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bakeries MOOD
STREET Town
Talk photo Hunting
for common ground
bakeries Of
creme de la creme From
standard bakeries to popular hangouts to elaborate cake-makers, the city
offers a great variety By
Anam Javed Living in a country
where mehmaan-dari (hospitality) is perhaps the most reliable form of
entertainment, it is no surprise that bakeries have cropped up in every
nook and cranny of the city. This feature will take a glance at them all,
from those located in posh localities and geared towards the elite to the
bakeries in the heart of Anarkali. The oldest bakery of the
city is a fitting start: the honour belongs to S. Mohkam-ud-Din &
Sons, which has been around since 1879. It is now run by S.
Mohkam-ud-Din’s grandson, Mohkam Naqvi, who has studied the art of
baking wedding cakes in the UK. The founder’s portrait hangs on the wall
under the slogan of ‘work hard’. You will find the bakery amidst the
hustle and bustle of Anarkali, where a vendor might try to distract your
attention from it by waving socks before your eyes. Inside, there are the
usual bakery products – biscuits, patties and khataian etc. You will be
amazed though when you flip through their album of intricate wedding and
Christmas cakes, which can be ordered. The proprietor recounts
the inspiration behind one of their specialties finger biscuits: “During
the time of the British, Lady Harrison used to come here, and my
grandfather said to her ‘What delicate fingers you have.’ So she said
to him: ‘Why don’t you copy them?’ Even now, old clients ask for
‘Lady Harrison di unglian’ in Punjabi.” An elderly customer at
the shop, while buying patties recalls, “I have actually come here after
forty years. My khala used to bring me here.” Another bakery that has
existed since before partition is Al-Kareem, which is also located in
Anarkali. Cakes here are priced at Rs. 175/pound. The cream rolls and
cream puff (priced at Rs. 30) are very popular products amongst the staff
of the nearby Mayo Hospital (and also make quite a few people nostalgic).
On the counter is a metallic tray holding small packets of ‘Zubda Pure
Butter’, something the bakery is famous for. Next to the tray is a
chopping board and a knife, where burgers (costing Rs. 43) are made within
seconds. The bun is quickly cut, butter is spread on it, and a kebab is
mashed with the knife, which then clatters back onto the counter. The
microwave sitting in the corner brings a modern touch to the whole
procedure, executed right in front of the customer. People working at Mayo
Hospital state that these burgers taste better than those of McDonalds. The salesman compares
the prices of the kebabs: ‘Ours are for Rs. 15, while Gourmet sells them
for Rs.35, even though we both use desi ghee.” Gourmet has definitely
been around for much less (since 1987), but has branches in every nook and
cranny of the city. Go there any time of the day, and you will find it
crowded with people buying foodstuffs of all kind: biscuits, nimko, bread,
plain cake, mithai, rolls, pizza, ice-cream, and even gourmet milk and
gourmet cola. A pastry you can get there for a mere Rs. 25, while cakes
cost Rs. 190/ pound. At selected outlets, e.g
those at Girja Chowk, Cantt, and Hussain Chowk, Gulberg, they have now
begun Bon Vivant, Bakes & Desserts, where cakes cost around Rs. 350/
pound. They also have exotic treats like ‘Chinese Milk’ and ‘Raj
Bogra’ available there. But despite that, the younger generation prefers
other hangouts. Abdullah, 10, says: ‘I
like cookies from CTC (Coffee, Tea and Company) because they are very
tasty’ while his grandfather prefers fruit cakes from Gourmet and Shezan.
A generation gap, indeed. Rahat Bakery proudly
announces that they have been ‘family owned since 1950.’ Before, it
used to be a part of the Rahat Store, but is now in a separate building.
Cakes there cost Rs. 180/pound. The salesman confidently claims, “Those
who take our bread once always buy it from us.” They also have
sugar-free biscuits, which they began on the demand of their customers.
