Chaatwala With A Difference

Pic courtesy: httpwww.tadtop.com

There was this Agarwal making chaat at Rajajinagar Bhashyam Circle Market Bangalore, in the early Eighties. I was staying with my friends Shivananda Shenoy and Narayana Kini in a rented house near the School down the road, and we were daily visitors to Agarwal's shop. Needless to say, the fat short guy with a thin black beard was friendly and he used to make chaat according to our taste, little more spicy and tangy, with a handful of extra chopped onions as garnish! He was also a good human being with a philosophical outlook.

We friends were addicted to  Campa Cola and used to drink one 200 ml cola everyday after consuming 'Masala Puri' and 'Paani Puri'. Agarwal tried to advice us not to go for synthetic stuff, though he used to sell them. He recommended us 'Nimbu Soda' or fresh lime soda or just plain soda. We wouldn't listen to him and Campa Cola was our daily poison!

One day, after repeated brainwash by Agarwal, I tried his 'Nimbu Soda'. He squeezed half a lemon into the glass, added a spoonful of sugar syrup and a pinch of salt. Then he poured cold Campa soda over it while beating the drink and handed over to me. As I was about to take a sip, he stopped me and said "I will add something that will make you forget Campa Cola and go for 'Nimbu Soda' or fresh lime with soda. He took a pinch of some powder and added to the drink. The drink started to seethe like a volcano and I panicked! I was not sure if that was a palatable thing he added. Some drink got overlowed and I felt annoyed. Agarwal smiled and said "Don't hesitate. Go on sipping the drink. It is something that keeps you healthy and something that quenches your thirst naturally."

I took a sip and the flavour reminded me of Lakhan's 'Kaala Khatta' I had at Five Gardens Bombay with my friends. I asked Agarwal what was the secret ingredient, and he said it's 'Kaala Namak'. That had a slight smell of Hydrogen Sulphide but was very refreshing. I asked for one more, and Agarwal said, he will show me a magic!

He opened a Campa Soda, added a pinch of Kaala Namak and held the bottle to his lips. The soda raised without him shaking the bottle or lifting it, and within seconds he emptied all the 200ml of soda without taking the bottle off his lips! That was really amazing and I too tried to do that but failed. Soda went into my nostrils, spilled over my cheeks and I was looking pathetic! Our friends also got amused and they too tried it, and one among us, Narayana succeeded in gulping the full soda in one sip like Agarwal did!

From that day onward, we took to either Nimbu Soda or plain soda with kaala namak at Agarwal's Chaat shop.

Agarwal may have made more money selling us Campa Cola, but his attachment to us made him advice us not to go for such harmful drink and resort to the healthy refreshing Nimbu Soda with another healthy organic salt popularly known as Kaala Namak or 'Saindhava Lavana' in Ayurveda, which has medicinal properties. Indian street food vendors have more sense and humanitarian approach than those running fast food chains, I realised then.