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Game for good food

Aruna Irani treats her guests to biryani, paye and `paani' daal

ONE FOR THE ALBUM Aruna Irani at Café Uno, an informal restaurant at Shangri-La in New Delhi PHOTO: RAJEEV BHATT

The screen adds weight to one's personality. It highlights the creases too. A look at veteran actress and producer Aruna Irani substantiates this. Otherwise, she is a gym-owner's pride and a dietician's joy. As she proceeds towards Café Uno in Shangri-La hotel for a light meal, inquisitive visitors surround her. Amid the shower of praises for maintaining her unbelievably young looks, she answers with twinkling eyes, "Apna hath Jagannath". Ever smiling, she clarifies, "I cook myself every day despite a hectic schedule. I don't depend on domestic help. And my family says I am a very good cook. I always eat with the family. It adds taste to the food you know... "

At this informal café too she doesn't forget that the cast of her serial Vaidehi - Aik Aur Agnipariksha is present. "I will save some space to have lunch with them. I enjoy eating with this extended family of mine," she says, sipping pineapple juice for starters. "Bahut khatta hai," she says, screwing up her as she complements it with some Caesar salad. "My favourite food is Indian, simple home cooked dal, subzi, chawal and roti. But I have come to like Thai food, and I love Japanese food too, but nowhere in India have I ever got to taste authentic Japanese food. The so-called Japanese restaurants `Indianise' Japanese food. And I am scared of fish. Once I ate some and it caused a severe allergy. I almost hate it. Otherwise a Mumbai eatery called Gazali serves very good fish tikka which I used to relish earlier," she reveals as she tries some Parmesan cheese.

Food tales

Being out most of the day for the shooting of her serials, Aruna has countless food tales of her sets. "Once in a scene in Mehendi Tere Naam Ki I had to cook potatoes. The scene took so long that I cooked the complete aaloo ki subzi. We all ate that later," she laughs. Even as she relates the incident, a platter of lettuce is served.

Helping herself, she recounts, "In the film Angoor there was a scene in which I was supposed to laugh hysterically after consuming `bhang'. I don't take bhang even on Holi. So I had to feign laughter. After making attempts to laugh, it started coming naturally to me. So as I started giving the shot, everyone else started laughing too. Hanste hanste scene okay ho gaya. Even after the shot was done, I kept on laughing and so did everybody. Now, whenever I see that recording, I laugh uncontrollably. So whenever there are moments of depression, I watch that video." Not averse to a cheeky trick or two, Aruna Irani discloses that whenever she gets too many guests at home at mealtime, she adds water to her dal "to ensure sufficient quantity".

"But you know I compensate it with my innovative aaloo-papdi chat. I treat my guests with my signature dishes paye and biryani, as also tuar (masoor) ki dal, rajma and chana... "

Declining the chef's offer of dessert, she wraps up the conversation, "I am very sweet anyway... "

Indeed!

RANA SIDDIQUI

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