Idli Vs Upma

IDLI AND UPMA ? A STUDY IN CONTRAST



The ubiquitous Idli has always been enhancing its marketability through value additions. Idli gets an AAA rating for any breakfast and its absence, gives an impression of emptiness, even on a crowded table.



Where does lie Idli's charm? Its appeal is essentially to the masses. It welcomes even the uninitiated. Being a steam boiled serve, the sick have access to it. Hospitals of every description have Idli in their eligibility list. Another great quality of Idli is its sociability. It mixes freely with any edible specie though it has well chosen friends.



Arguably, Mulagapodi (a red chillies dominated chutney powder) and Idli are made for each other. To moisturize mulagapodi, a little oil is added and a mouthful of idli soaked in mulagapodi would provide an excitement that any sensory pleasure would feel shy of. If there is a great schism in West Bengal between the supporters of Mohan Bagan and East Bengal Clubs, the South is divided between the protagonists of mulagapodi and chutney (the wet variety). Chutney loyalists would argue endlessly about the efficacy of green chillies and grams over red chillies and varieties of dals. For them, an Idli without chutney is like reading Shobha De bereft of her punch lines. Sambar and its variant Gothsu also stake equal claim, but their role is secondary, though their appeal is extensive. Mulagopodi and Chutney alone lend legitimacy to Idli's appeal and acceptability.



Though the Ambi's Cafes and Rama Iyer's joints in the deep south had provided the softest Idlies, sustained the Idli's social status and provided it the 'local habitation and a name', it is really the Nayaks and Kamaths and Shettys who have widened its appeal and given it the status of a National Breakfast (the desi version of bread and butter) and in that process, robbed it of its original purity, as one day Internationals have done to the test matches.



A good quality Idli will have the right proportion of rice and ulud dal (generally accepted ratio 3:1), perfectly mixed and made into a diluted dough in a wet grinder and added with adequate salt. As the dilution degrees of the dough are to be different, Rice and Ulud Dal are to be ground separately. If the Idli is not pure white and flower like and feather touch soft, purists would pillory the man prepared it. They can also trace the defect in the 'process' or product mix by merely looking at the dough. Variation in the ingredient ratio, imperfect timing in taking out the dough from the grinder and the quality of the rice itself (a good smell -free boiled rice is the preferable variety) would take idli nearer to Dhokla with deleterious consequences.



If idli has a seductive charm, Upma in contrast, suffers in silence. It is considered to be the ugly duckling of the family and hence is denied marital pleasures. Upma's main raw material is rava, which is made out of relegated rice or wheat ? a congenital defect indeed.



Its preparation needs extra skill and yet it remains unappreciated. Artists dress it up with tomato, carrot, green chillies , onion and others, and yet, one looks at it, as if it is unclad.



'I could prepare only upma today', a middle-aged mami would say apologetically. My daughter-in-law has just started preparing Upma', a sass would say shrugging her shoulders. 'For Meenakshi's grand daughter's first birthday they served only upma for the breakfast', two elderly women would recall with an intention to hurt. 'Though Muhurtham is only at 11, you come before 9, or else you will get upma only', my friend would warn me in advance. Idli is earmarked only for the early birds, as its supply is limited and consumption, catastrophic. Even at restaurants in Chennai and down South, Idli and Pongal would find pride of place in breakfast orders and the man ordering upma would do so hesitatingly, feeling, he has shrunken in size, though, on quality, Upma would have scored over idli.

Idli is also invariably included in the checklist of all travel plans. Packed in different ways ? with Molagapodi spread or chutney in separate plastic bag or gothsu in bottle, Idli would enjoy its travel, whereas travel is taboo for upma. If some one unpacks upma during his journey, pairs of eyes would pierce him to pieces as if he is travelling without ticket. Another genetic advantage for Idli is its slightly longer shelf life. Poor upma is condemned to perish prematurely; perhaps it has incurred the wrath of a Rishi.



The efforts of the Nayaks, Shettys and Kamaths are of no avail in elevating the status of upma As the efforts in perfecting it is not recognised, the end result is looked upon with indifference. Upma only has a poor consolation, as its cousin in the sweeter specie, 'Kesari' is well appreciated for its looks, even if it is prepared by an obscure cook, and is allotted a place beside Idli, on tiffin plates, in Tamilian functions.



And finally if Shelley sang in an optimistic tone "if winter comes, can spring be far behind?', we Tamilians lament in our leisure, 'if Idli goes, can upma be far behind'?



IDLI AND UPMA - A STUDY IN CONTRAST
Created: Wednesday, December 24, 2008 7:52 AM