The long and short of it
Ashima Sehajpal

Chandrahas Choudhury, a book critic who's graduated to a writer with, Arzee- The Dwarf was in the city for the launch of his book

One afternoon, on the tapering roads of Mumbai, the writer noticed a very good-looking young man. Yet, looks weren't an advantage, wasn't the factor that caught attention of every onlooker he passed. He was a dwarf, unusually short. Height was the reason for all gazes targeting him. Those few moments of empathising with the short man triggered the thought process of the author- was an inspiration enough to write down the debut novel, Arzee, The Dwarf. "The realisation of his troubles, pain of unacceptability by the 'perfect' society, emotions that baffles him came almost instantly which were gradually penned down in the book," shares Chandrahas Choudhury, a book critic who's graduated to becoming a writer after completing the book.

The protagonist, Arzee, 3'5", works as a projectionist at an old cinema of Mumbai. He is a little melodramatic for the situations he has faced, fears a sense of vulnerability, is insecure and has even become suspicious of people around him (thinking that they make fun of him at his back), but then goes through the same everyday grind that normal human beings do. "A conscious effort was made not to exploit the size of the person to sell the book, hence a balance was struck. It is a usual story of a human being with unusual size who too loves the company of his friends and is scared of losing his job." Traits of the typical society have also been highlighted, "I made sure to critically review the society which so conveniently outcasts the people who don't confirm to the set standards of physicality through the story."

Set in the time period of mere two weeks, which changes the course of Arzee's life, against the much expected research work, Chandrahas an M.Phil from Cambridge preferred not do any, "That would have restricted the characterisation of Arzee to a stereotypical dwarf. Fiction has to have a better share of fantasy than reality." The time frame as the author says, further lends strength and energy to the story, " Just fourteen days transforms a lot in the life of Arzee, some for better and some otherwise. However, he took three years and seven drafts to finally finish the book. And when did he realise that he is through with it? "People generally say that you never finish a book, you just abandon it, but I believe when you begin to enjoy the book as a reader, it's done." The critic in him also used to analyse the book, "But I would never let the critic in me interfere with the work of the writer before the next morning, when a lot of scrutiny was followed by improvisation."

Well, the critic then goes on to evaluate the literary scene in the country on our request. On the young bright writers getting famous with the publishing houses, he says, "They do come up with fresh ideas but then at times the idea is too generalised to suit everyone. The age factor is baited for attention from the press." One field, in which he feels Indians have improved a lot, is translation of literature. Another important positive is, "Editing and production values have become better." Chandrahas himself is editing an anthology of fictional stories; set in different backdrops in India by various authors, called, India, a traveller's literary companion.

The book covers speak for the improving production aesthetics. "Unlike few years back, one can't differentiate between the book of an Indian and a foreign author on the basis of the cover page", some thing which is so true to the cover page of his book, which pictures a man being 'dwarfed' by the skyscrapers.

ashima@tribunemail.com

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Hello TUNEZ
Melody maker

Kaminey (T-Series): Vishal Bhardwaj not only likes to break new grounds in film-making, he also experiments in music. Here he packs quite some variety.

One song which has become the signature tune of the film is Dhan te nan by Sukhwinder Singh and Vishal Dadlani with rap by Robert Bob Omulo. Sukhwinder Singh is really in his element after Slumdog Millionaire here and seems to personify the carefree attitude of the hero. Listen carefully, and you would notice that it is not just a tapori song. Gulzar has suffused it with hidden qualities. What also matters is that the tune is catchy.

It also figures in a remix version, done by DJ Amyth, but that does not add up anything extra, because the original itself is fairly happening.

The very next song is quite the opposite of this boisterous one. Pehli baar mohabbat ki hai is low key and gives Mohit Chauhan a chance to win new fans.

It is a pleasure to listen to Suresh Wadkar after so many years in Raat ke dhai baje, koi shehnai baje in the company of Rekha Bhardwaj, Sunidhi Chauhan and Kunal Ganjawala. The passage of decades has not robbed him of any of his smoothness. What a pity that he has not been getting more chances all this while. A new generation has now come over, and perhaps he can vow them once again.

This male-dominated number is purely commercial and has a remix too, which has been professionally done by DJ Amyth.

The proceedings go folksy in Fatak which has been rendered by Sukhwinder Singh and Kailash Kher. The tempo dips and picks up several times in this particular song. Gulzar takes the immortal lyrics of Ghalib and transforms them into a message for safe sex:

Vishal Bhardwaj himself wields the mike to present the desolation of the underworld. It is almost a humming and may not be a popular number but packs considerable punch.

Go Charlie Go comprises the theme music of the film. It is only small variation on the hugely popular Dhan te nan.

