Thursday, July 25, 2013

Ode to EggPuff

Do not expect a poem just because I titled the post with an "ode". I chose that word because it is normally when people praise or appreciate something both intellectually and emotionally.
I praise, appreciate and enjoy that beautiful creation called 'Egg Puff'!

There are few food items in this world that pack such a powerful punch as the egg puff! A little research on the internet reveals its a popular street food in Honk Kong. One thing i am sure about is , those puffs from the far east are not the ones I am in love with. These are home bred, made in the bakeries (owned predominantly either by a Krishna loving red liners, or by citizens of gods own country), kept in steel incubators with a bulb as yellow as the puff itself,  served on a piece of newsprint, and to be eaten right outside the bakery counter!

What is it that makes this artery clogging devil so good? Let me dive into the impossible task of describing that divine feeling.

As soon as you order one, the baker takes it out of the incubator. Immune to its heat, he places it on piece of newspaper. The news paper readily accepts the egg puff and starts to blot with oil, a sure sign of succumbing to its power! The baker then takes a knife and cuts the puff into two halves. Few crunchy pieces fall out (these serve as the last bite too). Some steam escapes and the beautiful yellow and white curves are revealed.
The first bite into an egg puff is always filled with greed (do refer to my previous post). One normally wants the egg-white, the yellow, the onions, the masala and some of the deep fried layers, all to come in one bite! If one succeeds he/she is surely an "egg-puff Pro"! This greedy bite is normally followed by a couple of minutes of agony. For the eater, seduced by the looks of the puff, will have completely forgotten the incubator, which made the puff "hot"!

When the taste buds are hit by the aura of the puff they melt! they melt in confusion, sending signals to the brain, unable to decipher the ecstasy! It is spicy, yet sweet with egg white, it is crunchy, yet soft with the yellow, it has vegetables, yet egg to satisfy the naughty primordial instincts of the hunter, it is healthy but deep fried. It is the ying and the yang. It has the creator and the destroyer.
The second bite sends a crackle through the body, with the teeth enjoying in crushing the deep fried base. The mouth is covered in a thin layer of fat momentarily , before it is washed away by the vegetables and the masala.
The final step is when the fallen debris of this monumental snack, is transferred from the fourth-estate to the palm of ones hand. That last remnants create a the feeling of the sparks after a fireworks show.
With the stomach satisfied, the brain mesmerized, the newsprint serves as a tissue paper, taking out all the oil from the hands, but leaves a lingering smell just to keep us hungry before it reaches the dustbin!

Words. I want the police to arrest the words on charges of defamation. For words have just not described the egg-puff well! There is only one way you can do justice to an egg puff, and you all know how.

Greed for Needs

Once I moved out of the comfort of high school, problems concerning the society started to become visible. Economic, social and political problems were suddenly everywhere. People are in a constant fight to live, to earn a living and maintain a family. This constitutes to a majority of the population in India. There is the creamy elite and the rich middle-class of India who are in a whole different world of smartphones and German cars!
I got to travel a lot of Southern India, thanks to the research project I was assisting. This opened up my mind to the disparity of wealth that exists in the country. All the reports, articles and books I had read about wealth disparity, started to come to life!
The greatest luxury we have is that we are confident about our next meal!
As the thought process on how to solve the disparity in wealth, when one is staying in a capitalistic market, lead me to this idea.
Its known that when the people at the bottom of the pyramid are working for their living, the rich are haunting the luxuries. What happens when the rich get greedy about human needs? By human needs I mean Air, Water, Food, Shelter and Clothing. The rich are greedy for better air- they can buy hybrids, reduce carbon emission etc. The rich are greedy for food- help the farmer grow better. They are greedy for better clothing- finance the thousands of garment workers. So with their greed of needs increasing the whole society is developing, and to an extent disparity is reduced.

But this is Utopian. How can we draw a line for human greed? If there is anything as infinite as the human imagination, its his greed. Even in the wildest futures, the above thought materializes, will the farmer/garment worker be satisfied with what he has?

I feel the concept of "Greed for Needs" is a step which can at least lead the consumerist society in spending for the betterment of the society. What can be the solution? Marx's vision is impossible now. This time when we have fallen, tangled, knotted deep in the abyss of Capitalism.