Under the scarlet gulmohar tree at the bend of Sector 50 in Noida, sits Kishore and next to him is his cart that churns out glasses after glasses of chilled sugarcane juice for people who are looking for some cold respite in this unforgiving summer heat. This is a common sight in Delhi these days – the carts selling different types of thirst quenchers and the crowd of people around them. On an evening spent in the crowded lanes of Matia Mahal in Old Delhi, one could see the shops selling ‘mohabbat ka sharbat’, made with cold milk, roohafza and watermelon. The beverage was much in demand as people broke their Ramzan fast.
Interestingly I also noticed a new entrant in the market called “nafrat ka sharbat”, which my friend Anubhav Sapra of Delhi Food Walks told me, is made of cold milk and apples and is less sweeter than the former. I wonder why there would be a dish named after hatred though! Gimmick? Maybe.
The other day as I was out and about in the city for some chores, I stopped at Barakhamba Road for a glass of bel ka sharbat. Manoj Chauhan, the man behind this stall churns out almost 100 glasses a day from the months of March to June, which are priced at Rs 20 each. Bel is the Hindi name for the fruit - wood apple. One of the offerings of the summer months, bel goes by many names like Bengal quince, golden apple, holy fruit and stone apple. It is musky, funky, sweetish with a tinge of tang – the complexity of its flavours can play tricks with one’s senses.
My mother would ensure that this is one sharbat that was always available at our home. She would extract the pulp, add some sugar to it, along with a generous squeeze of lemon juice and then mix it with cold water and serve it to us in late summer afternoons. My friend Sneha Patra shares about a similar beverage - the ‘bela pana’ that is made in the households of Odisha, where the pulp is mixed with lemon juice, pepper, mint leaves and ice and then served mixed with water.
If you happen to find yourself at Chandni Chowk, then you cannot miss the serpentine line outside Shri Shyam Kanji corner, near Haldiram. A little hole in the wall shop, with earthen pots covered with a red muslin cloth, where Anil, serves glass after glass of chilled fermented kanji vada. Strategically located near multiple chaat stalls, this shop does great business as the fermented kanji helps as a great digestive drink and also as a traditional cooler that many crave for, after consuming spicy chaats. But this is not the only favourite in Old Delhi – Ram Kishan Sharma, whose family runs a rabri and lassi stall for almost seven decades, sells the most luscious lassi topped with rabri. The lassi is priced at Rs 70 per kulhad. But if you are a true Delhi-ite, then your love for the banta soda and masala shikanji would top all of this. Banta, travelled to Delhi from Punjab and was then adopted by the locals very fondly. Banta in Punjabi means a marble ball. Often served with a squeeze of lemon and a sprinkle of rock salt, this tangy fizzy drink will perk you up immediately.
Indian summers are a kaleidoscope of long holidays, afternoon siestas, time spent with cousins over copious amounts of summer beverages and all of these hark back to a simpler time of our childhood that finds a special place in our hearts. While the markets are abuzz with exotic smoothies and shakes, what one cannot replace is the place that these beverages hold in our memories and to top it all, these are traditional drinks that are enjoyed by varied generations.
Vernika Awal is a food writer who is known for her research-based articles through her blog ‘Delectable Reveries’
