This Mumbaikar's project reimagines the dosa shaped as letters of the alphabet

Hari Chakyar’s project reimagines the South Indian snack shaped as the letters of the alphabet. Here’s how he created this idea

A regular day for Chembur-based Hari Chakyar kicks off in his kitchen with a ladle full of dosa batter in his hand and a podcast playing in the background. “This is pretty much how my mornings look like these days,” the former creative director shares. This routine and his never-dying love for the South Indian dish birthed an innovation and Chakyar’s new project — Type of Dosa.

Hari Chakyar cooks a dosa letter

In Type of Dosa, you will find the dish reshaped into alphabets — from A to Z, both in upper and lower case. “It is a typography project which I have wanted to execute for a long time now. One day, I told my friend Nash Fernandes about it, and he willingly came over to shoot the process,” Chakyar says. With an ambition to publish his own graphic novel someday, the writer takes up such creative projects as practice.

Letters of the alphabet made of dosa batter

“I also create comic strips whenever I get inspired by something that occurs in my daily life. A graphic novel requires you to be able to create a lot of drawings. Such projects, I feel, help me prepare for it,” he explains, adding that he has also made illustrations out of pancake batter a few years ago. It took him over three hours of trial-and-error before he could create all letters, and even numbers till nine. “We started at noon, and finished by around 3.30 pm,” he reveals. 

The process, he says, is simple. It is just like how one makes dosa. “Keep your batter ready. But remember, that using your ladle will not give you enough control of the shape of dosa. You want to draw on the tava, so the best thing to do would be to get a squeezy bottle — like the ones used for ketchup — and fill your batter in it. This way, you will have better command over the shape of the batter poured on to the tava,” he shares. Using the letters made of his comfort food, he shares a comforting message with his viewers — Sab theek ho jayega. “If dosa says everything will be alright, it must be true, no?” he signs off.

Log on to @harichakyar

Take your pick

If all this dosa talk is making you drool, here is where you can get the snack in other unique avatars across Mumbai:

Tall and tempting
Indulge in the flavourful Burj Khalifa Dosa at this famous dosa centre in Thane.
At Angel Dosa Centre, Vikas Complex, Thane West.
Call 9820777909 

Long live dosa
This dosa requires a group of five to finish. At a length of four ft, it comes with 18 different chutneys and restaurant special, pineapple sheera.   
At Ayyappan Idli, Bhau Daji Road, Matunga East.
Call 9167796609

Pics Courtesy/Instagram

Dosa in a pot
The matka dosa is a flavourful burst of chutneys and masalas.
At Kumar Dosa Centre, Sarvodaya Nagar, Mulund West.
Call 9004584476

Sinful delight
Eat it as a dessert or a meal; the chocolate overload dosa, served alongside chocolate sauce, will please the sweet-tooth.
At Narayan Dosa, Giragon. 
Call 9920793287

Also check out 

Digital Dosa: This one is made automatically by a dosa printing machine at the new Borivali eatery. 
At Dosa Anna, Borivali West.
Call 9372904997

Pink Dosa: This version is made from beetroot.
At Bombay Street Food House, Bandra West.
Call 9167329876

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