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Delectable moments

Photo: V. Sudershan

A GOOD MIX Anita Singhvi enjoying a delicious vegetarian platter at Pakwaan.

Regular food talk is often unpalatable but that’s not the case with Anita Singhvi, a well known ghazal singer, the one whose singing style has the nostalgic effect of the good old days. That’s precisely the reason why legendary music director Khayyam composed music for her second album, Zah-e-Naseeb that hit the market early this year. At Pakwaan, Le Meridien’s multi-cuisine restaurant, Anita surprises even the chef with her knowledge of food and spices. Mention a spice and she can tell you at least five ways of using it to great advantage.

“I cook every day for my kids and husband (Abhishek Singhvi, M.P.),” she says beginning with tomato soup. Scrutinising the décor of the restaurant that is a mix of red and gold, Anita continues, “Aesthetics of the food are as important as the ambience. I belong to Rajasthan where these two are never considered separate.”

Trying some paneer tikka and crispy khas ke kabab, she shares an interesting tale. “You must have heard that phrase ‘papad belna’, meaning an uphill task. It has come from Rajasthan. In olden days, the groom’s side used to make sure of the strength and aesthetic sense of the bride-to-be by making her roll a papad. If she failed in making it round, she wasn’t considered worth the new family!”

“Just delicious”, she compliments the chef on vegetarian stuffed parantha with lazeez matar mushroom. Trying it with pudina parantha and lachcha parantha, Anita continues, “The classical singer and gurus of old days as Bade Ghulam Ali Khan were extremely fond of oily and spice-rich food. They would eat food cooked in oil that is extracted at their home. They used to carry a huge container of oil while travelling for concerts. If they run out oil stock, they would come back – even at the cost of concerts!”

By now Anita has already caught the attention of the restaurant manager Navin Saggi and executive chef R.B. Roy who want her to stay back for more time. So, they insist that she should have peeli dal, mixed vegetable and onion kulcha. Giving in to their polite offer, she adds, “Badam (almond) oil is good for health. It reverses all heart problems. But it is very expensive. We Indians actually are not very health conscious but people abroad are. They don’t mix many herbs in one. They make it a point to retain the pure flavour of one herb in whatever they use it in. We actually don’t need to go to doctors if we know the use of our spices. I don’t give medicines to my kids for cold and cough. I prefer to treat them with my home-made medicines. You peel some amla, mix it with sugar and store in a glass bottle. It is extremely good for cold and cough because it has the combination of iron and vitamin C.

Similarly you can take a mix of zeera and dhaniya powder for quick relief from extreme stomach ache.”

Realising that everyone is looking at her with great interest, she laughs sheepishly, “I didn’t realise I was talking so much.”

Before khajoor anjeer ka halwa arrives for the dessert, one asks her the secret of her powerful voice, which is rare among her contemporary ghazal singers. “Our elders used to tell us to have mishri (rock candy) and almond mixed in butter for a velvety and strong voice,” she shares, smiling.

Enjoying her desserts, she reels out another food tale. “In the villages of Punjab, when a bride arrives, she is asked to extract butter from the milk. It is called makhan mathna. Since it requires a lot of physical strength and rhythmic movement, it becomes a test. Many poets have penned beautiful poems on it…” and she again realises that people are listening to her with rapt attention. This time, she politely offers, “My rehearsal time, you know…”

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