M. Abbu Bhai’s kitchen at Tondiarpet has three pitch-black cauldrons of oil roaring to life as the firewood picks up heat. Onions, chillies, and whole spices sputter while the meat waits patiently for its turn. It is a relatively small order today — biryani, chicken 65, ennai kathrikai, and a sweet made of bread for a birthday party. The aroma entices even cats in the area as they promptly poke their head through the gates of his kitchen. This is the sign and a promise of a decadent, sumptuous meal.
In a week, the kitchen, like many others in the city, will function non-stop leading up to the Lok Sabha election scheduled for April 19. Thousands of kilos of chicken and mutton biryani will be prepared from here, on orders from political parties. After all, the biryani is a meal of celebration after every election — a signal of respite for cadre who would have finished their pre-poll duties; to voters who would have picked their candidate; and polling officials who would have tried to sneak in a few bites amid their stressful day. Enquiries have already begun trickling in from the DMK, the AIADMK, the NTK, the Congress and the DMDK. “However, things will get finalised only a week before the election,” says Abbu Bhai, a third-generation biryani master. According to him, till about 15 years ago, biryani in Chennai was synonymous with Royapuram and the occasional plush hotel in Central and South Chennai.
It was also not associated with elections until the early 2000s, adds documentary film-maker and commentator, Kombai S. Anwar. “The biryani is a ubiquitous favourite for people across class backgrounds and was employed as an easy bait to get voters to the polling booth. More importantly, it is easy to pack. It is probably why it became the meal of the election,” he says.
“Who would want to eat sambar rice on such a hot summer day? It is also very inconvenient,” says K. Thamin Basha, another biryani master from Old Washermenpet. He recalls an incident in Madurai in August 2023 where tonnes of tamarind rice was dumped due to its taste. “The biryani isn’t wasted like that though. Even the vegetarian version of the meal, the Brinji rice, is well loved because of how flavourful the rice is,” he says.
Today, the geography of biryani distribution has spread across the city instead of arriving only from the Northern parts of Chennai.
A. Ramhan, another biryani master whose kitchen is in Old Washermenpet, says that the distribution is decentralised now and there is a wide price range starting at ₹50. “Each area has shops and restaurants selling biryani to members of political parties. The biggest orders tend to come from the ruling party during each season. The quality and the number of pieces per plate cannot be assured at very low rates. The flavour of a good biryani lies in the quality of meat and rice used. But everyone knows that the cadre will look to cut costs during election time,” he says.
As the brinjal side gets prepared. | Photo Credit: Thamodharan B
There are over 600 biryani masters living in Royapuram alone, who usually only take orders instead of establishing hotels and restaurants.
“We know what goes behind bulk cooking. A lot of our knowledge comes from learning from the environment and seeing our family and friends cook. I began at the age of 12,” says Abbu Bhai, a third-generation biryani master.
“We have cooked for the Chief Minister’s (M. K. Stalin) birthday in the past. The number of parcels has risen from 5,000 to about 20,000 over the years,” says Abbu Bhai. This, he adds, has allowed him to build credibility. Now, Abbu Bhai has been in talks with some functionaries of political parties including the DMK and the AIADMK for April 19, despite quoting a higher price than many competitors (he charges ₹250 for a box while the rest charge between ₹100 and 150). Everyone is aware of the quality he brings to the table, he says.
The biryani box from these masters is standard and will involve a chicken, mutton or veg biryani; an eggplant gravy, onion raita and a heady bread sweet made with sugar, ghee and studded with cashews. Each kilogram of rice will be matched with a kilogram and a half of meat.
At M. Abbu Bhai’s kitchen. | Photo Credit: Thamodharan B
Years of working around hot cauldrons of fire and chopping several hundred kilograms of onion, has made Abbu Bhai steely-eyed. Not a tear is shed despite the heat and smoke. “We are ready for the elections. It is just another day,” he says.
A celebration indeed. Abbu Bhai says that the vegetarians will not be forgotten. Brinji rice’, the veg version of the dish will also be served on polling day. Despite the prep in advance, the masters remind us that they have seen orders larger than this where mountains of biryani have been prepared. The election is just another day for them.
