New Delhi: As you walk around Delhi’s iconic Jama Masjid, a 17th century monument built by the fifth Mughal emperor Shahjahan, stimulating aroma of kebabs and tikka sizzling over chargrills besiege your senses from all sides, leaving you dazed.
Steam and smell of authentic biryani, gravies and curries emanating from hundreds of eateries in the vicinity of Jama Masjid dominate the air, reaching as far as the sprawling courtyard of the majestic mosque.
The spice-infused atmosphere puts you in a trance, even as you are still struggling to overcome from the mesmerising effects of Delhi’s most stunning edifice in full glow.
An architectural wonder, Jama Masjid is the centre of cultural and heritage pilgrimage, with thousands of tourists and heritage lovers visiting the Mughal masterpiece daily, feasting their eyes and satiating their souls with the serenity and symmetry it offers.
However, no visit to Jama Masjid would be complete without catering to your delectable palate. The walk around the Jama Masjid is like the culminating ritual of an elaborate spiritual journey.
By the time you finish admiring and appreciating the Mughal mastery over built aesthetics, your senses would have been completely disarmed after having faced the relentless attacks from the savoury forces around you.
By now, you would be starving and craving to indulge in all the temptations your senses would have been mercilessly subjected to. As a poor victim of the sensory assaults you would have no choice but to cave in.
Cradle of Mughlai food
Having completed the rituals of the spirit, it’s time to dive deep into the pilgrimage of the senses.
As a cradle of Mughlai food, a culinary variety deriving its name from the great Mughals, Old Delhi exceeds the imagination of every food lover.
If there is any food pilgrimage in India, it definitely is in Shahjahanabad, the erstwhile Mughal capital which is now known as Old Delhi.
The passion with which connoisseurs seek food here, the relish with which they dig into the meals and the visible markers of bliss this culinary exercise leaves on their faces, are nothing less than the fervour a pilgrim exhibits on the way to spiritual elevation.
The evenings around the Urdu Bazaar and Matia Mahal areas of Old Delhi, the localities opposite the Gate Number One of Jama Masjid, wear a festive look throughout the year. But, it is specially decked up during the holy month of Ramadan.
Obviously, Ramadan comes with its added blessings, which in this context means increased footfall in an area that is already bursting through the seems.
Old Delhi is a bustling heritage city, built by Shahjahan and developed further by successive Mughal rulers, adding new colours, characteristics and dimensions to an already vibrant mosaic.
Having been the capital of one of the most cosmopolitan and culturally sophisticated empires of its time, Shahjahanabad has been a magnet, attracting a diverse range of people, cultures, art and aesthetics.
From the synthesis of these diverse elements and influenced by various sociopolitical factors over the last 400 years, is born the culture and cuisine of Old Delhi.
It is said that the way people eat and build conveys everything about their history and culture.
Though, Old Delhi is now a completely different animal - heaving, sighing and crumbling - from what the great Mughals had envisaged, it still reflects on its central and original character as a cultural potpourri and a refuge for the wandering souls.
Punctuated by a range of architectural masterpieces, the highlight of which are the Red Fort and Jama Masjid, Shahjahanabad is now hardly a shadow of its former self. But it is a shadow that is still highly embellished.
Though the Mughals have long gone and with them the patronage for all things refined, some remnants of their culture can still be found in Old Delhi in the form of its lip-smacking cuisine.
Although much evolved, the local food culture is an unmistakable legacy of the Mughals, with most of the dishes on offer primarily derived from the kitchens of the Timurid princes and nobles. However, over the years many new varieties have been added to the existing range, with local master chefs coming up with new iterations of old items every now and then.
There is no doubt that the roots of biryani, tikka, nihari, korma, burra, kebab, falooda and the shahi tukda have the Mughal influence, but the way they are all served today is definitely garnished by the modern touch, catering to contemporary palates.
Spoilt for choice
Shahjahanabad may not be the capital of Hindustan anymore, but the sheer range and quality of food suggests that the area around the Jama Masjid is definitely the food capital of India, offering a range of culinary choices that a food-lover would need several visits to explore fully.
From the grilled chicken that is steeped in dollops of cream and butter served by Aslam’s to nihari that is slow cooked overnight and served with a specially baked flat bread called shermal; from mutton burra that is laced with a riot of spices, to the mild and subtle signature biryani of Karim’s, Delhi’s most famed Mughlai restaurant with a history of more than 100 years, a connoisseur is spoilt for choices in Shahjahanabad. Not to forget the many delightful iterations of sweets and drinks, including the hot and succulent shahi tukda served with homemade mango icecream at Cool Point in Matia Mahal.
After having taken this rollercoaster of a food ride, if you don’t end it with the nourishing finality of Mohabbat Ka Sherbet (The Sorbet of Love), then you would certainly miss an intrinsic part of the modern Mughlai melange and a much-needed indulgence to ensure all the food is digested.
However, among all its offerings what stands out most about Old Delhi is its affordability and generosity. Not only is its food culture easy on the pocket, it is also easy on the poor.
As you walk around, jostling for space and harried by choices, street dwellers and poor residents of Old Delhi huddled outside major eateries waiting to be served or enjoying their meals is a common sight.
The longstanding traditions of Shahajahanabad going all the way back to the Mughals ensure no soul here goes hungry, whether you can afford the food or not.
Shajahanabad is a place where you have everything for everyone, food for soul and nourishment for body is equally served. It is a place that satiates your hunger, both spiritual and material!
-- Shafaat Shahbandari is a freelance journalist based in Bengaluru and Founder-Editor Thousand Shades of India