Spiritual ecstasy

Chants of Krishna (Mystica Music): As the name of the album makes it amply clear, this is a set of meditative compositions dedicated to Lord Krishna sung by Anandmurti Gurumaa.

It boasts of contemporary music by Babbar in which sitar plays along with guitar and flute with penny whistle. Since chanting is considered a wonderful way to connect with the divinity, the six traditional compositions reverberate with vibrations. These include Daya Nidhe (divine prayer), Govinda Hari Gopala (celebration), Hare Krishna (Lounge Station), Shri Krishna Govinda (singing glory), Hare Krishna Hare Rama(chant to Chaitanya) and Om Namoh Bhagavate (merging in the divine). — ASC

King Khan on King of Pop

Shah Rukh Khan's television company "Red Chillies Idiot Box" has created a video featuring India's best music talent from the film industry to pay homage to King of pop Michael Jackson on his 51st birth anniversary.

The video titled Make it large will be released on music channels across India on August 29, Jackson's birthday.

Written by Vishal, composed by Vishal-Shekhar, the video is directed by Samar Khan and choreographed by Remo Fernandes.

The video features Shankar Mahadevan, Shaan, KK, Shreya Ghoshal and Prabhudeva.

Shah Rukh, Hrithik Roshan, Priyanka Chopra, Katrina Kaif, Anoushka Sharma, Shahid Kapur and cricketer Yuvraj Singh will share their memories about Jackson.

"The idea was derived from just the thought of Michael.

It's just awesome to see all of us coming together out of love for one person and his music. It's magic," singer-composer Vishal said.

"A tribute to MJ is something any musician would give his right hand to do," Shekhar said.

Director Samar Khan said, "MJ'S life and death have made an indelible impression on my life. I hope the video will leave a lasting impression on audiences across India." — PTI

Hindi Chilli, Thai Thai

When two hospitality giants of the tricity simultaneously woo the denizens' taste buds with all things Thai, it's nothing short of the clash of the Thai-tans.

So, bringing to the city flavours of the Far East this week are Citco's Hotel Shivalikview and Hotel Taj. Having already taken gourmands on the spice route with global cuisines like Arabian (Citco's Mountview) and Around the World platters (Taj) earlier, the gourmets now get to go high on Thai.

Too many cooks boil the broth!

Dishing out the Oriental odyssey at the three-day Thai and Chinese Fusion Food festival, on from Friday, at Shivalikview-17 are chefs from Delhi, informs Citco GM, A.K. Malhotra. They'll be tossing up typical Thai fare like pataya potato, honey chilli lotus stem, shrimp red curry and all that.

At Taj-17, the Thai tang comes thanks to chef Srikant and his team from the Thai Pavilion, Taj-Mumbai, who bring signature dishes like raw papaya salad, phad Thai noodles et al.

Lal curry mehman curry...kya khoob chadi

Talk Thai, think red curry. Red curry is to this south-eastern cuisine what butter chicken is to the Punjabi platter. And for those of us who thought that red curry is the hottest babe on the bloc, here's some gourmet gyan from executive chef at Taj-17 Neeraj. "The Thai red curry, which gets its colour from red chillies, is traditionally thought to be the hottest. But that is not so. the green curry, that owes its hue to green chillies, is the spiciest," he delineates the finer distinction. "The yellow curry, derived from turmeric, is the mildest of the lot. In fact, a lot of raw turmeric is used in this curry."

For the uninitiated, it is the liberal use of fresh turmeric that distinguishes southern Thailand cuisine from the north-eastern fare, that is defined more by the use of lime juice.

In fact, many popular Thai dishes were originally Chinese and were introduced by the Teochew folks, who comprise a majority of the Thai Chinese. This Chinese culinary legacy includes jok, kway teow rad na, khao kha moo.

What then makes Thai cuisine distinct from Chinese? "The curries, of course," pat comes enlightenment from the chef.

Kyon ki sauce bhi kabhi bahut thi

Sauces are to Thai cooking what chutneys and pickles are to Hindustani khana. The sauce that is the boss: fish sauce and the peanut sauce. And our Thai festivals toss plenty of the sauce. Says chef Neeraj, " The peanut sauce is generally served atop an array of oriental style stir-fry vegetables or as a dip for raw veggies."

So integral is it to the culinary A-list (accompaniments' list) that one can only hail this member of the Thai swaad parivar: sau din sauce ke!

Wine-some way

When we talk of accompaniments, can wine be far behind. Which wine goes best with Thai? "Any wine, red or white, that's on the sweeter side is suited to go with Thai cuisine," adds chef Neeraj.

When sweet is the way of wine, what are the desserts with which you'll dine? "There're coconut milk rice and stuffed banana with fresh coconut and ice cream," says Malhotra of the Shivalikview festival menu.

