Vijayi Vishwa Tiranga Pyara

On the eve of Indian Independence day, what else did you expect me to write about.

How many of you remember studying the fundamental rights during school. I loved that tabloid size small civics book that we studied during ICSE.

To reiterate our Fundamental Rights include Right to equality, Right to freedom, Right against exploitation, Right to freedom of religion, Cultural and educational rights,Right to Life and the most important where you can move to the courts in case of denial of any of the above rights Right to constitutional remedies.

But reading them and writing about them feels weird in today’s context. Yes many a times our constitution has been amended to incorporate changes. But reading and even reiterating all these make us all feel funny. Almost nothing in the list of our rights is implemented and ensured.

Just take for example the right to equality. While there are reports of rampant female infanticide which has taken the sex ration to a dismal level of 940 females per 1000 males, the basic literacy rate as per 2011 census is 82% of an Indian male while only 65% for a female. Even today ensuring education to the poor and backward classes is a mammoth task. So no way do we see human beings as equals. Hence the question of implementing other rights do not exist.

So the question is where do we stand? What does a free India mean for us. Is buying and hosting a flag on independence day enough? My heart goes out to kid on the traffic signals selling “plastic flags” just before Independence day and republic day. Again Plastic flags that costs almost nothing but pose huge threat to our ecosystems. And educated people are naïve enough to buy them and proudly place them in their cars or in the living rooms. But it no time the flags lose their significance and lands up in the garbage van. And it finally adds up to the huge waste under which our cities are already crumbling.

And who is to be blamed for the crumbling nation. Only we only us. How long will we take to stop littering our streets? How long shall we use the corners of every street as an extended toilet? How long will we colour the nation red with rajanigandha? How long will we take to stop taking shortcuts and bribing our way out? How long will we buy liquor in black because it’s a dry day on the 15^th of August?

Just putting up a façade and buying small plastic national flags won’t do. We need to move ahead. Do our bits. Each one of us will have to live up to our motherland and not let the sacrifices of thousand men and women go waste in earning us a free country. Small thing go miles in making the country a better place to live in.

Having said this, there are great works happening in all spheres of life and that what I say Hope is all about.

So todays special is a full on Tiranga Lunch that I Plan to make tomorrow. Will definitely upload pictures once I am done with my experiment.

The idea is to make 3 separate items and serve it with the tri colour arrangement.

Item 1 – Simple crisp long grained steamed rice (this will form, the white central part of the tri colour)

Item 2 – Methi Saag Bhaja (for the green part)

·         Pick leaves of methi, cut finely, wash & drain.

·         Take roasted peanuts, chopped garlic, dried red chili.

·         Heat oil in pan then add jeera , dried red chili and hing to crackle in oil. Add chopped garlic. Stir well

·         Put roasted peanuts. Fry it. Lastly mix fenugreek leaves, mix well, stir fry on low till the . Add one table spoon ghee.

·         Let it simmer for few minutes.

Item 3 – The Orange Devil Chicken

·         mix 6 tsp tomato puree + 2 tsp red chili paste + 2 tsp ml vinegar and keep aside

·         cut 400 g boneless chicken in long thin strips. Wash add salt and pepper and keep aside.

·         after an hour add 6-8 tsp dhosa batter and mix well. Deep fry the chicken in batter and keep aside

·         in a kadai heat some oil add 2tsp roughly chopped garlic + 2 tsp roughly chopped ginger  and fry till golden

·         add onions cut in chunks. Stir till the onions are transparent.

·         add red and yellow bell peppers (optional)

·         now add the ready fried chicken

·         mix well

·         add the mix of sauces already prepared

·         mix 1 flat tsp of corn flour in cold water and add to the kadai.

·         add salt and sugar to taste

·         cook on low flame.

·         garnish with oregano flakes

Serve the food with loads of love and hope and of course imagination that in turn makes it worthwhile. Will upload pictures for sure.

As Promised : Uploaded on 16th August... Used  Prawns instead of Chicken and hence was spared of the pain to deep fry them. Turned out to be pretty nice. :)