Eternal Search for Delicacies

"It seems Ajay is back in town" 

"Ajay who?" asked Greeshma 

"Our classmate in plus two" replied Lekha 

"You remember him, he was quite a handsome guy" 

"Oh, that introvert! He used to find excuses to talk to me, sometimes in the library, sometimes in the canteen. Then once he opened his mouth, no word would come out." 

"Can't blame him. After all, you were the beauty queen of the college with so many guys pursuing you. 

"Those were fun times, a glorious period while it lasted " 

" Three of our seven member Girls' gang are already married Greeshma. Two have taken a considered decision to not marry at all. That leaves the two of us" 

"Who are neither here or there! We have not married nor have we said we will never marry. Yet here we are, all of 29 and soon to touch the 30 landmark"

"Well, in your case Greeshma, it was not for want of suitors. You turned down so many of them giving some reason or the other" 

"In any case, Marriage is not something that is mandatory. Both of us are well employed and can go to our dear "Heaven's Kitchen" restaurant whenever we choose to keep us delighted and satiated"  

"Yeah, and those girls who married face so many curbs on their freedom. Sad, when you consider that our gang was formed on the premise 'Living free as a bird' " 

"Leena and Sarita are tied down by motherhood with little time for themselves since they are also working" 

"Asha may not be a mother. But she is fed up of her possessive husband who frequently intercepts her mobile" 

In college, Lekha and Greeshma were members of the "Lip Smacking Foodies- LSF" all exclusive girls’ gang that had the twin objectives of 'Freedom' and 'Indulgence' of lip-smacking delicacies. Their interest in the boys came only third in the order as a result of which they were looked up to with envy by most collegemates. Lip smacking delicacies and the freedom to go after them anywhere and everywhere seemed to be their motto. 

The connection between the LSF members started long before they started college or formed the LSF. As children, all of them grew up in the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL)company’s township as their fathers were executives in the company. In the self-contained township you had the post office, market place, company’s school, club, all in walking distance. Three of the seven girls studied in the company school while others went to other schools in the city. However, a common place of residence had built up a camaraderie and bonding right from childhood. They got into trouble even as children given their ardent love for food of any kind.

A colonel by name Prakash Mehra, who joined the company after retirement from the army, was allotted a bungalow which had quite a few mango trees. All the earlier residents of the house welcomed children and allowed them to have as much mangoes they wished to eat during the season. However, Colonel Mehra was furious when children came to pluck mangoes.

As they were forbidden, the children began to pelt stones from far away. This enraged the colonel even more! One day he fished out a gun and pointed it at the children and threatened to fire. The story spread and the parents were worried. They forbade their children to go anywhere near the colonel’s house. In any case the incident made the colonel very unpopular and not very long after that, he chose to leave the company. So, Greeshma and friends resumed their ‘pilgrimage’ to the bungalow during the mango season.

All the members of the LSF gang had one family or extended family member who were great cooks. A major part of their meets were over homemade delicacies. But they also set aside time to constantly hunt for new taste and enchanting restaurants. Their choices included Koshy's the hot favourite of old timers to the best of Andhra, Mughlai, American or Chinese food joints. Each of them contributed an equal sum periodically to a kitty that would then be used for restaurant hopping and trying out mouth-watering delicacies. The gang survived their higher education phase and even the initial period when they had all secured jobs. It was after the wedding of three members that the meets became infrequent and was now as good as defunct.   

“So, what’s new Lekha? Why did you mention this guy, Ajay?”

“Our annual alumni meet is due in one month’s time. It seems Ajay has confirmed that he would attend now that he is back from Europe, not sure whether it is Germany or France”

“How did he land up in Europe?”

“Heard he went for higher studies and has been working there for about six years now after completing studies”

“What course did he pursue there?”

“No idea. I understand he was very happy there and highly valued by his employers. Had to return due to dad’s illness as mom couldn’t handle it herself”

“Hey, how about going to “Heaven’s Kitchen” this evening?

Lekha gave Greeshma a high five in response. It was almost a week since they ate at their favourite food joint.

Two days after their conversation it happened. When she returned from work, Greeshma found a large food carrier at her doorstep in the apartment she lived in. Curious and surprised, she opened it to find lip smacking, melting in the mouth, tender chicken dish. As she ate with relish, she wondered who could have sent it? She spoke to Lekha, her mother and all the old members of the "Lip Smacking Foodies" gang. But none of them had any clue as to who could have sent the food.

This then continued as a daily routine delivered with precision timing, before the return of Greeshma from office. Each day had a different cuisine. If on Monday, it was Coq au Vin (chicken cooked in wine) and Ratatouille (vegetable stew), Tuesday it was Peking Duck and Dim Sum. On Wednesday, it was Pad Thai (stir-fried noodles) and Tom Yum (spicy soup) and on Thursday it was Hummus, Shawarma, and Mansaf (Lamb dish). By now Greeshma was excited, gave the news to the “Lip Smacking Foodies" gang members. The gang was abruptly revived with excited members, only this time it was almost a daily meet at Greeshma’s place!

The procession of food delicacies continued and included steak, grilled fish, pasta, and soups on some days and on others Pizza Napoletana and Pasta Carbonara, and even the Pakistani Biryani and Nihari (slow-cooked meat stew). Of course, there were many Indian delicacies as well be it the Mughlai Butter Chicken and Shahi Paneer, Chungdi Malai (prawn curry with coconut milk of Odisha, Andhra’s Ghongura chutney & other spicy delicacies, Chingri Malai Curry (prawns in coconut milk) of Bengal, Karimeen fry and appams of Kerala and many more!

