roti or Nan

Preparation Time: 3 to 4 Hours