We asked Pooja Vir, the curator for food programming at Kala Ghoda Arts Festival to pick her top seven food events at the festival.
I canât help but smile at the frantic social media activity a recent music festival in Bombay attracted. By the same token, I longingly think back to when street food was something you consumed on the streets (not as viral videos), and when everyone you met wasnât an expert on food.
Donât worry, Iâm not about to drown you in nostalgia⊠Instead, allow me a Bombay Minute to send out a big whoop to the mother of all street festivals â the Kala Ghoda Arts Festival, now celebrating 24 years of paving the way for every manner of street, art, food, and music festival the city enjoys today.
As a young graduate, experiencing a street festival for the very first time in 1999, I never dreamed that one day I would be trusted with curating the food events for the nine-day festival. âJust do one a day,â was the brief given to me. I blame my inadequacy with numbers for the 20 food events we have put together this year.
The festival theme is âPast Forwardâ and each vertical has a program that proves, over and over again, that you donât ever need to be trapped by the past. So many past favourites have returned this year, and each with something new and special. So when putting the food program together, our only aim was to make the past a prologue for festivals to come.
I wish you would come to all the events but I am especially enthu about these seven.
1. IRANI CHAI VS PARSI RASPBERRY
Kala Ghoda Arts Festival isnât complete without our favourite raconteur, Kurush Dalal. For the first time, he will hold court (over chai and much chat) at Ideal Corner, while participants munch on a menu especially put together by the cafĂ©âs Parvez Patel.
When: Thursday 9th February, 3 p.m. to 4 p.m.
Where: Ideal Corner
2. SPECTACULAR DESSERTS IN MINUTES
Moshe Shek is one of the cityâs finest bakers in my opinion, and when he promises recipes that work in a humble OTG, you know they will taste, well, spectacular.
When: Wednesday 8th February, 3:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Where: Café Knead
3. WHACKY, WILD & WONDERFUL Â KITCHEN EXPERIMENTS
This is one of those events I included so that I could attend it too. The team from Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR) is organising two sessions of food science for kids. I want to learn how to drop a raw egg without breaking it. Donât you?
When: Sunday 5th February, 4:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. and Sunday 12th February, 12:30 p.m. to 2 p.m.
Where: CSMVS Childrenâs Museum
4. DO WE (STILL) NEED COOKBOOKS?
I must admit that I am firmly in âcamp cookbookâ. But with social media bursting with food porn in all forms I canât help but wonder who these books are being written for anymore. With an all-star cast of Pooja Dhingra, Saransh Goila, and Sadaf Hussain (moderated by Anisha Rachel Oommen), you know this is going to be one lively discussion.
When: Sunday 12th February, 6 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Where: Cooperage Bandstand Gardens
5. FARMER’S MARKET BY OOO FARMS
From their dedication to creating seed banks, to reviving native varietals of produce, to their profit-sharing practices with farmers â Iâve been in awe of the work done by the founders of OOO Farms. I was thrilled when they agreed to put together a farmersâ market for the festival. Look forward to desi games, live music, and real food from real farmers. Yes, there will be strawberries!
When: Saturday 11th February and Sunday 12th February, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Where: Cooperage Bandstand Gardens
6. MILLET KA MAGIC
One of Indiaâs most ancient grains seems to finally be getting its due in 2023, the International Year of Millets. Karishma Mehta and Jaydeep âJDâ Mukherjee will teach and serve delicious new ways with millets. Millet congee anyone?
When: Tuesday 7th Feb, 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.
Where:Â Smoke House Deli Colaba
7. IS INDIAN FOOD BACK…AGAIN?
Sadhana Tai is a Koli cook with magical hands. Sheâs been a festival stalwart and her food stall has amongst the longest queues. This year she will also feature on a panel alongside Varun Inamdar and Saee Koranne-Khandekar to talk about the hows and whys of Indian food regularly showing up as a trend.
When: Friday 10th February, 7 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Where: Cooperage Bandstand Gardens
