Udupi, a small town in Karnataka, has always punched above its weight in matters of food and faith. Home to the famed Krishna temple, this town takes cooking very seriously, as after all, when you are feeding God, hygiene isn’t optional. Unlike other deities content with incense and offerings, Krishna is a connoisseur. As a child, he allegedly had a penchant for stealing butter, setting the stage for what we might cheekily call India’s first food scandal. To satisfy Krishna’s discerning palate, locals crafted an array of delicacies, so much so that some even claim the mighty masala dosa was born here. While historians might dismiss this as culinary folklore, dosa lovers across India couldn’t care less. Today, this crispy, golden creation enjoys rockstar status, gracing menus from Udupi to Ladakh’s frigid heights, as even our army has ensured.
In its heyday, Udupi restaurants were bastions of Brahminical culinary purity, serving “Satvik” vegetarian food accompanied by filter coffee strong enough to knock out jet lag. Sweetmeats of every shape, colour, and size tempted the faithful, turning these eateries into cultural landmarks across India. One such legendary joint near King’s Circle in Mumbai counts among its patrons none other than Raj Kapoor and Dhirubhai Ambani, which suggests that even titans of industry and cinema need a good dosa fix. Fast forward to present-day Delhi: Sonia Gandhi’s clan recently caused a culinary sensation by ordering chole bhature at a Rajiv Chowk eatery. This sparked a food pilgrimage, as people flocked to try the dish available for pocket change on street corners. Not to be outdone, Mumbai’s own gastronomic scene got its dose of stardust when Amitabh Bachchan and son Abhishek descended upon a venerable Udupi establishment, set up 80 years ago. The third-generation owner of the restaurant was sceptical when informed that Bollywood royalty was on its way, but scepticism gave way to shock as 80-odd people, with security personnel and personal staff in tow, stormed the eatery. What followed was a dosa degustation of epic proportions, with Bachchan Senior sampling bite-sized versions of every dosa, idli, and chutney, including the gastronomical delight, gun powder, on offer.
The legend goes that Big B left thoroughly satisfied, paving the way for what might soon become Mumbai’s next food craze, “Bachchan Platters.” If former US President Bill Clinton can have a namesake meal in Delhi, why not Amitabh in Mumbai? Whether the superstar returns or not, the damage is done: diners will now demand whatever “Bachchan Sir” had. And so, in its humble way, Udupi continues to write new chapters in India’s celebrity-studded culinary history, one crispy dosa at a time.
