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.