a question to the southern indians on this board

[MaxEntropy_Man]

why do some of you relish mentions of massacres and mish mash of simple southern indian fare by northindians and even join in the fun? do you actually enjoy this so called "fusion fare" which the northindians appropriate from you, pee and spit on, and sell back to you?

[Hellsangel]

Why are South Indians Southern Indians while Northern Indians are northindians?

[Guest]

Kaeng phet pet yang (Thai roast duck curry) is an example of early fusion cuisine of the cosmopolitan court of the Ayutthaya Kingdom (1350 CE to 1767 CE) combining Thai red curry, Chinese roast duck and grapes originally from Persia.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fusion_cuisine

[Guest]

So what was India’s contribution? How did we turn the sambusak into the samosa?
I can think of several Indian innovations. It is almost certain that Indians were not into baking (the Indus Valley oven not withstanding) until the Muslims got here. Nor were we very familiar with refined flour or maida. We used atta which, while healthier, is somewhat more limited when it comes to the possibilities for pastry.

The original sambusak was probably made from maida. It might well have also been baked. In that sense it was related to the pastilla of Morocco and Spain and the pastele of the Sephardic Jews. Other European pastry dishes such as the puff and the pasty probably derive from the same source. But an army cannot bake. Nor can a wandering trader.

Somewhere along the way, the people of the Middle East began frying their sambusaks. It is easy to see why they would do this: you can fill a dekchi with oil and build a fire pretty much anywhere you go. An oven is much more difficult to construct.

So, by the time traders and conquerors had made the journey to India from Europe and Central Asia, they had given up on the baked version. The sambusak they brought to India was probably fried.

Then, the genius of Indian cooking took over. India has a long tradition of taking so-so middle eastern foods (the pulao or the kebab, for instance) and turning them into delicacies. At the Mughal court, the sambusaks or samosas were not filled with pumpkins and walnuts as they had been in the Middle East. Instead, Indian cooks devised delicate and more innovative fillings.

It used to be said that Mughal chefs loved keema because it was the perfect medium for transferring any kind of flavour. So, court chefs took the boring sambusak and turned it into a haute cuisine dish. I’m not sure – and records are unclear on this – how the court chefs abolished the baked version of the dish but my guess is that they preferred the delicate crispness of a well-fried samosa to the stodginess of a baked sambusak.

When did the samosa make the transition from the courts to the kitchens of ordinary people? And why have today’s great Mughlai chefs given up on it, treating it as the sort of thing best left to halwais?

I don’t know. And try as I might, I have been unable to find an answer in the literature.

What is clear is that, even in the Middle East, there is a tradition of vegetarian sambusaks. In Central Asia, those made with puff pastry (and baked) are non-vegetarian. Those made with dough (leavened or unleavened) are often vegetarian.

My theory – and it is only a theory – is that Indian cooks (or to be less politically correct: non-court cooks and Hindu halwais) took the sambusak/samosa and married it to another Indian tradition: the deep fried snack such as the pakora, vada, the bonda or the kachori.

Indians have always liked the idea of taking a filling and encasing it in some kind of dough (atta, besan etc.) before deep-frying it. When the samosa moved out of the court kitchens, it was quickly turned into that kind of halwai snack.
More significantly, it ceased to be the sort of haute cuisine dish that had to be eaten as soon as it was made. The distinguishing feature of the samosa these days is that it is often served several hours after it has been cooked.

As deep fried foods do not keep very well, cooks have had to make compromises. Vegetarian fillings are not just cheaper but they are also less likely to go off. A thin and delicate batter will get soggy quickly so fat Punjabi-style shells have been used to encase the filling. And because even these do not stay crisp for very long, halwais have invented samosa chaat in which the samosa is broken up and then doused with chutney (and sometimes, dahi) so that the texture of the casing does not matter so much.

I have nothing against halwai samosas or their regional variations (such as the spicier, smaller shingara of Calcutta) but the best samosas are still the small, crisp ones with a thin casing that are served soon after they are made.

The Gujarati samosa falls into this category. The non-vegetarian version is associated with Gujarati Muslim communities (the Bohras, the Khojas, the Memons etc.) and there is a delicate vegetarian version (with such fillings as French beans and peas) that most traditional maharajs will make.

In the old days, it was easy enough to get the small Gujarati samosa in Bombay. The old MG Café on Queen’s Road was famous for it and many restaurants (including the now defunct Bombellis) would buy ready-made uncooked samosas from central suppliers and then fry them just before serving.

