Zafranistan

Visit Maurya Lok, Patna to meet Mr. Batata Puri at every other Batatapuri stall cart scattered around the place.  "Have you ever fallen in love? Those butterflies in your stomach. The fear and rush of the unknown that tickles you. I wonder." sighs Peehu sitting at the edge of the deewan in the living room. She sat with  a plate full of half cut fruits out of which a few she sliced patiently. One at a time. Apples were glad to be cut in graceful halves and quarters. Muskmelons so tender and soft, she runs the sharp stainless knife through the fruit, carving perfect arches.  "Not really." Zafran raised her eyebrows and pinched her, making the kiwi drop from her hands.   "Mr. Batata Puri!" screams Peehu. "It's him! The love of my life." "Mr. Batata Puri?" asks Zafran. "Yes. I saw him at different places. Once when I went shopping with my mother when I was around 9. It was love at  the very first sight. My first ever crush....

Episode 3 " Sattu Parantha, tamatar ki meethi waali chutney, kaddu ki sabzi & chokha....Here you go my beautiful Zafran, enjoy the feast! " Peehu giggled. What joy it gave her, to cook for her. Maybe she realised that Zafran has lost something which she couldn't mention in front of her, but this journey which she has started to live will for sure compensate some part of it. " What is sattu? And why is the chutney so pulpy? Chokha? What is that? " Zafran flooded Peehu with a lot of questions. " Sattu is a kind of a flour made from roasted gram. It is our staple for protein. Chutney here is pulpy & tangy because it is made with love by slowly crushing it on the silwatta ( a flat stone bed over which the masala is rubbed by a pestle.)  Chokha being the way the boiled potatoes were prepared. It is mashed with love, flavoured with the temper of mustard oil, cumin seeds, garlic, dried red chilli. Then chopped raw onions and green chilli were ad...

Episode 2 ( House no. 30 ) "The queue is....urghh very long! What should I order?" Zafran was waiting in the queue in front of the Subway counter. "Shammi Kebab with all veggies, all sauces. Honey & oats bread toasted with cheese. As you have always liked it. Accha do my Vocab revision with me." Said Krishna.  Zafran was thinking all this as she was sitting in the auto moving through the streets of the IAS colony. A lot of unorganised traffic, with people honking for no reason. India was the same everywhere. Just the streets got narrow and the roads shrinked. Yes there was poverty, still people helped. "Lijiye Madam, aa gya Patliputra. Ghar ka no. Btaiye. Aapko beech road me nhi utaarenge" said the auto waala. "Bhaiya house no. 30..........peehu!" Zafran saw peehu standing in the same lane. She jumped out of the auto, hit her head hard on the roof of the auto and fell. "Zafran you can never stop being clumsy! Humko laga kuch to...

Episode no. 2/2 ( Patliputra ) "Hey Zafran. When is your flight landing at Patna today? The food is waiting." said Peehu. Peehu was Zafran's old school friend who lived with her parents there. "Peehu! I am just packing for the Bihari food trail trip. What has aunty made though? Litti Chokha?" asked Zafran curiously. "Haha. More than that. We are not just about the Litti Chokha. This Food trail is going to change your perception and stereotype about the place for sure. I am glad you're coming." said Peehu. "When is the flight? Do you really want to do this?" said Krishna. A place, so much of news about it, people were really taken aback by the name of Bihar. Pretty understood. "Yes. I want to." Zafran zipped the other chains of the bag and sat in the cab waiting outside. " Bhaiya, Patli... put.. ye padh k bataana. Idhar chaloge?" Said Zafran firmly holding her luggage outside the Patna Airport. "Mad...