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[Rteacher]

I'm posting this article by news reporter in Salt Lake City mainly because her enthusiastic descriptions of sumptuous Indian foods made me really hungry for some. (Actually, back in September I cooked a similar midnight feast in Seoul for Krishna's birthday at Fraser Suites...)

by Amber Billingsley, The Catalyst Magazine, Salt Lake City

...My most recent obsession is with Indian food. I am lost in the land of curries and kormas, pooris and samosas. I can't get enough of the sweet and spicy flavors and the complex spices that characterize that cuisine. My dreams are peppered with the aromas of cardamom, cinnamon and turmeric. I've even managed to slip some chai masala spice into the scones that I bake in the morning at the bakery where I work.

It all started with a story assignment, a Sunday afternoon at the Tower Theatre featuring Bollywood film and treats from Curry in a Hurry. These film parties happen every couple of months. I had no idea what a Bollywood film was, but always want to be where the good food is. I invited along my friend Cassidy who had recently returned from a trip to India and was eager for a chance to revel in some of the memories. We met outside the theater doors, from which the rich scent of spices emerged. Cassidy reminisced about the food she ate while in northern India - the fresh mangoes, the hot, oily food from the street vendors, the homemade paneer (cheese), and also about the children she met at the school that her university class was helping to build, and the families with whom they stayed and shared meals.

The film was a sensory roller-coaster of lush landscapes, unreasonably gorgeous people, sporadic and somewhat alarming song and dance numbers, and montages that celebrate the gorgeousness of the characters. All of this mixed with some damn fine romantic comedy and tear-jerking drama. Midway, at intermission, Cassidy and I held on to each other's arms and gasped, "wow!" to each other as we made our way to the lobby for samosas and chai.

Our samosas were hot and flaky little turnovers of fried dough stuffed with softly spiced potato, peas and onion. We dipped our savory treats into sauces of sweet tamarind and cool and pungent cilantro. The chai was spicy, milky and sweet, complementing the mild heat of the samosas.

The lights went down and the audience squealed loudly in unison as the too-pretty-for-words hero and heroine appeared onscreen. The rest of the film was just as funny and sweet as the first half, showing an ideal world where nothing and no one is ugly, mean or dirty. The film reminded me of Technicolor musicals of the 1940s, when people went to the movies to escape the realities of war, with the same sense of fantasy and optimism.

We left the theatre elated, teased and tantalized, eager to extend our experience with even more Indian food. We made plans to meet at the Krishna Temple in Spanish Fork the following weekend for the Transcendental Birthday Party of Lord Krishna, a very significant spiritual holiday observed in the Hindu religion.

The temple sat atop a dark hillside, glowing with a zillion tiny lights, an unexpected palace of exotica in rural Spanish Fork. Cassidy, my friend Patricia and I removed our shoes outside the arched temple doors and made our way up a flight of stairs to where we heard music and laughter. We came upon richly costumed actors in the midst of a play about the birth of Lord Krishna. An Indian dancer by the name of Shreelata Suresh came in from San Francisco for the evening. We were completely captivated, both by the ancient dance form she performed and by her beauty.

Devotees of Krishna chanted, clapped, drummed, sang and whirled themselves into religious ecstasy while an endless line of people passed by a figurine of Lord Krishna and bathed him with sweetened water from a golden goblet. This culminated at the stroke of midnight with flowers and rose petals showering the altar and a heightened pitch of chanting, drumming and bell-ringing.

By this time we were wonderfully dizzy from the spectacle, and also famished. We made our way down to the dining room; I almost cried at the sight of an unbelievable buffet of vegetarian Indian food. There were creamy turmeric potatoes, spicy chickpeas in a tomato sauce, savory little pastries, chunks of paneer bathed in silky spinach, saffron-flecked basmati rice, bowls of fresh fruit, crispy lentil papadum, and my favorite, sweet semolina pudding with blueberries and pineapple. We ate in silent bliss and drank cups of mango lassi, thanking Shree Krishna for sharing this divine birthday feast with us.

