DAL MAKHANI-MINUS THE MAKHAN

Yes, that’s what I get in my company’s cafeteria – "DAL MAKHANI" without the MAKHAN (butter) in it. Its ironical that how can the caterers in my company cafeteria still claim that DAL as DAL MAKHANI, which doesn't have a droplet of MAKHAN in it. In fact, this has not happened to me for the first time, I have witnessed the same DAL blunder many a times in this part of my country, South India(as I have been working in Hyderabad for past few years now).

Since, I have this habit of BAAL KE KHAAL UTARNE KI (thinking something useless), I started thinking of this DAL blunder too. One thing is very clear that the DAL MAKHANI’s origin is Punjab and this is where the super delicious recipe of this special delicacy was discovered. Soon after the discovery, it became so popular in whole North India that it became the flavor of everybody outside Punjab in other North Indian states as well. Apna golden source of knowledge, search engine Google says the same too – DAL MAKHANI is a type of DAL eaten in India (in the states of Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and the Bhojpuri area of Bihar).

So, now I started thinking how it came to South India? Anyways, the answer was much easier to guess as I thought about the very simple logic that it came the same way as did IDLI-DOSA to reach the North India but then I don’t see a missing SAMBAR in IDLI-SAMBAR or in DOSA-SAMBAR in North India such as the missing MAKHAN in DAL MAKHANI. Hmmm strange...so, where is the missing link??

Now I started becoming ultra imaginative about this hidden mystery and guess what I found the answer. I think the person who brought IDLI-DOSA to North India was a South Indian so he knew the recipe correctly and everything went fine, and nothing was missed but the person who brought the recipe of DAL MAKHANI to South India was either a South Indian or a Diet conscious North Indian.

I think the South Indian learnt the recipe of the DAL MAKHANI when he was on his visit to a punjabi friend's house in Delhi and he liked the DAL so much that he learnt the complete recipe but when he returned to his native he forgot the MAKHAN (butter) in the in recipe and yet his new DAL's recipe became so famous that everyone adopted this new kind of DAL in South India, and ironically the name still remained the same -- DAL MAKHANI. If it would have been the other case than certainly, this would be a very diet conscious North Indian who got so much fed up of lots and lots of MAKHAN in the DAL that he decided to tell the recipe of DAL-MAKHANI to his South Indian friends without the butter in it and the name been still told to them the same -- DAL MAKHANI.

So, finally I have convinced myself somehow and I have understand the secret behind the missing MAKHAN in the DAL and from next time onwards it wont bother me too much, when I will see a DAL MAKHANI, minus the MAKHAN !! What do you think??

Kya Aap Joru ke Gulaam Hain? (Are you a Servant to your wife?)

Like my routine dinner time, I was surfing through the channels of my Idiot Box (TV) and not so surprisingly it was full of same old crappy bakwaas as it has everyday. I was about to switch it off until I noticed the very own apna desi version of "The Moment of Truth" called "Sach Ka Samna" on one of the channels. The first thought which came to my mind was "DARN ANOTHER COPIED SHOW" from the international television.
Since I have seen the original version of the show I was pretty much familiar with the content of the show and quite shocked to see a show of such a nature being launched in India. I think we all are in a time where things have changed a lot and TV channels are bothered more about TRP’s than anything else and without any doubt reality shows are the latest scoop on television so nothing bad in having our desi version being launched on air.

Ok, that was about the show now about its questions. Wow, trust me the questions on the show are real killers literally they make the contestant to face the real Sach Ka Samna. So, there was this very interesting question being asked to a gentleman – Kya Aap Joru Ke Gulaam Hain? The poor guy responded with a completely embarrassed face almost quietly saying “YES” and it erupted into all so much of an embarrassment for the family members of the gentleman, who came along with him to attend the show.

The way the question was answered annoyed me as it showcased in a way that if a guy helps his wife in her work at home is a Gulaam. Unfortunately, the state of our society is in this shameful situation only, where if a husband is helping his wife in her work at home he is made to believe that he is a “Joru Ka Gulaam”. This is such a taboo of our society where if a woman is working day & night at home she will never be compared to servant but if a man is helping her wife, he picks up the tag of so called Joru Ka Gulaam very soon. I feel our gender biased society is so evil that even the gentleman sitting on the hot seat of the show was made to say that his feeling of love to help his wife in what she does, is nothing but he being a Gulaam to her.

I think men are responsible for their own deeds. The open mindedness of men is facing the hurdles of the evils of past, when men represented themselves as the Swami to their wives and now when they are helping their wives they have to do it secretly to avoid being called as the Joru Ka Gulaam. I feel it’s high time that society abolish this shameful tag of Joru Ka Gulaam and when next time this question is asked on a TV show, men should confidently answer the question by saying NO and making a wife jubilant in joy instead of being embarrassed on national television.