Lucknow, with friends...

19/Apr/2018

Leaving Goa is becoming more and more difficult and it is not just because of the terrible airport. I usually try to focus on the return when I experience so much joy. This time, however, I was quite excited about the trip. I was on my way to Lucknow, a place I had not visited so far. I had worked with an organisation (many years ago), that had 14 offices in India (if I remember right). I had visited 13 of those offices - the one that I hadn’t was in Lucknow. From whatever I had read and heard, Lucknow was going to be quite an experience. I was slightly apprehensive that in the current political climate, maybe not all positive, but I was willing to put up with that.

The flight first took me to Delhi and then on to Lucknow. From polite Goa I was plunged into the heartland of aggression for an hour and then hopefully into the land of tehzeeb - the byword for politeness in India. 

In Goa, I live in a village called Pomburpa. On one side, I have only one house next to mine. On the other three sides, forest and fields. I have gotten used to a deep silence broken only by the owl hooting at night. And in the day by the oriental magpie robin. I kept telling myself that I was travelling to the most densely populated part of India. I should be prepared for the cacophony and chaos. That was true enough when I stepped out of the airport. Every car was honking and nobody was paying attention. The noise hit me along with the heat. I steeled myself for what was to come and got into my Ola taxi.

I was headed to the Cafe Frangipani which had received good reviews on AirBnB. Thanks to technology, I could relax while the phone propped up next to the driver showed the way. After some time I realised that something was wrong. I hadn’t seen any people in a while - sure there were a few other cars on the road, but not the jostling crowds I had expected. The map showed that we were on NH27. It appeared to be an elevated expressway that went around the city - so it was a long time before we took an exit and finally saw some people. 

There was a shamiana and some debris in front of the Cafe that indicated that I had just escaped a, probably, loud and raucous celebration. I walked in to find that a jazz concert with musicians from Brazil had just ended! And the surprises that Lucknow would throw at me continued. 

I had friends waiting for me there. And we were all hungry. Google maps showed us a promising place called “Desi Lounge” less than a kilometre away. As we walked slowly to the restaurant, I asked my friends, “Where are all the people?” And it struck them as well that the roads were very empty. As we walked, delicious food smells wafted out of the many houses. That could explain the empty roads! My friend suggested that we just walk into any house and ask to be fed; given how hospitable people are here, we would probably get a hearty meal. 

A little ahead we discovered the market; and the people; and then restaurants. We went into Desi Lounge and were stunned speechless. There was a birthday party in full swing for a screaming four-year old boy. The music system was on full volume wishing him a happy birthday through a Bollywood number. The cake was just about to be cut. On one side were a few women who were draped in gorgeous saris - heavy with zari work. On the other side a few men; I can’t seem to recall anything about them! Luckily, once the cake was cut and the song ended (after playing thrice at least), the group subsided around a table. Other than the piercing screams of the boy, we were not disturbed any more. 

The food when it came was superb; my mouth is watering as I type this the next morning. We had ordered Mutton Biriyani, Aloo dum Lucknowi (apparently the Banarsi is the spicier version!) and two chapatis. The waiter brought four instead. When I pointed that out, he smiled very sweetly and said, “They are hot, why don’t you enjoy them?” I fell in love with Lucknow at that point. I don’t know what I am going to find but this was a brilliant start. We ended the meal with gulab jamuns - they were so sweet and so delicious and so big, that we had to leave them unfinished. 

Coming back, we decided to take an electric vehicle home. The driver was clearly stoned and made for interesting conversation. The vehicle was apparently Chinese and could do 110 km after being charged for 3 hours. He pointed out that we Indians can’t do such innovations since we are so stuck in our family loops that we do no work. He told us that his hobby was “maarpeet” - violence. And when a dog barked insistently at the gate of Cafe Frangipani, asked us if he should eliminate it. We said a hurried no to him and went inside laughing. 

Our hosts had promised us an air cooler in the room and I was looking forward to some coolth finally. However, that was not to be. After asking a few more times the cooler was wheeled in, but it didn’t have any water in it. After asking a few more times, one of the staff brought a bucket, half full of water and painstakingly poured it into this massive water cooler through a tiny hole on top. Obviously that makes no difference, but I didn’t have the energy to do any more that night. 

