We saw the worst during the lockdown. But we also saw the good. For the elderly residents of Mumbai's Parsi baugs, it meant forging friendships over traditional, home-cooked food
Franak Doctor, a 75-year-old Malcolm Baug resident and her 82-year-old husband turned to Postwala's tiffin when the lockdown posed the problem of how they would get their hands on supplies to cook. Pics/Satej Shinde
It's just another day at Malcolm Baug in Jogeshwari. Resident Yazmaity Postwala is zooming around on her scooter through the gated community that houses around 400 Zoroastrian residents, delivering the day’s meal to 300 families. She has no time to stop for a courtesy chat when a neighbour waves at her. The focus is on getting the right parcel, basis a client’s dietary preference, to the right home. And on time.
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But when a senior citizen she caters to stops her for a health and weather chat, she can’t refuse. It’s the case with Franak Doctor, 75, who lives with her 82-year-old husband, five buildings away from Postwala. On Wednesdays, she is delivered her favourite—the Parsi chicken fritter speciality, chicken farcha with boiled eggs and potato wedges.
Chicken farcha, packed and ready to go
Postwala keeps the spice low in this delivery, just the way the Doctors like it.
“Ghanu tasty banaviyuch (you’ve made it delicious). Thank you,” says Doctor to Postwala.
Fitness instructor-turned home chef Yozmaity Postwala caters meals for 300 families at Jogeshwari's Malcolm Baug, delivering them on her scooter daily
This sweet friendship is relatively new and born of the Coronavirus-induced lockdown. Like most senior citizens, Doctor was wondering where she would get her next safe and tasty meal from when the government announced restriction of movement and facilities. Prior to this, Doctor cooked her own meals, but the lockdown meant she could not go out to get supplies given their age and susceptibility to the infection. One day, they decided to try Postwala’s meal, and were happy with it to continue. “Yozi’s food was a god send in a very unpredictable time. It is comforting to know that our meal is hygienically prepared and safety protocols have been followed. Now, it has become a daily affair,” says Doctor.
A fitness instructor and nutritionist by training, Postwala had her own challenges to deal with during the lockdown. The single mother of three has an old mother to take care of. With no income, Postwala took to cooking. “It was the only thing that came to mind as so many people around me, especially the old and elderly from my colony, were without their house helps. Initially, I started with a few accompaniments. Then I realised they were keen to have full meals delivered,” she adds. As Postwala gained confidence, she began experimenting with main course dishes and the appreciation was instant. “Yozi is an angel. My goodness! What amazing chicken frankies that girl makes! I also love her cheesy grill with mash,” says 61-year-old Zarir Kheshwala. On the carefully structured weekly menu are chicken kebabs, mutton Kheema pattice and everyone’s favourite, chicken dhansak. Although Postwala is back to being a personal trainer, she says she won’t give up the kitchen, which she has christened YozAmaze.
Home chef Meher Sinor readies a batch of chicken puffs for delivery
The Parsis love their traditional eats, and often, the best meals are prepared at home. “Our food is distinct and certainly not easily available,” says Meher H Sinor, 52, home chef and resident of Dadar Parsi Colony. This former school teacher turned to home catering a few years ago when her mawa cake became a hit, first with friends and then with neighbours. Slowly, her food became synonymous with small parties and gatherings at the colony. “I never say no to an order. The lockdown changed my perspective further when I began sending meals to the elderly, including my 80-year-old neighbour because there was no one to cook. I took charge till alternative arrangements were made. I felt blessed that I was able to help feed them in uncertain times. When you see someone feel happy with your food, it’s a different sort of satisfaction,” she adds.
Sinor’s top dishes include chicken puff, mince meat puff, topli paneer, daal ni pori, bakes, sev and malido. Sinor also makes continental, Moghlai and Chinese dishes including pot rice, prawn cocktail and Russian cutlets, with help from daughter Vahista, who has professionally trained in baking.
Cheesy chicken with garlic bread. The home chef says it's her snacks that are a bigger hit
The lockdown brought forth the idea of help and community bonding even more strongly in Parsi baugs because they were built with the hope of offering a safe, cheap and community-led housing environment to the city’s Parsi and Iranian Zoroastrians. At Contractor Baug in Mahim, 42-year-old Yasmin Eduljee, was known to cook elaborate meals for her family. Her maternal Bohri Muslim lineage added to the variety in her cooking and occasionally, she took party orders. But during the lockdown, with her husband’s work discontinuing, she decided to hold fort and start home catering. While she did make tiffins for lunch and dinner, it’s her snacks—cutlets, samosa, kathi roll, kebab pav, hotdog, and idli sambhar—that were fast sellers. “There was a sudden demand for meals from senior citizens facing difficulty getting supplies. I started with a few families I knew personally and from there things picked up really well. On an average, I was catering 15 meals a day and the demand was higher on weekends and festive occasions like Parsi new year. It was a great way to look after one another in the most difficult time we have seen in our living memory,” says Eduljee. She points out that home chefs like everyone else, were also devoid of help.
Contractor Baug resident Yasmin Eduljee's mini meal lunch box
They had to cook and clean in their own homes, and home school their kids. It was possible for her and others like her, to manage to cater because all members of the family, pitched in. “It was team work at its best, and we experienced a different sort of bonding.”
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