Lockdown Has Us Missing Pani Puri More Than Our Love Lives
Niharika has a passion for all things art, music, and travel and has over 4 years of experience in writing for social media. During her spare time, she likes experimenting in the kitchen, playing vide... read full bio
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The country has been under Lockdown since the 22nd of March. That’s about a month without feeling the khatta-meetha taste of delicious street-side gol gappe. When asked if I had to choose between having full access to safe and healthy streetside golgappa during lockdown or spending it with the love of my life, I would always choose the former. Why you ask? Well, because they’re both the same thing! Here is why I miss gorging on pani puri more than I miss going out on dates:
Pani Puri Was There When Nobody Else Was
Remember that time in ninth grade when your crush rejected you and all your friends teased you relentlessly? You probably felt super sad and alone during this time and just wanted to peace out. So who did you go to after school? Your favorite pani puri wala bhaiya! You see, boys will come and go like the tides of the sea. But pani puri? That stuff’s eternal.
Over the years, my expectations from partners lowered exponentially and my love for pani puri? It increases with every bite I take. While that’s not to say, I’ve had some amazing experiences with my partners, but those too involved pani puri. After all, can you date a pani puri hater? You really don’t need that kinda negativity in your life.
Pani Puri And I- An Untold Lovestory
I first discovered pani puri when I was five years old. Back then, my grandmother made it for me and didn’t let me eat street-side pani puris. I used to watch my neighbor’s children gorging on the delicious puris from inside my house and wish for the day I could join them. It took me until the time I was 8 to finally start experiencing the joy of street-side pani puri and only under the watchful eyes of my mother. Ever since the first bite, our love has been unbreakable.
As I grew older, I slowly started venturing into new territories, trying out different stalls of pani puris. I’ve tasted pani puris from Manipal to Mumbai and Goa, but none matched the deliciousness of the stall outside my grandmother’s house in Mumbai. I still remember sneaking out of the house during the evening with my cousin and secretly eating pani puri without telling my family. We’d eat the puris, wash our hands and drink juice to hide any evidence. That was until my granny caught us while she was returning from the market that day. It took me till college to realize that there was more than one kind of pani puri. Did you know that there are vodka pani puris too? This way you can feed the inner child and the inner alcoholic in you at the same time (LOL).
Another reason why pani puris are better than boyfriends? You’re never left moping or crying after an argument with your pani puri. Well, unless the pani puri wala put a little too much teekha pani in your puri. But again, you can always ask him to add a little extra meetha chutney. Ask your boyfriend to be a little sweeter and you single-handedly just started World War 3, right girls?
Sure, you’ve probably also had to deal with the whole “what do we call it, pani puri, golgappa or puchka?” but isn’t that still better than asking a guy you’re seeing, “what are we?”. At least with pani puris, you know what you’re going to get from the get-go. There’s no shadiness or hidden secrets between you and your pani puri. End of the day, golgappa or pani puri, they all taste equally incredible.
Pani puri is the answer to all your problems. Best friend broke up with her man and needs comforting? Grab some golgappa. Scored low marks in your maths exam? Pani puri calls out to you. Did mom say something embarrassing in front of your buddies? The pucchka is waiting outside your society. Every problem has a (slurrrp) pani puri solution. Your pani puri waala will not get jealous if you try some sev puri once in a while. This lockdown has pani puri aficionados craving for some TLC with BAEs harder than the love and comfort of their partners. While you can make your own set of delicious pani puris at home, you know it will never match the deliciousness of street-side pani puris (we sincerely hope it’s not the sweat beads or the unfiltered water).
If there’s one thing this lockdown has taught us, it’s that the best things in life come for free; just like the extra masala puri, the gol gappa waala hands you once you’re done licking your fingers. Sure, right now, you’re probably more concerned about staying healthy than eating street food but you’d be lying if you said you don’t crave the delicious treat. Let us know how much you miss eating pani puris in the comment section below.