The bonding of the “Lip Smacking Foodies- LSF" gang had never been better. Leena and Sarita began to bring their children along too with occasionally the husbands joining. The excited girls began to research the various dishes through the internet. They found out the history of how a delicacy was first invented and the countries it had travelled. The information about the food culture in their own country was itself so very revealing and rewarding.

The members distributed the job of collecting information amongst themselves and eating was a lot more fun when they also had a lot of anecdotes to chew on as they ate. The gang members felt it was payback time and, invited to dinner the family and extended family members who had once treated the LSF to some great food during their peak period.  The carrier that brought the food was quite huge and catered to all their requirements.

The gang also discussed old times and some of the adventures they had encountered. They once decided to try out a new restaurant in the outskirts of the city that boasted of traditional delicacies like Coorgi Pandi curry, Kori Gassi and  kori rotti. Asha had said that it was her treat for having got the fastest first promotion amongst the members. Leena who normally handled their common kitty did not bother to bring any money as it was Asha’s treat. They enjoyed the cuisine a lot but when the time came to pay, Asha found that she had forgotten her purse!

The gang went into a close huddle. It was rarely they encountered a problem of this sort as their regular restaurants knew the LSF and would have gladly let them pay the next day. But this was a new place altogether! “What if they refuse and ask us to go to the backyard and wash vessels?” asked Lakshmi. They finally came to a decision and it was “On your marks, get set, go!” The seven of them dashed like rocket to the two-wheeler parking area, got on to their vehicles and fled for dear life.

The next day, they came back to apologize to the manager and make payment. He was amused and said that he would have known from one look at them that they were not criminals. There was no need to run like that. As they recalled the incident with bits being added by different members, the mirth brought tears to the eyes of some of them. Seven-year-old Arun was surprised and amused that his mom Sarita had run away like that from a restaurant.  

Even as they were enjoying the food received every day, everyone was curious to find out the source of such bounty they were receiving. The problem was all of them were working. As Greeshma was living alone, there was no one to check as to who was placing the carrier at her door. Finally, Greeshma, Lekha and Sarita decided to ask their bosses an hour’s permission so that they can catch the ‘culprit’ who was placing the meal box every day without fail.

Exactly at 5.30 PM in the evening a young man came and left the carrier and was about to turn to leave when the front door flew open and three young women confronted him. The poor guy was flustered by the interrogation but was unable to provide any clue. He said his name was Selvaraj and was a delivery boy for a food chain. But this was a special request by a third party who said the food would be sent to his residence which in turn was to be delivered to Greeshma’s place. He hadn’t personally met the party; the deal was struck over phone and he was being given good money. Therefore, Selvaraj had asked no more questions and had promptly commenced his assignment which was to continue till such time he was sent the meals carrier.

The LSF gang let the guy go without torturing him anymore. Instead, they thanked him for the prompt delivery of the lovely food all these days. They decided not to waste anymore time on this matter but enjoy the bounty as long as it lasted! They took the carrier inside and was inpatient for the others to come in order to commence the feast.

Towards the end of the month, the meal time conversation apart from food included the upcoming alumni meet. It seemed that a lot more people who were in far flung areas of the country and the planet were expected to attend this time. The new president of their alumni association Ashok had taken the initiative to speak over what’s app to many who were not in touch for years. They were happy and agreed to join the alumni meet this year. There was lot of expectations and excitement in the air!

The LSF gang had agreed during their dinner conversation that they would create a bang at the forthcoming alumni meet. It was an opportunity to announce to the world their revival as a great gang, beating the ravages of time and circumstances. It was agreed that all of them would be dressed in pink and would travel to the venue on their old two wheelers reviving the memories of the past! Alumni members began to arrive one by one to the decked-up venue of Hotel Le Meridian. The LSF gang made their appearance together in full strength. There was so much of bonding and excitement in the air. Some of them were meeting for the first time after they left college.

The alumni President Ashok welcomed the gathering. He said this meet was special as members who have never attended the meet have come from places such as Nagaland, South Africa, Greece, Madhya Pradesh, Singrauli and US . Then an opportunity was given to those who had come from far away to address and share their feelings on meeting their classmates. Archana who had relocated to Indore after marriage was almost in tears when she said how much she missed her former classmates. Similar sentiments were expressed by John who related how US was a land of opportunities at the time of his going there but it now seemed polarized as there are some who resent the ‘foreigners’ taking away their jobs. Gokul shared about his life in picturesque Nagaland while Prasanth explained the challenges of working in a coal mine in Singrauli. Arti shared about her life as a teacher in Cape Town and Rakesh about his work in the tourism sector in Athens.

Ashok then took over and as the president announced that everyone who had come from afar have had their say but there is one person who is presently living in the city but was till recently in France. “Let us invite Ajay, our classmate and presently the chief chef at the Taj to say a few words on this occasion after which we will break from formality and bond over drinks and food” The girls of the LSF gang glanced at each other knowingly.

Ajay explained the circumstances under which he had to return to India, to take care of his father. “Of course, there is one more reason. I have been closely following the life of one, entrenched in my heart for a long while. I have been longing to meet her once again” he concluded. As soon as he finished his talk Ajay walked across the room to where the LSF gang was seated. He confidently went to Greeshma, took her hand and asked “Tell me dear, how would you like to marry a chef? A pretty good one at that, I assure you!”