An eatery with a difference

Published in Newsline

An eatery with a difference

By Shanaz Ramzi

   Tucked in an obscure street off Chaudhry Khaliq-uz-Zaman Road, surrounded by apartment buildings on either side and with a huge parking area in front of it, is the newly opened East End, an eatery with a difference – in more ways than one. Although not located in one of the popular food streets of Karachi – in fact, the location seems to be a highly unlikely one for an eatery – it has already become pretty popular with foodies.

   The name of the restaurant too, belies its ambience, and for that matter the genre of food available within. For while East End seems to suggest a restaurant catering to English cuisine, the rugged décor of the eatery with its mosaic, ethnic tiles giving way to a pebbled flooring, low wooden roof, large indoor plants, walls boasting rickshaw prints, jharoka windows acting as partitions, and dim lighting courtesy low hanging lamps over each table loudly proclaim the restaurant to be every bit Pakistani.

   Hardly does one recover from taking in the elegance of the rustic décor that the menu takes the first-time visitor by surprise. Limited in its selection, and basically comprising Bohra specialties, the restaurant offers a choice of three basic kinds of five-course menus – and within each kind or group one can choose from a selection of three to four entrees. Our party of four decided to order three of the five-course meals to share among us: two belonging to the same group but with different entrees, and one from a separate group. Basically, each of the five-course meals comprises a drink – served in miniscule glasses, but you can ask for refills – with two types of starters, an entrée, another drink, and a dessert followed by tea.

   With complementary detox water – for the uninitiated, this is the latest rage among health-freaks, comprising water that has lemon wedges and mint leaves floating in it – setting the tone of our meal, we were individually presented the first course consisting of mirchi and ghatia served with imli aur gur ka pani. Unusual to say the least, the appetizer was appealing with the ghatia fresh and crisp and the mirchi surprisingly not chilli. The drink on the other hand was a little too sweet for all our tastes. The second course in two of our orders comprised Dahi Wagarh which was basically a delectable potato and eggplant dumplings dish with mint yogurt, chutney and paprti, while from the other order it consisted of aloo papri with imli chutney. The latter, far from the aloo chaat we were expecting, comprised mashed potatoes sandwiched between papris and served with tamarind chutney. Needless to say, it was consumed in no time. The third course that came with our menu selections comprised aloo chops (mashed potato cutlets stuffed with mince), shami kebabs – both served with green chutney – and stuffed puris. The latter were small puris with three different fillings – jaggery, potato and tomato. While the latter two were appetizing enough, the former was too rich for my blood.

   The main courses we opted for were prawn karahi served with garlic naan, Bohra biryani meeri gosht, and raan roast in dry red baste with daal chawal and palida. While the prawn karahi was delicious, we wish the service of the naans could have been more efficient for although we had been assured that we would get as many hot naans as we required, they took so long in coming in spite of our constantly asking for them, that the karahi got cold. In fact, if we have to pin-point the weakest link in the set-up, it would have to be the service, for we found we had to repeatedly ask for things and wait endlessly to be served.

   The Bohra biryani was a delicious chicken biryani dish with lots of saffron to enhance its flavour, while the meeri gosht was liver and kidney masala. While I personally found the raan not tender enough, the others enjoyed it. However, the daal chawal served with it was delicious and reminiscent of home-cooked masoor pulao -- with just the right amount of chillies and masala. The palida was a thin lentil dish akin to sambhar, with pumpkin chunks floating in it, which was also tasty.

   The next course comprised a different set of drinks, again served in miniscule glasses, so we managed to get a taste of all that was on offer. From among the three that were served to us – namkeen lassi, mint shot and a coconut-cream drink – we found the latter two very refreshing.

   The dessert choices were surprisingly limited and not too exciting. There was a choice of two – kulfi/falooda, and ghandum halwa with cream, nuts, and pineapples – need I add that they too were served in small glasses?  While the former was nothing to write home about, the latter turned out to be more appetizing than it sounded, but still not really what we were looking for to end a good meal.  

   The final offering in our wholesome meal was a choice of kehwa and tea served in their quintessential glasses, which brought an overall pleasant experience to a warm end. Definitely worth a try, so go for it!

Far from a horror-filled experience

Far from a horror-filled experience

By Shanaz Ramzi  (published in Dawn Images last Sunday)

  

   Attending a press conference held in Dubai for the film ‘Creature 3D’ starring no other than our very own Imran Abbas opposite the sultry Bipasha Basu, for which HUM Network is the Pakistani media partner, I couldn’t help but feel proud at being a Pakistani. For the first time, I was actually witnessing a home-grown star that could sit next to a Bollywood established actor, and not only manage to hold his own, but even steal the show!

   For what transpired at the press conference, which began two hours after its scheduled time and had more star-struck fans wishing to take pictures with the duo than journalists present, was an impressive display of confidence, showmanship and genuineness on the part of the debutant film actor, Abbas.