After bathing in the intricate flavors of this divine cuisine, I realize my obsession has transcended to a lasting love. These experiences have created an indelible mark on my palate - they have become a part of me. I will seek out these flavors again and again, and each time they will conjure rich images in my mind of ringing bells, benevolent gods, whirling jewel-colored sarees, handsome leading men, sacred incense, and happy endings.

[Rteacher]

Here's the ad for the festival the reporter went to (hey, this thread is struggling - I'm grasping at straws to keep it going for a couple days...)

[joe_doufu]

Rteacher, do you have any recommendations for Bollywood movies or Bollywood-style movies (I've seen "bride + prejudice") that are accessible to the english speaking crowd?

[dogbert]

Why are Indian gods all blue and purplish?

[antoniothegreat]

[Rteacher]

Sorry, I've been busy (planning a last-minute get-away to Thailand...)

My quick responses to the three posts:

"Joe....": I dunno...

"Dog...": They're not...

"Antonio...": Huh?...

Okay, I've got time to elaborate a little on "Joe...'s": I really haven't checked out any Bollywood films (or hardly any other films for that matter the last couple years...) I did what you've probably done - google "bollywood movie reviews" and the "planet bollywood" one seemed maybe the most promisingly usable... I then had the bright idea to google "roger ebert bollywood reviews" but I only came up with the one that you've seen ("Bride and Prejudice") I'll just copy a little of his review and post a pic of the main attraction:

"Bollywood musicals are the Swiss Army Knives of the cinema, with a tool for every job: comedy, drama, song and dance, farce, pathos, adventure, great scenery, improbably handsome heroes, teeth-gnashing villains, marriage-obsessed mothers and their tragically unmarried daughters, who are invariably ethereal beauties"


This is she.

"Lalita is played by Aishwarya Rai, Miss World of 1994, recently described by at least one film critic (me) as not only the first but also the second most beautiful woman in the world. According to the Internet Movie Database, "The Queen of Bollywood" is so popular she was actually able to get away with appearing in ads for both Coke and Pepsi. I also learn she carried the Olympic Torch in 2004, has a puppy named Sunshine, and was listed by Time as one of the 100 most influential people in the world. If this review is not accompanied by a photograph of her, you have grounds for a lawsuit.
Aishwarya (ash-waar-e-ah) Rai exudes not the frightening seriousness of a woman who thinks she is being sexy, but the grace and ease of a woman who knows she is fun to look at and be around. What a smile. What eyes. Rai is not remotely overweight, but neither is she alarmingly skinny; having deliberately gained 20 pounds for this role, she is the flower of splendid nutrition..." [Ebert then admits to getting a little distracted there and continues with the rest of the review - which I won't copy because "Joe..." won't read this post if it's too long...]

[joe_doufu]

I actually thought the other actresses in that movie were hotter than the star... not that she's not attractive! The one that played her older sister was particularly fine.

[dogbert]

Why are the ones you've posted representations of blue?

[Rteacher]

Krishna's predominant body coloring is precisely described as being shyam - the color of a monsoon cloud. Various artists depict it as being effulgent and more-or-less bluish and darkish. Innumerable Vishnu expansions are similarly colored - as are some demigods (such as Siva.) Many liberated souls (who are not God) also have spiritual bodies similar to the Supreme Lord's in order to interact personally with God in the spiritual world. When Krishna appeared on earth, he was accompanied by a large entourage of such perfected souls from the spiritual world. Many demigods also were ordered to take birth in the Yadu dynasty to assist the Lord in His earthly pastimes. (Some liberated souls even played the part of demons destined to fight with and be killed by Krishna in spectacular action scenes...) Many other expansions of God have different bodily colorings. Krishna's first expansion, Balaram, is very whitish, Lord Rama is greenish, and Lord Varaha appeared reddish. Chief demigod Brahma has a golden complexion...(It's explained that in previous ages, demigods used to frequently visit earth, but that in this degraded age - which began after Krishna left the planet about 5000 years ago - they consider conditions here too degraded...)