The less I say about the room and my sleep, the better. And this morning I was given a really bad cup of coffee. It was made in a Madras filter and served in a davara tumbler, but was clearly just muck from the Gomti river. On AirBnB, one of the reviews said that Cafe Frangipani served the best coffee in Lucknow. 

Let me see what this day brings. 

20/Apr/2018 

After a restless night, I was up by 8, unable to put up with the mosquitos, hard bed and heat any longer. Right next to our room was the cafe. It was air-conditioned and cool. I sat there till about 10.30 working away since I had nothing else to do. Then I had breakfast - one large super aloo paratha. And worked away some more till my friends woke up at 11.30, shocked that they had slept so much. Clearly they were very tired - one of them had worked till 2.30 in the morning. 

Eventually we left the guest house at 3.30 and I was starving. I like to be fed every 4 hours - and we had passed 5!!! We hired an Ola cab for 4 hours 40 km. The taxi driver was a taciturn chap called Nafiz who spoke only when spoken to and then reluctantly, in monosyllables. My friend had put together all the suggestions received from his family and friends onto a word document and split it up day-wise, so that we now had an itinerary for each day. Today we were to explore Chowk - starting with, what else, food. 

Our first stop was Idrees Biriyani. When we got there, close to 4 pm, they were washing up the haandis. Ever optimistic, we asked them if there was even a little bit of biriyani left. No such luck. We then literally went around in circles before deciding to look for Tunday kababs - on the map it looked quite close, but the driver insisted it was a long walk. Finally he agreed to drop us off at the closest point. From there it was probably 200 m away. We confirmed on Google that this was the original one and walked in to some amazing smells. 

All they served was kababs and parathas and a lurid orange shirmal and heaps of chopped onions. My friend kindly asked on my behalf if they had anything vegetarian. Several heads turned in shock at that. The waiter, Dilawar, was quite flummoxed as well. I just shook my head in embarrassment and insisted it was ok. Dilawar lowered his voice and told us that the kababs were made of, you know, beef. We all shook our heads vigorously and agreed that we definitely wanted it. 

In a couple of minutes we were served with 3 plates of steaming hot beef kababs. I tentatively put a small piece in my mouth - I was astounded. Such a flavour of tastes burst onto my tongue, I was delighted. 

Normally I am a vegetarian. Many years ago, I had started eating meat - probably as an act of rebellion against my father. When I told him, he calmly asked me, “When there is so much else to eat, why should you kill animals?” That ended that bit of rebellion in me. Over the years, I have discovered that I still like the occasional beef and mutton. I find chicken quite tasteless. I am not able to eat pork and sea food of any type. I avoid eating meat for the most part, but when beef was banned, I had to start eating it again. And then I had decided that in Lucknow, I would taste everything. Excellent decision.

We had made good progress with the kababs before the parathas arrived. They were served hot and melted along with the kababs in the mouth. We then ordered a shirmal and I didn’t quite take to it. 

Sated, we stepped out and noticed that we were in the middle of a market selling clothes, perfumes and jewellery. Too happy to need to do shopping, we moved on to the Bada Imambara. On the way we stopped at the Rumi Darwaza - an imposing structure. My friend knew all about it and explained that Rumi here was not the quotable quotes guy, but it referred to Rome!!! Fascinating to listen to and think about how in 17something, there was a link between Istanbul and Lucknow and how they exchanged ideas, including that of architecture.

We were quite tired after we went around the Bada Imambara. So we just sat in the car and drove past the clock tower and the Chota Imambara, getting out to take some pictures and admire the structures. Both places need much more time - they were really exquisite structures.

We searched for Nazarana Chikan shop which had been highly recommended to us, but gave up amidst the hundreds of Chikan shops. Last stop was Sree Lassi corner where we downed rich lassis and packed up some choley bhature for dinner. 

I am still to see the kinds of crowds I had expected. Mall de Goa on a Sunday has more people!

We got back to the guest house to find that our hosts had done nothing to move us to the AC room that they had promised. I waited for over an hour before asking them when it would be done. Of course it would get done in ten or fifteen minutes. As time passed, I was getting increasingly tired and decided that before I lost my temper, I would book another hotel and move out. A friend had suggested Lebua. The booking was made in minutes. We ate dinner - and we all wished we were hungrier, so that we could appreciate it more, but even then it tasted so good! 

