The Birthday Menu

Meenu Thomas

Kanchi burst into tears.
“Sorry, Kanchi, but we can’t do anything. It is still not safe to go out,” said Mummy.
“But you promised you would take me to the restaurant on my birthday,” said Kanchi.
“COVID-19 is at its peak,
Kanchi. We are still in
lockdown,” said Papa.
“I will cook something nice for you,” said Mummy.

“No! You only cook baingan bharta all the time. ”
“What if I add some fried kantola slices to the bharta? Y ou will love it,” added Papa.
Kanchi ran to the balcony and bawled.

“I am tired of staying inside.
I want to eat Patil Bandhu’s
vada pao. I want to go to
Swaad Bhavan.”
Mummy and Papa let her be.

But Kanchi’s screams
stirred up the otherwise
quiet Sunrise Society.

“What do you like eating at Swaad Bhavan, dear?” asked Janaki Ajji.
Kanchi felt shy but said,
“I like their chowmein, lemon rice, aloo paratha, butter chicken and paper dosa”.
“That’s a lot of different delicacies at one place,”
said Janaki Ajji. “Wait! I
can make you akki roti,
with ghee and coconut
chutney. I will make it on
a banana leaf. I have the
rice flour dough ready
with me.”

“I would love that, Ajji,”
said Kanchi. She felt
happier.
“Kanchi, do you like alu wadi? I don’t want to
boast but I make the best,” said Bhosale Uncle.
“I haven’t eaten them, Uncle, but I would love to try!”

“You have to try the health drinks I make,”
said Partho. “Bael is in season right now.
I will make bael panna for you, with some
black salt. It is very refreshing.”
“Thank you, Partho!”

“Kanchi, I know you are tired of eating baingan
bharta,” said Bhima Aunty. “What if I use the same
brinjal to cook you litti chokha? The aroma of the
chokha is mouth-watering.”
“I will give it a try, Bhima Aunty.”

“What are you cooking, Bijju Akka? It smells great!”
asked Kanchi.
“I am cooking bongulo chicken, Kanchi. It is a special
dish from my village. It is marinated chicken cooked
inside a bamboo shoot, sealed with sal leaves. I cook it
on hot coal to bring out the flavours. Would you like to
have some?”
“I can’t wait to try it, Akka!”

“Hey Kanchi, how about a Shillong-style aloo
muri snack? I am making some for me and
my friends,” said Prema Didi.
“I love potatoes!” said Kanchi.
“No birthday is complete without tapioca chips,
Kanchi. You just taste one. You will forget all
about potato chips!” said Xavier Uncle.
“I will always love potatoes. But I want to try
tapi... tapi... oca chips,” replied Kanchi.

Sunrise Society started preparing for Kanchi’s birthday.
Sabina made fish vindaloo.
Dolani Uncle made Sindhi biryani with big chunks of potato.
Ami and Kayu made a Garhwali sweet called gulgula.

Chheda Uncle and Aunty took out their extra rolls of clothesline. They made a ropeway network to pass the dishes from one house to the other.
Mummy and Papa tore pages out of Kanchi’s old colouring book and made
party hats for all their neighbours.

Soon, dishes were being
passed from one home to
the other.
Kanchi enjoyed the feast.
Madhu was still recovering from COVID-19, but she joined in the celebration because everyone insisted.

She played fun Bollywood
songs on her music
system.
Kanchi danced. Her
friends Riyaz and Kev and
the security guard, Rohit,
joined in.
As the sun began to set,
Sunrise Society lit up with
laughter and good food.

The Sunrise Society Food Map
Find out where you can find
some of the dishes cooked by
Kanchi’s neighbours.
 Sindhi biryani
Pakistan
Gulgula
Uttarakhand
Litti chokha
Bihar
Aloo muri
Megh alaya
Bael panna
West Bengal
Bongulo chicken
Andhra Pradesh
Tapioca chips
Kerala
Akki roti
Karnataka
Vindaloo
Goa
Alu wadi
Maharashtra
*Map is not to scale
and only for the sake
of representation