Surprisingly, their cream rolls and cream puffs are even cheaper (Rs. 26)
than Al-Kareem’s (Rs. 30). Another bakery which has
its own bread is Butt Sweets & Bakers, who also have their own
ice-cream line. They have 8 branches in the city, and their halwas (daal,
paetha and gajar) are highly bought. Their cakes sells for Rs. 170/pound,
and they pride themselves on their sweets made in desi ghee. Recently,
they have also begun ‘rubri lachy da doodh.’ Butt Sweets & Bakers
is a family business, which began with selling samosas. Now, in the areas
adjoining the bakery, one spots a heavily crowded Butt samosa shop, a Butt
ice-creamery, and a Butt family restaurant. Teenagers today, though,
don’t seem to be content with the cakes from these bakeries as Sara, 16,
tells TNS: “I like Masoom’s and CTC’s cakes which are different, and
not like those from Shezan and Gourmet; however, it is true that they are
not as cheap and accessible as the latter. But the former’s menu also
includes items like cookies and shakes. Beside, unn ka naam bun gaya hai,
and most of the students of schools and colleges go there.” She then gives a
description that would make anyone’s mouth water: “I love Masoom’s
layer pastries, the regular chocolate fudge cake by Kitchen Cuisine and
CTC’s Cadbury dairy milk cake.” Masoom’s The Pancake
Lounge is definitely a teenage hub. On a Sunday afternoon, it is crowded
and noisy, with the smell of cigarette smoke. It is considered a high-end
bakery, as is Hot Fuzon , which is renowned for its Death by Chocolate
Cake. Hot Fuzon has been functioning since about eight years, and has two
branches – one in Y Block Defence, and one on MM Alam Road. Kitchen
Cuisine began from a home kitchen but now has branches in Islamabad and
Karachi as well, along with six in Lahore. These bakeries have a similar
price list, with pastries costing about Rs. 80, while cakes can cost
anything from Rs.800 to more than Rs.1000. Petit Four is a
comparatively recent bakery in Cantt, and also has outlets in Alfatah
stores. A fan, Aisha, tells TNS: “Their brownies are delicious, even
though a little expensive.” The salesman also collaborates her
statement, saying that their Cadbury brownie (selling for Rs. 85) is very
popular, as well as their Toblerone cake. The bakery’s namesake, the
petit four pastry, is available for Rs. 35 in four flavors – vanilla,
strawberry, lemon and coffee. They use imported food stuffs from Spain and
grain from Holland. Adding a local touch, a paper plastered on the glass
wall declares that Rasgullay and Rasmalai are also available for Rs. 255
and Rs. 275 respectively. Cinnabon is a bakery café
which began in Pakistan in 2008. It is a chain from the US and its
specialty is cinnamon rolls. Now it has two branches in Lahore – one in
Gulberg and one in Defence. In the corner of the café, you might see a
man shaping cupcakes. It offers special drinks like the Mocha Latte Chill
for a little less than Rs.300. Bread n’ Beyond has an
interesting take on the concept of live baking, quite unlike al-Kareem
Bakery where everything is happening in front of you. In their Defence
branch, baking takes place on the floor above, while a TV screen shows it
to the customers who enter. Their Death by Chocolate Cake proudly stands
behind a placard reading ‘Best Selling’ – it is for Rs. 1000/kg. A visit to Bread n’
Beyond’s outlet in Gymkhana club (Gymkhana’s own bakery has shut down,
though cakes can be ordered) shows that the prices there are controlled.
The salesman tells TNS that a cake which might normally sell for Rs.425
sells there for Rs.350. The Pastry Shop at Defence Club shows a similar
trend of lower prices: a pastry costs a mere Rs. 18 while cakes cost
Rs.165/pound. The concept of bakeries
is ever-evolving, what with them diverging from simple shops like
al-Kareem to popular teenage hangouts like Masoom’s. It is heartening to
see the pride and dedication with which Mohkam Naqvi makes elaborate
cakes, the loyalty of the customers of Rahat Bakery and the enthusiastic
reception of new bakeries like Petit Four. In fact, a tour of the bakeries
of the city provides invaluable glimpses inside the hearts of Lahoris
themselves.
Discussing
teachers with a teacher By
Khan Shehram Eusufzye For me the motorway —
the five hundred kilometres long highway from Lahore to my ancestral
village — is a boring stretch of tarmac. Last week would have been as
boring had I been not travelling with an old and dear friend of mine. On
our return from Mardan, after a tiring two-day trip, we were running out
on our supply of small talk, which were to see us through the journey. I
took the initiative to break the ice and asked him about his experience as
a teacher. “My teachers have taught me a lot and I am just trying to
follow in their footsteps,” was his epigrammatic reply. Suddenly the words of
Rudyard Kipling started to resound in my brain, “No printed word, nor
spoken plea can teach young minds what they should be. Not all the books
on all the shelves but what the teachers are themselves”. I haven’t come across
many people of my generation who look up to their teachers as their role
models; my friend’s words came as a surprise. Many in my age group would
agree that the teachers of our generation adopted a whole new concept of
teaching where the teacher was seen by his pupils more as a friend than an
educator. Still not quite sure, I asked him to elaborate. “Well, you
know the teachers I am referring to — the old guard that knew the art of
exposing us to different attitudes, lifestyles and outlooks alongside
imparting knowledge and information. I am trying to carry on the legacy of
those charismatic educators who embodied the ideals that they espoused.”
His words opened my
mind’s eye to the time when our Pakistan Studies teacher Chaudhry Nawaz
would walk into our class with the bearings of a king and a humble smile
on his face. Such was his personality that we always greeted him with
solemnity. I asked my friend whether he was referring to the same teacher
and he nodded. “He had the vision to see through a brick wall. He once
predicted that son one day you’ll do a PhD and get a position of
responsibility. Remember to do justice with your job once you achieve that
position,” he remembered the golden words once uttered to him by
Chaudhry Nawaz during his school days. “And here I am today with a PhD
from Oxford and at a responsible position as a teacher just as Chaudhry
Nawaz foretold,” he whispered while we drove on. After a brief moment of
silence in respect for the great man, we got along with our discussion on
the teacher-student relationship. I was of the opinion
that there is a thin line between respect and friendliness. My friend
couldn’t agree with me more. He quoted to me the words of an
educationist “We must acknowledge…that the most important, indeed the
only, thing we have to offer our students is ourselves. Everything else
they can read in books. But the decision still remains with the teacher
how he or she offers him/herself to the pupils.” Half way through the
motorway we started to discuss the role of a teacher in these perilous
times. We’re in dire need of teachers who have the guts to take on the
entrenched social behaviours and create space for reasoned debate. Getting
through the exams with flying colours is no achievement a teacher should
be proud of but what they should be proud of is to give the world good
human beings. As we entered the Lahore
interchange, my friend summed up the discussion with an African proverb:
“It takes a village to raise a child.” Food for thought for another
journey I suppose!