At Taj, you can dip into coconut milk with water chestnuts, among other things.

Are these sweet tidings for the Punjabi gourmand whose dil mange more?

Bon Appetit
More peppy paneer!
Kandla Nijhowne

Let me live up to last week's paneer-promise now! There are truckloads of main dishes you can dish out, using paneer as the chief guest. In a curry form, paneer certainly does require pepping up, since it's frankly…actually…truthfully, quite bland on its own! One needs to bathe it in a flavorful gravy or a sauce to complement its texture. But the gravy mustn't be overpowering in itself! Subtlety is the name of the game, dear readers! Just the other day we ordered a chilly paneer (a Punjabified mongrel of a Chinese dish, if you ask me!) for the benefit of some vegetarians. The gummy sauce pretty much obscured the contents of the bowl, so what looked like long slivers of capsicum turned out to be strips of green chilies masquerading as harmless vegetables! The end effect after a mouthful was a "Get me some water my mouth is on fire!" casualty! Now that's far from subtle, isn't it?

Do not play rough with the paneer pieces while tossing them during cooking. They disintegrate at minimal provocation. Lightly fried paneer cubes taste better in a curry than the anaemic white ones though they drag in lots of calories into the dish! I plan to steer clear of standard fare and bring you "dressed up" paneer dishes fit for the red carpet! Don't let the long list of ingredients daunt you! I promise you they are already lurking somewhere in you kitchen cupboard!

Shahi paneer

250 gms paneer

½ cup curds

¼ cup milk

¼ cup cashew paste

3 tbsp tomato puree

1 onion (grated)

2 tbsp ginger garlic paste

2 cardamom pods

2 small pieces of cinnamon

2 bay leaves

1 tsp turmeric powder

1 tsp coriander powder

½ tsp cumin powder

½ tsp roasted fenugreek powder

1 tsp garam masala powder

1 tsp hot red chilli powder

Salt to taste

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp butter

Fresh cream for garnishing

Oil for frying

Method

Cut paneer into cubes. Heat oil in a pan and shallow fry paneer cubes on a medium flame. Heat 3-4 tbsp oil in a pan and add cardamom, cinnamon stick and bay leaves and fry them. Add onion paste and ginger-garlic paste and fry for a couple of minutes. Add turmeric, coriander powder, cumin powder, red chili and fenugreek powder. Add little water and fry the masala until oil gets separated from it. Add beaten curd, tomato puree, cashew nut paste and salt. Stir well and cook it for 8-10 minutes. Now add paneer pieces, garam masala, milk and sugar and stir again. Cover the pan and cook for another 6 minute on medium flame. Turn off the flame when the gravy becomes a little thick. Add butter and stir gently followed by a final garnish of fresh cream. Serve with roti, paraanthas or naan.

Mughlai paalak malai kofta

For the koftas:

2 cups spinach—roughly chopped, blanched and drained

3 tbsp cornflour

salt and red chilli powder to taste

1 cup of grated paneer

1 tbsp very finely chopped onion

2-3 tbsp chopped dhaniya

1 tsp finely chopped green chillies

2 tbsp coarsely chopped cashew nuts

½ tsp chaat masala

oil for frying

For the gravy:

1 tbsp oil

2-3 black cardamoms

1 pinch cinnamon powder

1 pinch cumin powder

½ tsp garam masala

½ tsp turmeric powder

2 tbsp chopped onions

2 cloves garlic, grated

1 inch piece of ginger, grated

1 chopped green chilli

3 tbsp tomato puree

2 tsp kasuri methi

2 tbsp crushed cashew nuts

½ cup cream

Method

Mash the blanched and drained spinach leaves and make into a dough-like consistency, adding corn starch, salt and red chilli powder. Mix the paneer with onions, 1 tbsp dhaniya, green chillies, cashew nuts, salt and chaat masala. Shape into walnut sized balls and keep aside. Grease your hand and take some spinach mix. Flatten it out, put the paneer ball in it and wrap the spinach around it to enclose the paneer completely in the spinach. Deep fry in hot oil and drain on paper towels, slice into halves and save.

Heat 3-4 tbsp oil in a pan and fry the onions, garlic, ginger, green chillies and black cardamoms to it one after the other and stir till onions are slightly browned. Add the kasuri methi and then the tomato puree. Fry till oil separates out and then add the cinnamon powder, cumin powder, garam masala, salt, turmeric powder and red chilli powder. Add the cashew nuts and stir for about 2-3 minutes. Add the heavy cream and 1 cup water and cook the gravy till it becomes thick and glossy. Put the koftas in the gravy and let them simmer for about 5-6 minutes, till they absorb all the flavours and become soft. Serve in a shallow dish, slicing through the koftas to show the colour contrasts.