You can still get them but it is getting more and more difficult: the fat Punjabi samosa has taken over just as the fat Punjabi chef has, at most hotels and restaurants.

Now, all we need is for the great Indian cooks – the Imtiazs and the Raises etc. – to rediscover the samosa and to treat it with the respect it deserves.

There is a lost tradition waiting to be revived here.

http://blogs.hindustantimes.com/rude-food/2009/09/13/tasty-triangles/#more-202

[southindian]

Why are South Indians Southern Indians while Northern Indians are northindians?

Only Max has it in his way of addressing.

ALL South Indians are SouthIndians and ALL North Indians are NorthIndians.

This is the ONLY right way of addressing them.

[Idéfix]

why do some of you relish mentions of massacres and mish mash of simple southern indian fare by northindians and even join in the fun? do you actually enjoy this so called "fusion fare" which the northindians appropriate from you, pee and spit on, and sell back to you?

I am not a big fan of fusion food. I like experimenting with food but in my experience, few fusion attempts really work. But it doesn't bother me if northindians make fusion fare inspired by southern Indian cuisine. I don't think it is appropriating SI cuisine at all. I make and enjoy several NI dishes, and I do improvise with them from time to time, but I don't think I am appropriating those dishes. IMO, food is all about individual taste, and I see nothing wrong in someone enjoying paneer manchurian dosa. I recently tried a vegetable dosa that had a mixed vegetable sabji of a northindian style, with cauliflower, beans, and carrots in it. I liked it better than masala dosa.

[Hellsangel]

why do some of you relish mentions of massacres and mish mash of simple southern indian fare by northindians and even join in the fun? do you actually enjoy this so called "fusion fare" which the northindians appropriate from you, pee and spit on, and sell back to you?

I am not a big fan of fusion food. I like experimenting with food but in my experience, few fusion attempts really work. But it doesn't bother me if northindians make fusion fare inspired by southern Indian cuisine. I don't think it is appropriating SI cuisine at all. I make and enjoy several NI dishes, and I do improvise with them from time to time, but I don't think I am appropriating those dishes. IMO, food is all about individual taste, and I see nothing wrong in someone enjoying paneer manchurian dosa. I recently tried a vegetable dosa that had a mixed vegetable sabji of a northindian style, with cauliflower, beans, and carrots in it. I liked it better than masala dosa.

+1

[Impedimenta]

aiyaa, nanAA usupu yethi vittutu poiteenga:-) paithiyam pudhicha maathiri kathindu sutharAnga:-) mirugakaatchi:-)

[southindian]

why do some of you relish mentions of massacres and mish mash of simple southern indian fare by northindians and even join in the fun? do you actually enjoy this so called "fusion fare" which the northindians appropriate from you, pee and spit on, and sell back to you?

Max, I like Southindian food as much as Northindian and there's no harm in trying different recipies. I never knew there was any SuCH patent for different styles of Southindian food.

[Guest]

why do some of you relish mentions of massacres and mish mash of simple southern indian fare by northindians and even join in the fun? do you actually enjoy this so called "fusion fare" which the northindians appropriate from you, pee and spit on, and sell back to you?

Max, I like Southindian food as much as Northindian and there's no harm in trying different recipies. I never knew there was any SuCH patent for different styles of Southindian food.

is southindian culture superior to northindian culture? That's what Max wants to know from you.

[Hellsangel]

aiyaa, nanAA usupu yethi vittutu poiteenga:-) paithiyam pudhicha maathiri kathindu sutharAnga:-) mirugakaatchi:-)

Il Professore is the one who is worked up.

[Guest]

why do some of you relish mentions of massacres and mish mash of simple southern indian fare by northindians and even join in the fun? do you actually enjoy this so called "fusion fare" which the northindians appropriate from you, pee and spit on, and sell back to you?

you are behaving like a kombolete idiot. that reminds me of KV.

which came first? max or KV?

i don't know if india pulse will help but i recall max and KV arriving at the same time.

[Impedimenta]

aiyaa, nanAA usupu yethi vittutu poiteenga:-) paithiyam pudhicha maathiri kathindu sutharAnga:-) mirugakaatchi:-)

Il Professore is the one who is worked up.

max, ungalaala ivaru engalaamo poi artham kandupudikaraaru, adhuvum thappu thappa. jai ho to food.

