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| Navroze 22. We notun jama bought from the Fabindia next door |
‘Winter always turns to spring,’ is one of my favourite Buddhist quotes and always comes to mind on the occasion of Jamshedi Navroze. The spring equinox festival, symbolising reawakening, that is celebrated across the Levantine region. It’s considered to be the new year for many including the Irani community in India. It is not the Parsi new year though, unlike what many think. That falls in August as they follow a different calendar from the Iranis. There is no denying that the Parsis celebrate Jamshedi Navroze with full gusto. As do I thanks to being a Parsi son in law for two decades.
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| Navroz 2008 with mamma |
‘Celebrate’ for us means meeting as a family for a meal. We used to go out earlier. As we all grew older (we are in the 21st year of our marriage), the meeting would happen at our houses. First K’s grandmom and then at our house ,after she passed away in 2008. Almost a decade back our group lost a big part of its sparkle as my father in law passed away.
The pandemic years changed things further. The first Navroz was during the start of the first lockdown and no one got to meet. For Parsi new year and Navroze later we were able to bring my mother in law over. Last year K’s mama could join us too but masi stayed home for safety. This year we couldn’t meet what with K and I recovering from Covid and my getting herpes zoster as a fallout of Covid.
We did the next best thing. We placed an order from our friends Kurush and Rhea Dalal’s Katy’s Kitchen and sent food to family and a few close friends, all spread across the city. Mutton and veg pulao dal, chicken Russian pattice, veg cutlets, lagan nu custard, depending on dietary preferences. Instagram and Facebook tells me that our Navroze lunches for the past so many years have been from there. This time Kurush used wefast and sent to food to Malad, Bhayander, Bandra, Dadar and Cuffe Parade. Everyone was very happy. The food was tasty and reached on schedule. Kurush slipped in an extra lagan nu custard for K. That’s a part of his ‘tradition’.
‘Turning poison into medicine’ is another favourite Buddhist saying of mine. Using an adversity to overcome challenges and grow instead. My sugar levels spiked after Covid and getting that under control was critical to tackling my herpes zoster said Doc Mirinda. I went on diabetes meds for the first time in my life, a strict home cooked diet based on guidelines given by our friend and nutritionist, Dr Ria Ankola, and constant home testing till my sugar stabilised.
That meant no mutton pulao dal, something which I love. I am currently allowed neither white rice nor red meat. I wasn’t keen to break this rule as I’d really decided to tackle my blood sugar issue now that it had blown up. I must say that I was relishing what I could eat and had no regrets. There’s enough time left in life for enjoying pulao dal.
I scanned various menus and saw that Tanaz Godiwala had atheli chicken as an a la carte option. Chicken cooked in whole spices. I ordered that for myself and a patra ni machhi for K. I loved my leg of chicken and the coarse masala base it came in and had a couple of the chips too. K loved her patra ni machhi. ‘Wedding feast-like,, she declared. The chutney was both sweet and hot. Wouldn’t have worked for me as I am on a no sugar diet. The chicken with a whole wheat sourdough pav from Baker’s Dozen was an apt Navroze feast for this Parsi son in law.
The queen of Parsi caterers, Tanaz’s Godiwala Caterers Navjote bhonu would have been near inaccessible in the past to non Parsi suburban folks. It was a part of the ritual of festive days of yore for the man of the family to head out in a scooter with his children to Cama Baug with their containers and bag to pick their orders. Truly ‘A Parsi Affair’ as their new name proclaims. Post the pandemic they went online. And we could order using wefast.
Oh, and we could include my family in Gurgaon in the festivities this years. We placed and order at Kainaz Contractor’s Rustom’s Bhonu which is in Delhi but delivered across Delhi NCR. We sent them a Navroz non veg bhonu with a veg tarkari pulao and an extra patra ni machhi portion for my mom. Everyone loved the food – mutton pulao dar, the kolmi fry, kheema samosa, patri ni machhi, fish curry, custard and ravo got special mention -and my brother said they ate the food over two meals. My mom commented on how well the packaging was.
All in all, you could say that spring is in the air.
Bonus. #foodocracyforher interviews with the chefs.
Rhea Mitra Dalal:
Tanaz Godiwala:
Kainaz Contractor
