Eating Places

I think for me, the top of the pops are the Irani chai joints, because of memories associated with them, from engineering college days. They were usually non-descript places with names like Hilton, Ramser, Lighthouse; small and just tolerably clean, with a crowd of people of every description. But they all had a warmth which the best of restaurants find difficulty in giving you. The food selection wasn't great- an Osmania biscuit, a bun-omelette, or a mirchi bajji- a delicacy for gourmet eaters fond of fiery stuff. But we spent hours at some of these joints, sometimes discussing dreams of going to the U.S., but mostly the last Bollywood movie or something more down to earth. The waiter-boy's cries of "do chai la" still rings in my ears, after decades.

The coffee cafes probably serve the same function today, but wifi has intruded to make them more tech-oriented, and maybe conversation-less in some cases. They are definitely posher, cleaner, and still limited in eats they offer. I have spent a few hours talking to people at some CCDs (particularly one on Brigade Road, Bangalore- Anupriya, Shafique, Zargar were some of the people I yapped with). Another pleasant place I remember is Coco's in Hyderabad where Nikita and Ritika were with us-it has the feel of a Goa shack (in Jubilee Hills). And in Bangalore again, a Vietnamese place where I met Shweta, Coconut Grove where I met Saumya, or Church Street Social where Shafique, Pallavi and I socialised. In Mumbai, some pleasant conversations happened In Chili's where Divya Singh was involved, and a mall food joint in R Mall where Bhagyalakshmi and I met. Not to forget Sanjeev Kapoor's Yellow Chilli, where Garima Shah was on the other side of the table.

In Belgium, of all places, we had landed in a Lebanese restaurant, and the waiters served us with a lot of warmth when they learnt we were from India-I think this was 1987, when four of us were doing a Eurail trip. One or two ordinary Greek restaurants in Athens were also very nice and warm.

The Monk, The Moor and Moses Ban Jalloun- Book Review

Most discoveries and pre-inventions happened out of the East, and Islamic scholars (or Arabic ones) were responsible. Sounds incredible? Well, read Saeed Mirza's book by the name above, and you may just be surprised. In one of the gentlest yet scathing attacks on the Western scholars, some of whom come out as outright plagiarists, this delightful pocketbook points out how the West has appropriated the credit for everything modern- art, literature, science, maths, the works, without sharing credit with the original thinkers.

Starting with Dante's Divine Comedy, the book delves into real history of inventions in diverse fields like medicine, astronomy, and metal working, to demonstrate that the Arab and Islamic world contributed greatly to every one of them. The origin of the word 'troubadour' is a case in point, as in wandering singers. This is an eastern term, but not acknowledged as such by most people. Current American ignorance is also pointed out in a remark attributed to John McCain, but the West's portrayal of all Islamic people as barbaric or backward takes a great hit at the end.

Some of the Sultans greatly respected scholars they were fortunate to have in their kingdom, and many encouraged scholarly pursuits, or at least did not oppose them. India;s Aryabhatta and Brahmagupta figure in the narrative too, but one character that comes through very forcefully is the endearing Al-Biruni, whom we may recognise from our history books. He did a study of Hindu people and their customs, and learnt Sanskrit so he could absorb the subtleties of Hind!

Reminded me of Dead Poets' Society in some ways, for challenging our notions of knowledge and conventions. Yes, the author is the director of the 70s films like Albert Pinto ko Gussa Kyun Aata Hai, and Arvind Desai Ki Ajeeb Daastaan. The narrative unfolds in a very unusual way, through four diverse characters -all students of literature, researching these things through a secret society of four. Engrossing!

Zorba the Greek- Part 2

I can't resist a follow-up to my first blog on this book. I just finished reading it, and before I forget, I need to put on record that it is one of the finest books in any genre that I have read. And I have lost count of the number of books that I have read. Must be at least a thousand. But such an easy flow of words, with almost no story in a stereotypical sense, the book has so much to say.

Of course, what you get from it is up to you, the reader. But the attitude towards life, God, The Devil, man, woman, man-woman relationships, war, nationhood, killings in whatever name, the emptiness of bookish learning, the author traverses all this and more in the span of a single book. It's breathtaking in scope of what is covered, yet breathtakingly simple in its narrative. It will be one of my all-time favourites. If for nothing else, I'll remember 2010 for my discovery of this treasure-house of wisdom.

Zorba The Greek

I am presently reading this book. I don't know yet how it ends, but I think that's not the point of this book. Sometimes, an author or a poet hits on something that does not have a formula, or a stereotyped structure, and yet manages to keep you glued to the written word. This is one such book-a rare one, if I may say so.

This is the story of a vagabond Greek, narrated by his companion-cum-boss, who travels to Crete and tries to get a project going, and among other things, runs a lignite/coal mine with local workers. But again, that is not the point. The story is just an excuse for the author's larger ruminations about the purpose of life, men, women, relationships, the existence (or otherwise) of God, the Buddha (yes, that's a recurring reference point).

The other thing is that the tale seems timeless. I have no idea when it was written, and it seems to matter little. Again, a rare thing. I have not heard of this author or whether he wrote anything else in his life, but I think this book alone is worth at least ten. Hats off to this guy, whose name is still Greek to me!

By the way, when I visited Greece once, I was struck by how similar they were to Indians. Maybe I have a soft corner for these guys.