[Guest]

why do some of you relish mentions of massacres and mish mash of simple southern indian fare by northindians and even join in the fun? do you actually enjoy this so called "fusion fare" which the northindians appropriate from you, pee and spit on, and sell back to you?

So many assumptions about northindians' intentions and actions and SIs reactions. This is in line with FF's claims of NIs eating SI food on the sly. Baseless. Max, did not expect this from you.

[goodcitizn]

why do some of you relish mentions of massacres and mish mash of simple southern indian fare by northindians and even join in the fun? do you actually enjoy this so called "fusion fare" which the northindians appropriate from you, pee and spit on, and sell back to you?

If I like the mish mash, I call it "fusion" food. If I don't, it's confusion food.

[Merlot Daruwala]

why do some of you relish mentions of massacres and mish mash of simple southern indian fare by northindians and even join in the fun? do you actually enjoy this so called "fusion fare" which the northindians appropriate from you, pee and spit on, and sell back to you?

 
Haha..the manner in which you have worded it makes it clear it is only a rhetorical question aimed at shaming us ingratiators. And yet, you have touched on a topic close to my heart, so let me respond nevertheless.
 
IMO, tastes and cuisine are ever-evolving cultural artifacts, so it is best to reconcile to change. I would not go as far as to label it as "fusion fare" etc which is pretentious. But little innovations are the way to go.
 
Take the example of the masala dosa. When it first made its commercial debut a century ago, the potato filling must have been a radical new innovation, the potato itself being only a couple of centuries old in the country. But it caught on, so it's ironic that we now think potato filling can be the only acceptable filling for eternity.
 
In coastal Karnataka, dosas have always been viewed the starch accompaniment, like chapatis, to mop up some spicy curry. So when restaurants in big cities started pairing dosas with prawn gusshi or mutton curry, they were not mishmashing anything - they were simply commercializing what had always been the practice in the hometown of the dosa.
 
Once you free your mind of the dogma that dosa can only have a potato filling, it opens up all kinds of equally delicious possibilities. I routinely have my dosa with spicy egg burji. I suppose vegetarians will replace egg with paneer. It's all good.
 
Likewise, on a visit to a Gujju restaurant (as a concession to a Gujju colleague), I was aghast at the mention of Idli Manchurian, which seemed uniquely designed to offend South Indians as well as Mongolians. Sacrilegious as the idea sounded originally, the outcome - deep-fried button idlis tossed in soy sauce, ginger, garlic, chili etc - was finger-lickin good.
 
Great advances in science or engineering don't happen by adhering to tradition. They happen because of non-conformist thinking. So also with food. One can always take comfort in knowing that Indians are the fussiest eaters, so the bar for any innovation is very high, and no matter how outrageous an idea might seem, the very fact that it is commercially offered raises the probability that it tastes delicious.

[Guest]

why do some of you relish mentions of massacres and mish mash of simple southern indian fare by northindians and even join in the fun? do you actually enjoy this so called "fusion fare" which the northindians appropriate from you, pee and spit on, and sell back to you?

 
Haha..the manner in which you have worded it makes it clear it is only a rhetorical question aimed at shaming us ingratiators. And yet, you have touched on a topic close to my heart, so let me respond nevertheless.
 
IMO, tastes and cuisine are ever-evolving cultural artifacts, so it is best to reconcile to change. I would not go as far as to label it as "fusion fare" etc which is pretentious. But little innovations are the way to go.
 
Take the example of the masala dosa. When it first made its commercial debut a century ago, the potato filling must have been a radical new innovation, the potato itself being only a couple of centuries old in the country. But it caught on, so it's ironic that we now think potato filling can be the only acceptable filling for eternity.
 
In coastal Karnataka, dosas have always been viewed the starch accompaniment, like chapatis, to mop up some spicy curry. So when restaurants in big cities started pairing dosas with prawn gusshi or mutton curry, they were not mishmashing anything - they were simply commercializing what had always been the practice in the hometown of the dosa.
 
Once you free your mind of the dogma that dosa can only have a potato filling, it opens up all kinds of equally delicious possibilities. I routinely have my dosa with spicy egg burji. I suppose vegetarians will replace egg with paneer. It's all good.
 
