The Hindu : National : Cutting down on culinary excesses

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Saturday, Sep 18, 2004

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National

Cutting down on culinary excesses

By Shujaat Bukhari

SRINAGAR, SEPT. 17. Kashmir's traditional chefs, known for creating the famed feast known as Wazwan, now advocate moderation. They say they will cut down on the quantities of meat they serve at wedding feasts, for they want to help families save money.

For the last two months the Wazas have restricted the number of courses at the feasts. "We wanted to end the levels of wastage. The number of dishes had crossed 50 in some cases," said Ghulam Nabi, the head of the chefs' union. Kashmir's rich had taken Wazwan to new heights of extravagance, he added. The chefs now restrict the number of dishes to seven.

"There were many families who couldn't pay up after the wedding. We took the step to help them,'' he said. In trying to live up to the Joneses, people were raising loans. It would often take them years to pay off the debts. The wedding feasts, marked by culinary excesses, lasted days and there were a thousand or more guests. Now, instead of up to 900 kg of mutton, the chefs use up to 200 kg.

Move appreciated

People across Kashmir have appreciated the move. This is in contrast to the reaction to the State Government's decision taken in July 2004 to restrict the number of guests at wedding feasts, which many believe was taken in "haste and without applying the mind." It was withdrawn after protests from Kashmiris who said that given their extended families they could not restrict guest lists to 125.

Now the hosts are happy at being able to invite as many people as they like but having an excuse not to provide massive feasts. Hotel owners and mutton sellers have accepted the move too. "We are happy to accept it as people like the decision," a hotelier said.

The happiest among the hosts are the ones whose daughters are getting married. "It has helped me a lot. The wedding of my daughter was a lot less expensive,'' said Haleema, a widow in Srinagar.

The chefs' move seems to carry more weight than the Government order. The association that is leading the campaign has members from all districts of Kashmir. They send teams to conduct spot checks and track down violators. "Most of our colleagues are sticking to the menu we've set,'' said one of them. Violators have been fined Rs. 5,000 to Rs. 10,000. "Besides, we will boycott them socially,'' he said.

The State Government, which could not enforce its earlier order, is happy too. So should be herds of sheep.

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