I remember three years ago, I was hungry. It was three in
midnight.Mummy was nudging me. I woke up and saw that in her hand was a plate
in which Ma had brought for me bread layered with clotted cream and sugar.
Clotted cream is known as “Malai” in Bengali and Hindi.It is top layer of cream
which forms when milk is boiled.
At that time my father was in Nigeria.
Then something bad started happening. Everyday somebody would steal milk packets from our house front before we could open the door. The milkman would place the milk packets in a bag hung with a hook to our door and despite our constant reminders he would not ring the bell when he placed those milk packets in the bag. So somebody very cunningly, conveniently would steal our packets of milk and few days later we had to stop buying milk from the milk seller, as he wouldn’t owe up to the fact that his boys were faltering in their duties. We started buying tetra packs of milks.
But the milk in the tetra packs doesn’t give malai.
We definitely miss that milk and malai.
Now while we were walking upon an uncommon street (it is not very well known). My mother saw someone having tea in a small glass. That person was standing near the front steps of an store. The store wasn’t attractive but unique.
We went to that shop and ordered for two teas. We asked them-“What else do you sell?”
The shopowner replied- “Milk and malai.”
We were very
surprised. We had never seen a shop
where someone sold malai.
One kadai is always on the stove and the milk is
continuously boiling.
The shop sells malai @ Rs.25/50 gm and Rs. 50/100 gm. People come all the way to drink milk and tea over there.
We were so surprised that we ordered for the malai. We were
very happy that we can have malai again and maybe with God’s grace all our
troubles would vanish once and for all.
Adios!
Before You Travel. 