Likewise, on a visit to a Gujju restaurant (as a concession to a Gujju colleague), I was aghast at the mention of Idli Manchurian, which seemed uniquely designed to offend South Indians as well as Mongolians. Sacrilegious as the idea sounded originally, the outcome - deep-fried button idlis tossed in soy sauce, ginger, garlic, chili etc - was finger-lickin good.
 
Great advances in science or engineering don't happen by adhering to tradition. They happen because of non-conformist thinking. So also with food. One can always take comfort in knowing that Indians are the fussiest eaters, so the bar for any innovation is very high, and no matter how outrageous an idea might seem, the very fact that it is commercially offered raises the probability that it tastes delicious.

ha ha ha! excellent post MD.

[Kris]

why do some of you relish mentions of massacres and mish mash of simple southern indian fare by northindians and even join in the fun? do you actually enjoy this so called "fusion fare" which the northindians appropriate from you, pee and spit on, and sell back to you?

>>>I am not sure I have tried that many NI/SI fusion items, but taste is the ultimate criterion for me. One of the local restaurant chains does a type of fusion, with unusual veggies cooked in the Indian (specifically, Punjabi) style, which is pretty impressive.

[Nila]

Classical music admirers don't get fusion.

[Kris]

Classical music admirers don't get fusion.

>>>>I guess it is good that I am not a classical music admirer then. Hey, we all have our priorities

[Captain Bhankas]

why do some of you relish mentions of massacres and mish mash of simple southern indian fare by northindians and even join in the fun? do you actually enjoy this so called "fusion fare" which the northindians appropriate from you, pee and spit on, and sell back to you?

 
Haha..the manner in which you have worded it makes it clear it is only a rhetorical question aimed at shaming us ingratiators. And yet, you have touched on a topic close to my heart, so let me respond nevertheless.
 
IMO, tastes and cuisine are ever-evolving cultural artifacts, so it is best to reconcile to change. I would not go as far as to label it as "fusion fare" etc which is pretentious. But little innovations are the way to go.
 
Take the example of the masala dosa. When it first made its commercial debut a century ago, the potato filling must have been a radical new innovation, the potato itself being only a couple of centuries old in the country. But it caught on, so it's ironic that we now think potato filling can be the only acceptable filling for eternity.
 
In coastal Karnataka, dosas have always been viewed the starch accompaniment, like chapatis, to mop up some spicy curry. So when restaurants in big cities started pairing dosas with prawn gusshi or mutton curry, they were not mishmashing anything - they were simply commercializing what had always been the practice in the hometown of the dosa.
 
Once you free your mind of the dogma that dosa can only have a potato filling, it opens up all kinds of equally delicious possibilities. I routinely have my dosa with spicy egg burji. I suppose vegetarians will replace egg with paneer. It's all good.
 
Likewise, on a visit to a Gujju restaurant (as a concession to a Gujju colleague), I was aghast at the mention of Idli Manchurian, which seemed uniquely designed to offend South Indians as well as Mongolians. Sacrilegious as the idea sounded originally, the outcome - deep-fried button idlis tossed in soy sauce, ginger, garlic, chili etc - was finger-lickin good.
 
Great advances in science or engineering don't happen by adhering to tradition. They happen because of non-conformist thinking. So also with food. One can always take comfort in knowing that Indians are the fussiest eaters, so the bar for any innovation is very high, and no matter how outrageous an idea might seem, the very fact that it is commercially offered raises the probability that it tastes delicious.

ha ha ha! excellent post MD.

i agree. especially the bold text above. if people did not experiment, we would still be hunter-gatherers eating raw foods just because that's how our ancestors ate.

[MaxEntropy_Man]

 
Once you free your mind of the dogma that dosa can only have a potato filling, it opens up all kinds of equally delicious possibilities.

i never put any filling in my dosai. if i want to have the potato-onion curry thing with the dosai, i always ask for it on the side, out of the dosai, just like the coconut chutney and the sambar. the rest of your post is a reasonable answer to my question, but i suspect your genuine interest in melding cuisines is rare. many of the other usual posts about fusion cuisine or what you have chosen to call innovation are simply meant to offend and annoy and have little to do with actual innovation. it's a pity some southern indians join in with glee thereby degrading their own dignity.

[Merlot Daruwala]

many of the other usual posts about fusion cuisine or what you have chosen to call innovation are simply meant to offend and annoy and have little to do with actual innovation....

Such as?

[MaxEntropy_Man]

many of the other usual posts about fusion cuisine or what you have chosen to call innovation are simply meant to offend and annoy and have little to do with actual innovation....

