the gujrals.

Whenever I travel to India, parties are held at various venues hosted by the sundry of families within a very close knit community of family and friends. These get-togethers range from quiet more intimate settings to lavished galas that could easily rival presidential balls- (without the uninvited guest that is..… haha, to soon?) The food is always prepared with the highest caliber of skill and ingredients which also is kept plentiful for each guest to have there fill. The company is friendly and eager to mingle with friends who have come from across the street, the States, or far away parts of India and Asia. One of those families- the Gujral’s, humbly invited my family and I for a night of cold drinks, better company, and great food (wait till I talk about the prawns.) Vimal Uncle, Pooja Aunty, Micky (the oldest of the two brothers), Smriti (Micky’s wife), Saisha (Micky and Smirtha’s beautiful 11 month old daughter), and Gautam (the younger brother.. obviously) graciously hosted a quiet but entertaining dinner for our two families earlier this evening.

The real beauty of the occasion comes with the fact that the dinner was not planned months, weeks, or even days prior to today- Smriti bhabhi (pronounced “bah-bee” translates to “sister in law”) and Saisha dropped by today for a quick visit to chat with my mother and to simply say hello to the family. Mind I have never met bhabhi till this afternoon, she already “knew so much about me” from stories I have assumed my mother has told in my absence. In the midst of playing with and watching Saisha do “jeh-jeh” (prayers) at the foot of the giant Ganesh statue in the foyer, and the chatter in the background, mum had informally invited the Gujral family over for dinner at our home. However, the invitee quickly became the inviter and insisted we join them for dinner instead. Mum happily accepted.

We arrived a few hours later to the Gujral residence to be greeted by the family. After a few familiar pinches and hugs from aunty and the rest of the family, the boys (my brother Manan, Kaushal, Micky, Gautam and I) sat by a well designed bar tucked under a grand staircase of white marble- while aunty, uncle, mum and pops sat in a nearby sitting room- Seeing Micky and Gautum after so many years (five or six years) there were many discussion topics covered- from my education, Tiger Woods the new “player of the year”, politics, to lifestyle (sounds boring- but nothing is ever boring with this family!) Gautum politely asked if I would like a glass of 18 year Glennfiddich single malt, but when I saw a bottle of Jack Daniels- I couldn’t resist- Two ice-cubes- a perfect pour of “JD” mixed with Thumb’s Up (India’s cola/ super delish) and I was ready to go (classy??... Indeed!) With the chatter in the background- lighting perfectly set- food being prepared in the kitchen perfuming the air- and Saisha’s occasional grunt or giggle- The stage was set for an amazing evening..

The prawns.. Vimal Uncle’s recipe for prawns have be consistently delicious for as long as I can remember, so naturally when they came to the bar piping hot with bouquets making my brain nearly short out- I was entering culinary bliss. It has always been said that smells correlate with memories. In this case I couldn’t agree anymore. I was taking back to every gala I could remember in India since I was 5 with these little bites of awesomeness. Seasoned and fried to perfection- I indulged… popping these things were as simple and guilt free as taking 4 advil instead of two. With the appetizers coming by the plateful- the night continued- at one point as I watched my empty glass with reminents of an ice cube melting and mixing with the jack and cola I thought about how comforting it was to be with family friends- the feeling of respect and love was unconditional- and well.. simply amazing. An hour passed quicker than I have ever remembered it too and before I knew it- it was time for dinner- Chicken braised in a spicy curry, panner with vegetables, potatoes and spinach, hot roti smothered in ghee (clarified butter), rice and cooked lentils were all on the menu! Dinner as I expected was amazing- Never mind the fact my stomach had already reached it’s limit after the 142nd prawn… The experience ended with both the families sitting, reminiscing, and viewing old photo albums- with Saisha immune to feeling sleepy and my eyes growing heavy as each minute passed, we called it a night with our stomachs full and smiles on our faces.