And I was off to Lebua. While I was going through the check-in formalities, something made me pull out my Travel Another India visiting card. I was promptly upgraded to a bigger room. I reached the room and fell asleep almost at once. What a relief to wake up in a quiet, clean room!

21/Apr/2018

Today we were to explore a lot more food. We realised that Sanatkada was on the way and decided to stop there. What a good decision! Sanatkada is a craft shop that has procured craft from around the country, mainly textile based; they have some beautiful fabric as well as home textiles and clothes. There are two women managing the store - Nagma and Nasreen. Both are very knowledgeable about craft and it was a pleasure to browse the shop and be able to understand what one is buying. 

My hotel, Lebua had blocks with beautiful designs displayed all over. The restaurant had a particularly superb collection displayed. The door handles at the main entrance were made of these blocks as well. I had assumed that these were used for printing as in Rajasthan or Gujarat. So I asked Nagma and she explained that these are used to print on the fabric before chikan embroidery is done. The dye used is washable; so once the work is done, the print disappears and all one is left with is the beautiful shadow work embroidery. 

The NGO arm of Sanatkada is the Sadhbhavna Trust. They work with women who have been through domestic violence. One of their team, Meena, came out to talk to us. She herself had had acid poured on her face. She was looking for financial support for women who are in jail - their family and friends have abandoned them and often they simply languish because they are forgotten by everyone and have no resources to seek help. Sanatkada also stocks some beautiful books about Lucknow and its culture. It includes a set of posters on feminists of Lucknow, a book of the same and a set of coasters. I had to get all three - I doubt I will put down a cup of coffee on Attia Hossain’s face, but I would love to display these prominently in my house. I could have spent a lot more time there, but then we had to move on in our quest for excellent food. Our destination was Aminabad. 

Our driver dropped us off at the entrance to an underground parking lot and told us to call him when we were done. The area was full of shops, covering much of the road - so it was a good idea to walk; if only it were not the second half of April and the temperature was not 40^oC! Google Maps showed Pandit Chaat to be about 650 m away. We followed the Map till we faced a row of shops where a street was supposed to be! Then we went back to the simple method of asking someone where Pandit Chaat was. We had overshot the place and so had to turn around. In doing that we realised that the shop we were standing at was simply called Laal Khamb - meaning Red Pillars - and sure enough the pillars were painted red. It was a haberdashery selling a bewildering range of laces and borders. Our tummies growled and we couldn’t browse there any longer. 

Pandit Chaat was just setting up for the day. So we went in search of Prakash Kulfi - the choices were simple - on a stick or in a plate or with sugarfree. I had half a kulfi on a plate while my friend had the same but with falooda. That was a bilious yellow noodly substance. 

We came out to quite happy, to a push-cart selling chikan work!!! I bought a kurta here at the same price I had bought a hankie in Sanatkada - but what a difference in quality of work! The push-cart owner opened out everything he had despite our pleas to stop. Finally we just walked away rudely while he kept up his spiel. 

Panditji was waiting for us - we started with golguppe. The flavour was light, tangy and tart altogether and we had several plates before ordering a plate of tikkis. I noticed that people had literally sprung up all around and the tikkis were vanishing fast. The surroundings were filthy with dozens of flies, but no one seemed to mind. We shared a plate of tikkis, licked out the leaf bowl it was served in and carried on. We were looking for Wahid’s Biriyani next. However, the heat got to us finally and in about 100m we decided to just go rest. I slept for 3 hours straight!

In the evening I went looking for Buttercup Bungalow and Tea Room. It sounded so quaint and lovely. I should have know better. I had some dry Red Velvet cake and a disgusting Kahwa tea before wandering out again. The owner was a young woman - I asked her if it was safe to walk around. She told me it was best to take a taxi even if it was close by. I noticed that the streets had no one walking. This was called Mall Avenue. There were a few people loitering around but they were all men. She pointed out to her house just 50 m away and said that when she goes home, her father sends a guard to walk with her - after all, this is Lucknow. The house opposite hers belonged to Mayawati. That explained things a bit more. I thought I would walk a bit, but I decided to be safe and called a rickshaw to go Ganjing. There is a street called, of course, MG Road, in Hazratganj. And loitering around there in the evening is called Ganjing. And it is THE thing to do in Lucknow. Apparently. The street reminded me of Brigade Road in Bangalore only about six times as wide. Unfortunately, the metro work was going on and the entire street was being dug up. 

