MANGO DELIGHT
LT COL NOEL ELLIS
02/IV/2022
March has just gone by and we were remembering our tenure in the previous location in Raigad District of Maharashtra, where by now mango season is in full swing. This ‘mangoey’ thought got triggered when we saw mangoes being sold on a hand cart yesterday. The very sight of the variety called ‘Safeda’ made me jam the brakes of my car, only to move on, as over the years we had got used to mangoes of a different kind and flavour.
Those ripe, juicy, aromatic mangoes of that area called Hafooz or Alphonso used to fill up the pantry space by the ‘peti’. Our own tree in the backyard would bear fruit like mads. Friends would gift some, our colony Horticulture department would send some, then we ourselves would go around the villages sampling from mango orchards to find the best quality fruit. If relatives would be visiting us, the quality could never be compromised.
A mango is a mango I thought to myself. How could I discriminate or be so selective and choosy? Being a mango lover, it didn’t matter till the time a nice, ripe, yellow and sweet-smelling mango was on your plate. It was a different issue that you asked a vendor ‘Meetha hai’? He invariably would reply ‘shakkar se bhi zyada’ (more than sugar). Na ho to paisa wapas (if they are not sweet, you can take your money back), which every vendor is bound to say and you get carried away.
The truth is revealed when you squeeze the mango from all sides, till one is sure it is a fine pulp inside its cover. The place from where the stem is attached, a whitish clear liquid would ooze out, indicating that its time now to suck out the juices from the mango. Traditionally, the first squeeze would be discarded as we were told that it causes pimples. It became a habit and still continues.
The taste of the pudding is in the eating they say. One would then pinch off the top of the mango and shove it in the mouth and give a mighty squeeze, so that the juices would surround the mouth. As the pulp would flow, one eye would wink automatically. The joy and smile on the face would turn into a ‘Lalita Pawar’ kind of frown when the words of the vendor turn out to be a lie. Sour is a mild word. The whole family winking at each other trying to locate the culprit who purchased them. One couldn’t even return the mangoes and claim your money back.
With Hafooz it was never the case. They were sublime. The vendors would tell us to keep them for a week or ten days before they would get fully ripe. Some used to be hand picked from the tree and some would be ‘Tapka’ (fallen from the tree). They were the ones to watch out for. The smart ladies who used to vend would mix a few tapkas which used to turn out bad from inside.
Dadar market in Mumbai is famous as people que up to purchase the first lot of Hafooz at a premium price going up to Rs 30000/- a dozen. People were mad over mangoes to such a limit was a little shocking. In the rural areas they could pick up a truckload for that cost.
These days even vegetables are sold in supermarkets. The prices are reasonable and the variety displayed attracts you to pick up much more than your bags can hold. We entered one yesterday and found Hafooz in the main fruit display. How we drooled? The rates generally are pasted on the shelf but asking the salesman was getting a little embarrassing. In Jodhpur the prices of Hafooz would be comparable with Dusseri in Maharashtra. Still for old times sake we picked up a dozen.
They were unpacked, washed, the tag removed and stowed in the fridge, as we plan to have a mango feast this afternoon. With changing times, it was not in a bucket full of cold water with dozens of mangoes floating in it, was the norm. These days doctor’s restrictions make you assume that one mango is a bucket full.
How we envy our daughter who has already received a few Peti’s full from her classmates who have their own Hafooz orchards. One feels like flying there just for the mangoes. We do miss the good times we had, when from pickles, to marmalade, to aam papar, to aam panna, aam ras, to jam, to aamchoor, you name it, all was made inhouse from the mangoes our four trees used to bless us with.
Will it be worth going back to old times 'Mango Delight'? I wonder!!!!!!!!!
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JAI HIND
© NOEL ELLIS
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