#sarvanabhawan

[vandanadesigner]

#parotha #korma #sarvanabhawan #southindianfood #delhi #longtime #tastegood #yummy #foodie #food #lunch #india #foodlover

[sanatsinha-blog]

New York Times: Rollo Romig's 'Masala Dosa to Die For' [Review]

The idea of a person as more than a man is common. More so is the approach that of a westerner sharing a fascinating story about a journey where an exotic easterner accomplished superhuman feats. The twist - that exotic easterner actually owns one of the shops operating in your backyard. Introducing P. Rajagopal, founder and owner of Sarvana Bhavan, and poster boy for the next rags-to-riches movie. The only remaining ingredient - masala (dosa) murder.

The character profile by Rollo Romig in New York Times’ 'Masala Dosa to Die For' deals with the ‘benevolent’ multi-millionaire who believes in redemption and exercises it with his staff while also dealing with people in his ‘primitive’ ways. Side dishes include the business model of the company, a rags-to-riches story and a few interesting Hindi names for vocabulary.

Also profiling Sarvana Bhavan, the piece actually becomes a twin narrative of both the restaurant and it’s owner. Ironically enough, while the owner’s image takes a beating in the eyes of the public, the restaurant booms and expands. But only in a place like India, as highlighted by Romig, does the owner manage to get away with it, but so efficiently that it numbs even lawmakers.

The brutal honesty of Rajagopal about his and others’ corrupt nature coupled with regret for past actions is unbelievable as it almost seems to exonerate him from the crime and raise him again to the status of Achilles albeit the heel openly exposed. The comic ensemble surrounding him adds to his seeming inability to actually perform the actions described in the case files.

With a loving army of employees, a sort of magical capital-like city and a tech-savvy son ready to reorganise the whole business, the Ulysses of South-Indian cuisine seems to be ready to bathe the world in the ‘holy’ light of vadas and dosas.