For old time’s sake, I walked into the Khadi store - and met with supreme indifference. Again I noticed that there were no single women walking around. There were a few women walking in pairs, but for the most part there was at least one man in each group. I was a bit scared, but didn’t want to go back to the hotel. So I attached myself to random women through the rest of the evening. (My friends were visiting an uncle - I refused to go along.)

Maybe it was a false feeling of safety, but I did feel it. In this way, I went to Ram Asrey and had another plate of tikki - this was even better than Panditji’s. I think there was peas masala added to it. Walking back I got tempted into buying two pairs of jazzy slippers for Rs.300 each. Ah well. 

And I took the rickshaw back to my hotel - I met with a lot of stares and realised that actually there were not even many two-wheelers on the road. I got a bit stressed and was quite relieved to reach the hotel. I would really suggest that when you visit Lucknow, you have at least one other person with you. 

22/Apr/2018

The last day of my stay in Lucknow - I spent the morning working! On a Sunday! Anyway, work over, I took an e-vehicle to Ganj again. I wandered around window shopping - though it was immensely hot. I was waiting for my friends to join me. I finally gave up and went into Royal Cafe. We had this on our list to have basket chaat. I ordered one and sat back waiting and waiting. The chaat was massive and delicious. I think I need to use the thesaurus to find alternatives to delicious. And very filling! I hadn’t made much progress when I realised I couldn’t eat any more. So I read a magazine and offered the chaat to my friends to have when they reached. Between them, they couldn’t finish it either!

We were supposed to go buy itr or perfume, but the shop we had on our list was closed. Google Maps was again showing us roads that didn’t exist and the shops were marked in the wrong locations. It was just too hot to bother. Final stop was Moti Mahal for imarti and rabri. Imarti is what we call Jaangri in Madras. Did Jaangri come from Jahangiri? We ordered one plate - we were very full, but had to eat this. The waiter tried hard to convince us to order at least have a piece each since a plate would only have two pieces. I am glad we refused resolutely - the imartis were very large and very very sweet. The rabri took the edge off, but it was still too much. 

Next stop Sewa Chikan. The Self Employed Women’s Association in Lucknow is one of the oldest NGOs working with women, in India. So it was of interest to me whether I bought anything or not (ha ha!). The Map showed it in one place, the auto driver took us to another place. Neither was the original. After searching on Google a lot more, I found that the outlet would be closed on a Sunday. So we abandoned all hopes of shopping and went to see the Residency and its Museum. 

The Residency was built by the Nawab of Oudh in the 1700s and then given to the British. When the first war of independence took place in 1857, it suffered a lot and was destroyed. Around 3000 English people had gathered there for protection - not pleasant to think about what happened to them. So many of the buildings are in ruins - which adds to the beauty and poignancy of the place.

There is a Museum which has lithographs from the late 1800s which show a different Lucknow - very detailed etchings. They brought the era alive for me. I was comparing those etchings with the photographs I had taken - very interesting.

We sat for a while on one of the benches and watched the scene. We could imagine its splendour during its peak. And the sack that happened in 1857. In a way it reflects what happened to Lucknow itself. 

On our way back, the taxi driver took a few “wrong” turns and we got a rapid Lucknow tour. Parts of it are like Lutyen’s Delhi with wide avenues and graceful buildings. Even the newly constructed Government buildings blend in and are definitely not chrome and glass. The traffic is noisy with everyone honking, weaving in and out and trying to go first. There are very few people on two-wheelers or walking. I didn’t see too many public buses. There is a metro that everyone is proud of since it is seen as a sign of “development” and “progress”, not a waste of money for a city this size. Then there are cycle rickshaws, e-rickshaws, auto-rickshaws, and taxis through Ola and Uber. All the rickshaws rip you off since you are a tourist. I am yet to see the crowds I expected in Lucknow. I guess I just didn’t visit the right places.

At breakfast I saw a wide range of pickles laid out. I tried the raw jackfruit one - quite nice. And I finally got a good cup of coffee. But hey, who comes to Lucknow for its coffee? 

The End.