Such as?

the idli as dessert post for example.

[goodcitizn]

why do some of you relish mentions of massacres and mish mash of simple southern indian fare by northindians and even join in the fun? do you actually enjoy this so called "fusion fare" which the northindians appropriate from you, pee and spit on, and sell back to you?

 
Haha..the manner in which you have worded it makes it clear it is only a rhetorical question aimed at shaming us ingratiators. And yet, you have touched on a topic close to my heart, so let me respond nevertheless.
 
IMO, tastes and cuisine are ever-evolving cultural artifacts, so it is best to reconcile to change. I would not go as far as to label it as "fusion fare" etc which is pretentious. But little innovations are the way to go.
 
Take the example of the masala dosa. When it first made its commercial debut a century ago, the potato filling must have been a radical new innovation, the potato itself being only a couple of centuries old in the country. But it caught on, so it's ironic that we now think potato filling can be the only acceptable filling for eternity.
 
In coastal Karnataka, dosas have always been viewed the starch accompaniment, like chapatis, to mop up some spicy curry. So when restaurants in big cities started pairing dosas with prawn gusshi or mutton curry, they were not mishmashing anything - they were simply commercializing what had always been the practice in the hometown of the dosa.
 
Once you free your mind of the dogma that dosa can only have a potato filling, it opens up all kinds of equally delicious possibilities. I routinely have my dosa with spicy egg burji. I suppose vegetarians will replace egg with paneer. It's all good.
 
Likewise, on a visit to a Gujju restaurant (as a concession to a Gujju colleague), I was aghast at the mention of Idli Manchurian, which seemed uniquely designed to offend South Indians as well as Mongolians. Sacrilegious as the idea sounded originally, the outcome - deep-fried button idlis tossed in soy sauce, ginger, garlic, chili etc - was finger-lickin good.
 
Great advances in science or engineering don't happen by adhering to tradition. They happen because of non-conformist thinking. So also with food. One can always take comfort in knowing that Indians are the fussiest eaters, so the bar for any innovation is very high, and no matter how outrageous an idea might seem, the very fact that it is commercially offered raises the probability that it tastes delicious.

Loved your response, Nephew. I had to smile at your opening line.

[Guest]

many of the other usual posts about fusion cuisine or what you have chosen to call innovation are simply meant to offend and annoy and have little to do with actual innovation....

Such as?

the idli as dessert post for example.

the idli would lie deserted without innovation. (i made a pun pun pun pun.)

[southindian]

the idli would lie idle without innovation. (This is closest to pun).

[Guest]

What is so wrong about sweet idli anyway. Don't you guys have sweet rice or whatever that pongal thing is. Mix rice with sugar and ghee and that's all there is to it. How innovative can one get with those little white balls anyway. You have 2 dozen types of idli, so here is one more. Stop whining already.

[southindian]

As soon as that rice+water becomes an idli, it gets a southindian patent.

[Guest]

the idli would lie idle without innovation. (This is closest to pun).

ok ok let me try one more.

when the idli-ian sonia heard that there was no rice, she said -- let the peasants eat sweet idlis!

[goodcitizn]

the idli would lie idle without innovation. (This is closest to pun).

ok ok let me try one more.

when the idli-ian sonia heard that there was no rice, she said -- let the peasants eat sweet idlis!

Max didn't like sweet idli so it sat idly.

[Guest]

the idli would lie idle without innovation. (This is closest to pun).

ok ok let me try one more.

when the idli-ian sonia heard that there was no rice, she said -- let the peasants eat sweet idlis!

Max didn't like sweet idli so it sat idly.

 

[Hellsangel]

I think the great battle has begun between Achachan and Il Professore for the title of Keeper Of South Indian Pride - K-SIP. Sort of like the Mughals battling their dads when they came of age. Think Aurangazeb and Shahjahan. Achachan is getting on in years and now and is soft. He has to depend on a contemptible northindian for defense. Il Professore has come of age and is ready to usurp the title from Achachan

[Merlot Daruwala]

many of the other usual posts about fusion cuisine or what you have chosen to call innovation are simply meant to offend and annoy and have little to do with actual innovation....

Such as?

the idli as dessert post for example.

