TAPI TOWN'S TRIANGULAR TUBER TREATS

‘Samosa kyun na khaya? Joota kyoon na pehna?
Tala na tha.’-Khusrau,circa 1300.

Why wasn’t the samosa eaten? Why wasn’t the shoe worn?
Wasn’t fried (the samosa); didn’t have a sole (the shoe).

As if being featured in Amir Khusrau’s ‘Dosukhnay’, renditions in Delhi during the 13th century, participating in Ibn Batuta’s travelogues of 1334 and holding a permanent place in the royal daawat’s,’ Ain –i-Akbari’- Emporer Akbar’s gourmet spread, wasn’t enough;the 'sambusak'is still that one delicacy around which conversations revolve.

‘Samosa’ a central Asian invention - the patty notorious for prolific fillings, continues to be India’s favourite tea time treat and, Tapi town is no exception.

Since we have already done a delicious thesis on our famous ‘Mad man’s triangles ‘(gandabhai na samosa )and other such Surti treats where gram dal,yam,cheese etc make the main matter, fried within thin crispy shells; lets now take a peek within the suburban tuber treats in town.

Popularity of suburban Surat’s samosas is segregated according to the phase of a student’s life.

Kindly note that nostalgia might hit you while reading the lines henceforth.

If you were educated in institutions around Timalyawaad, Nanpura or Dutch Garden, Samosas from Kailash sweets, those spicy parcels of chopped potatoes, dotted with green peas, seasoned with cumin and spiked with garam masala must surely mean a melancholic mouthful.Kailash samosas were the brain child of the late Kishinchand Ahuja who pioneered Punjabi samosas in Surat, way back in 1966.The receipe remains an exclusive hot seller till date. Seeped in drippy, dense tamarind chutney, that makes a fine accompaniment to this crusty crudity.
Students of colleges in and around Athwalines swear by bonding over the South Indian samosa avatars dished out by perennially popular Mysore Café, privacy provider-Priya cafe and of course, the king of kiosks-Shetty who ventured into partnership with ‘Atithya.’ The deep fried filos from here consist of minced mashed tubers that have been boiled beyond limits; a slight dash of ginger -chilli, a sparse sprinkle of coriander leaves, lemon drops and sugar is what all three are commonly laced with. Served with refreshing coconut chutney (the only authentic South Indian detail in the deal), these flaky crusts disappear as soon as they are served, over chatter and chai.
Convent girls and boys who were educated at the institution of Our Lady of Lourdes, know for a fact that just as their school which was always considered ‘different’, so also, their canteen samosa - that still makes them shamelessly salivate, tastes like none other.
Samosas for Lourdes are actually made in a teenie weenie room, in a strip of a lane, exactly opposite to the Muslim Yatimkhana, that leads into the back area of what used once be Dhiraj Sons Fashion Shoppe, Athwagate. Fried in a huge wok over a kerosene stove, there is no fancy board outside to advertise these knock out morning cholesterol crunchies that are sold out by 10 a.m, max.
Here is the catch, the elderly Maharashtrian gentleman who invented these took a promise from the gen nexters of the family,”never sell these without frying, lest the secret ingredients be known.”. Hence, even people who order over a hundred pieces of these precious parcels ,have to make do with a pre fried version of pasty poha worked with potato, enmeshed with minimal ginger chilli paste and wrapped in plain flour dough.
With multiplexes on Bhatar and Dumas road, which make for college bunking hours and tuition classes on Ghodod road and Citylight area, student special samosas now have many new avatars and addresses like Agra and Shiv Shakti sweets from where they are sold out.

In Surat, it is impossible to bite into a samosa without bringing up masti filled memories of those yaari-dosti years. Friendships here have thrived on sharing these.

SURTI SHIPWRIGHTS-BEST IN THE WORLD….
An endearing scene in the new, much hyped SRK movie, is when little Rizwaan Khan’s mother, seeks the help of a Parsi gentleman to educate little Rizzu. The child charms Mr.Wadia, by mentioning a certain Lovji Nusservanji Wadia, the world famous shipwright from Surat.

Ship building in Surat runs way back to the ancient ages. Being an important port for sea trade, Surat and Suvali beach have been mentioned in many a historical travel book by authors who sailed the seven seas. A special mention on the ability of marvelous ship building by Surtis is an integral part of historic writings.

Tome Pires of Florence who traveled to India in 1511, wrote,’Gujaratees were better seamen, had larger vessels and more men to navigate.’

Aurangzeb’s navy that was superior in size to that of Akbar’s, had, besides many naval ships, 4 special ships that carried Haj pilgrims, free of cost, to and fro from Surat’s Mecca pool (Makkaipul).

The ‘Ganj –i- Sawai, an 800 ton ship, then considered one of the largest, most magnificent in its times was built in Surat .A heavily armed ship, it had 62 mounted guns and a musket armed unit of 500 guards.


Nicolo Conti, Venetian merchant and explorer, who visited India in the 15th century, wrote, “The nations of India build some ships larger than ours, capable of containing 2,000 butts, and with five sails and as many masts. The lower part is constructed with triple planks, in order to withstand the force of the tempests to which they are much exposed. But some ships are so built in compartments that should one part be shattered, the other portion remaining entire may accomplish the voyage."

Ship building and dismantling in Surat was carried out at yards along the Tapi river belt, one such still exists - the ABG shipyard at Surat’s Magdalla port.

The seaworthiness of the Surti ships was due to the technique and tools used to build them. Deodar teak and mahogany were planked together with iron nails, bolts and screws caulking them to make them leak proof.

Many were often copper bottomed or filled with ‘dammer’Indian substitute to tar. There were shell built sewn boats with wooden pin dowelling, watertight seams. Ships built with’vadhera’system of joints, had internal frames of ribs and cross beams.The ‘rassis’had a special variation of stiching the planks together.

In 1635, East India Company set up a shipbuilding yard in Surat.In its first year itself, 4 pinnaces and other larger vessels were built.

J. Ovington, Chaplain to the British King, the seventeenth-century English traveler, who visited Surat, wrote a book A Voyage to Surat in the Year 1689. He was impressed by the skill of the Indians in ship-building and found that they even outshone Europeans. The timber used by the Indians was so strong that it would not ‘crack’ even by the force of a bullet so he urged the English to use that timber ‘to help them in war’.
Lovji Nusservanji was born in 1702 in Surat to the Wadia family that got its name from the yards (wadis) that they owned. He was educated to be a shipwright and took employment with the East India Company. Extremely talented and skill worthy, he secured many contracts to build ships for the British and went on to form the Wadia shipbuilding industry in Bombay, where he shifted base.

Lovji and his brother Sorabji set up the first dry dock in Asia. Many members of the Wadia family stayed back in Surat, carrying on the family business.

Shipwrights of Gujarat built frigates for the British that went on to fight in the battle of Trafalgar. American sea farers visited Surat and Bombay to watch the skillful Wadias at work.

The HMS Minden -1810 built by Jamshedji Bomanji Wadia is the one on which America’s national anthem ,’star spangled banner’ was written by Francis Scott Key,as a poem.

The HMS Trincomlee -1817 built by Wadias is still in use and known as the TS Foudroyant.Its the oldest sail driven warship and good enough to be afloat for 300 more years!

Lovji once proudly engraved in the central beam of a British warship,

“This ship was built by a d-----d Black Fellow A.D.1800.”

After all, you can always trust a Surti to tell it as it is.

Tapi town tattle-My name is democracy and no one can dictate me otherwise.