   The conference started with a short promo of the film and comments from Bipasha Basu, Bhushan Kumar (music and film producer) and Imran Abbas on their experiences of being part in a 3D horror movie. Replying to a query on why she was taking up horror films which still don’t have a sizable audience in our part of the world, Basu responded “Well, supernatural and horror is a genre that is a multi-million dollar industry world-wide, particularly for Hollywood films.  Admittedly, in India it is a relatively new genre but for that very reason it is also very exciting, because it means you are doing something different, and if it is lucrative, then why not? Also, I felt this genre could be explored in many ways. It offers a lot of scope to actors, so it’s a win-win situation for me.”

   I wondered how Imran Abbas would respond when asked if he felt he was directly competing with Pakistani television super-hero Fawad Khan rather than with Bollywood heroes since both their debut films were being launched practically simultaneously. Thank God for this new crop of young, educated stars that the response was a far cry from one Meera would have given. He calmly replied that the genre of his movie is completely different from that of Fawad’s – as his is experimental while Fawad’s is basically a rom-com – so there is no question of competing with each other. In fact, he did not feel he was competing against any of the umpteen established Bollywood heroes either as very few had taken on such a role. He adds “This is something so new for me that I am just excited about it without worrying about anybody else!”

   We have frequently heard Indian celebrities visiting Pakistan speak of our warmth and hospitality, and how much they were made to feel at home here, so it was refreshing to hear Abbas speak about a similar experience in India. “I was made to feel so comfortable both on and off set, especially by my co-star, Bipasha Basu, from day one that I felt like I was in my home-town. We enjoyed great chemistry both on-set and off-set and she made me feel like a friend from the word go.”

   Speaking about her satisfaction level with regard to where her career has taken her in these last 14 years, and whether these are the kind of movies she had wanted to do, Basu states, “I am extremely happy with my progress and the fact that in spite of having being around for well over a decade, my audiences still like to see me is highly gratifying. I had never had a plan in place, but also never wanted to be part of a stale system of work that people keep doing. That is not to say that I haven’t ever done those kinds of films, but the excitement level has to be there for me. I have found that whenever I have done work that is removed from the norm, it has always worked for me. So, yes, I love the way my career has shaped.”

   Notorious for her heavy-work out sessions Bipasha Basu admits she has had to work out a lot more for this film, because of the demands of the role.  She reminisces laughing, “I used to get up at five am every day to work out for two hours, and keep hoping that my hero would join me but no luck! Also, because the movie is action-packed and the role a highly energetic one, there was a lot of running, falling, cutting and bruising on a daily basis. It was freezing and drizzling all the time; we would have to do the same shot over and over again so we would have to be very patient and focused and just follow Vikram’s instructions as everything was in his head, and we had to just trust him.”

   When asked if he had ever imagined in his wildest dreams that he would launch his film career with a bombshell like Basu, Abbas replies candidly and without any airs “No! I had been expecting someone new to star with me, not someone so established like Bipasha who is loved round the globe. When I found out she would be my co-star, I was really excited, and still am!”

   Basu chips in “He is really sweet! I must tell you, the first time we met was on Skype. He mentioned our on-set and off-set chemistry; well, let me tell you we used to be like kids off-set, playing Ludo – very mature! Vikram used to insist I was winning by cheating, which was not true!”

   When I ask her if she would be interested in acting in Pakistani movies, and if she had seen any, Basu responds “I watched a lot of Pakistani serials when I was growing up but I have to admit that all the information I have about Pakistan is thanks to my friend Imran. He told us how deeply we are loved there. And he found out that I love mithai, so he would keep sending them to me to putao me! So, yes, I would love to come to Pakistan and work there if there is an opportunity, but my only point of contact at this point in time is Imran Abbas.”

   Responding to my query of whether she feels at all scared when acting in horror films, considering her reputation of watching this genre with her eyes shut pretty much through the film, she responds “I get sleepless nights and feel scared in my own house. Every time I take on a role in a horror flick I think it will help me overcome my fears like the character I portray, but it never happens!”

   Abbas chips in “The challenging thing about this movie though, was that the Creature was never there before us on the set – we always had to imagine it, and keep our eye-line at a level that would make the viewer feel we were actually staring at him. I am sure you won’t feel at all when you see the movie that the Creature wasn’t in front of us!”

   Nodding her agreement Basu adds “Yes, this is one of the most difficult roles to perform, when your protagonist is not before you. We had to show fear of the same magnitude and react to what we imagined it would sound like, look like and do.”

   The conference, organized by Dream Advertising and Ministry of Events ended with Imran Abbas singing live a song from the movie, leaving everyone totally floored and mesmerized. A proud moment for Pakistanis, indeed!