C'mon Prof, sweet idlis are a very traditional festival fare. So also sweet dosas. And sweet, fruit-infused "doddaks" which are the Mangalorean uttapams. South Indian cuisine is far richer and diverse than what one might see in a restaurant menu. Just because you were not exposed to these variances earlier does not make them offensive or annoying "fusion cuisine".

[Kris]

many of the other usual posts about fusion cuisine or what you have chosen to call innovation are simply meant to offend and annoy and have little to do with actual innovation....

Such as?

the idli as dessert post for example.

C'mon Prof, sweet idlis are a very traditional festival fare. So also sweet dosas. And sweet, fruit-infused "doddaks" which are the Mangalorean uttapams. South Indian cuisine is far richer and diverse than what one might see in a restaurant menu. Just because you were not exposed to these variances earlier does not make them offensive or annoying "fusion cuisine".

>>>>I have a vague recollection of sweet idlis my mother has made. It was not usual fare, but I think it was associated with some religious event.

[bw]

many of the other usual posts about fusion cuisine or what you have chosen to call innovation are simply meant to offend and annoy and have little to do with actual innovation....

Such as?

the idli as dessert post for example.

C'mon Prof, sweet idlis are a very traditional festival fare. So also sweet dosas. And sweet, fruit-infused "doddaks" which are the Mangalorean uttapams. South Indian cuisine is far richer and diverse than what one might see in a restaurant menu. Just because you were not exposed to these variances earlier does not make them offensive or annoying "fusion cuisine".

>>>>I have a vague recollection of sweet idlis my mother has made. It was not usual fare, but I think it was associated with some religious event.

i've had "vella dosai"(dosa(i)s made with jaggery) but not sweet idlis though i've heard of sweet paniyaarams.

[Merlot Daruwala]

Ah welcome back BW. Vacationing much?

[bw]

Ah welcome back BW. Vacationing much?

thanks. yes, had too much fun for my own good but am glad to be back. at some point, doing one's own laundry doesn't seem all that fun after all.

by the way, sweet idlis are all fine but stuffing idlis with eggs is simply cruel and that's that.

[Kris]

many of the other usual posts about fusion cuisine or what you have chosen to call innovation are simply meant to offend and annoy and have little to do with actual innovation....

Such as?

the idli as dessert post for example.

C'mon Prof, sweet idlis are a very traditional festival fare. So also sweet dosas. And sweet, fruit-infused "doddaks" which are the Mangalorean uttapams. South Indian cuisine is far richer and diverse than what one might see in a restaurant menu. Just because you were not exposed to these variances earlier does not make them offensive or annoying "fusion cuisine".

>>>>I have a vague recollection of sweet idlis my mother has made. It was not usual fare, but I think it was associated with some religious event.

>>>>It's possible I am getting it mixed up with one of the above two. My memory is vague.

[SomeProfile]

Why are South Indians Southern Indians while Northern Indians are northindians?

If I may venture a guess, I think this is because Max is a weirdo when it comes to anything related to Tamil / South India. It makes him act in all kinds of strange ways. In this example, I suspect that 'South Indian' sounds to him too much like 'sooth' Indian. 'Sooth' is the Tamil word for butt. So, Max avoids saying South Indians which to him sounds like an insult to Southern Indians.

[Guest]

Why are South Indians Southern Indians while Northern Indians are northindians?

If I may venture a guess, I think this is because Max is weirdo when it comes to anything related to Tamil / South India. It makes him act in all kinds of strange ways. In this example, I suspect that South Indian sounds to him too much like 'sooth' Indian. 'Sooth' is the Tamil word for butt. So, Max avoids saying South Indians which to him sounds like an insult to Southern Indians.

 

[Captain Bhankas]

Why are South Indians Southern Indians while Northern Indians are northindians?

If I may venture a guess, I think this is because Max is a weirdo when it comes to anything related to Tamil / South India. It makes him act in all kinds of strange ways. In this example, I suspect that 'South Indian' sounds to him too much like 'sooth' Indian. 'Sooth' is the Tamil word for butt. So, Max avoids saying South Indians which to him sounds like an insult to Southern Indians.

aha! that explains philip kuruvilla's sobriquet for TBT - "soothbesold".

[Merlot Daruwala]

Haha..Unkil was being very funny.

[Captain Bhankas]

...and aping northindians in their fascination with the you-know-what.

[Merlot Daruwala]

Oh the compulsions of coalition politics....(although the fascination might have been in the closet all along - nothing wrong with it, of course).

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