*Exhibition:
‘Remembering the Crooked Line’ by Pritika Chowdhry at Rohtas 2.
Gallery timings: 11 am to 7 pm. The show continues till Jan 14. *Exhibition titled
‘Let the Unsaid be Unsaid’ by Ayesha Siddiqui at Vogue Art Gallery, M.M Alam Road from Jan
11-24. *Visual Arts Department
Degree Show at NCA till Jan 11. *Exhibition at Grey
Noise of Bani Abidi’s works in collaboration with Green Cardamom, London
till Jan 13. Gallery timings:
5pm-9pm. *Weekend Cycle Ride
today at 10:30am. Location: Parking lot,
Neela Gumbad. *Thesis Display 2012 at
National College of Arts from Jan 16-20. Bachelor
Display. Architecture, Design: Communication
Design, Textile Design, Ceramic
Design and Product Design. Fine Arts: Miniature painting, Sculpture.
feature Lahore
is Photography
by Liaqat Ali My friend Liaqat Ali is
turning out to be a an ace photographer as one sees him roaming around the
streets of Lahore in search of old and historical It was he who first told me about the Lala Lajpat Rai Hall which is located in the lane near Sang-e-Meel publications, off lower mall road. Now, the building houses the office of an Urdu daily. Earlier, this building was the office of the Police Forensic laboratory for many years. A plaque inside the building tells us that it was Lajpat Rai Hall. According to an official, much of the historical building has been changed as it was under the use of the Forensic laboratory. Lala Lajpat Rai was known as the Lion of the Punjab as he used to wield immense influence in the politics of the Punjab before the partition. Gulab Devi was his mother who died of tuberculosis. Thus, he decided to do something for the patients of T.B. In 1927, he set up the Gulab Devi Memorial Trust. The hospital started functioning in 1934 when Mahatma Gandhi inaugurated the hospital. The plaque is still there in the hospital.
Lala Lajpat Rai also was
one of the founders of the Punjab National Bank and Lakhsmi Insurance
Company. A true Punjabi patriot, he was jailed many times, and he fiercely
denounced the Simon Commission which led to his death. He was leading the
protest against the Simon Commission in February 1928 when the Police
assaulted him with batons, severely injuring him. He was taken to the
hospital and after two weeks, he died there. Bhagat Singh watched
this sad incident with his own eyes and decided to take revenge. His sad
demise was deeply mourned throughout the India. Legendary photographer
F.E Chaudhry says that Lala Lajpat Rai used to live outside the Bhatti
gate, Lahore. In a long interview with Munir Ahmad Munir which is also
available in book form, Chaudhry claims that Lajpat Rai used to live in
the house which later became the clinic of Dr. Altaf Bukhari, the father
of famous lawyer and host Naeem Bukhari. If one trusts the memory of F.E
Chaudhry, one may make a guess that it may be near the Haji Juice Corner
in the Bhati Chowk. He also established
National College Lahore in the Bradlaugh Hall where Bhagat Singh was also
a student. The aim was to offer an alternate system of education to the
Indians. The city of Lahore owes a huge debt to Lala Lajpat Rai who gave
us a hospital where the patients of T.B seek solace to this day. There used to be his
statue near the Nasir bagh but his admirers saved his statue from
vandalization. The statue is standing in Simla today. He needs to be
eulogized for his humanitarian deeds. There could be differences with his
politics but Gulab Devi Hospital is a huge step which he undertook to give
relief to the ailing humanity. Today, we are getting benefit from his
hospital. —
Altaf Asad
Sikh,
Christian and Muslim students come together at a three-day Interfaith
Harmony Camp By
Waqar Gillani Kalvinder Kaur, 15, a
Sikh student in a school in Nankana Sahib, had one of the most cherished
and unforgettable moments of her life in the past week. For the first time
she interacted and lived with Christian and Muslim students the same age
for three days and nights. “I never thought of
it. It was awesome and lot of fun,” Kalvinder tells The News on Sunday
at the end of this three-day camp that brought 60 Sikh, Christian, and
Muslim students under one roof for three days to understand each other and
their beliefs and to discuss the differences and indifferences. Seeds of Peace, a youth
run non government organisation (NGO), working towards conflict
resolution, held this Interfaith Harmony Camp at St Anthony’s High
School engaging students in the 14-16 age group from 14 different schools
of Lahore and Nankana Sahib (the most sacred place for Sikhs in the
Pakistan’s Punjab). The theme of the camp was to enable young students
of three religions to develop mutual understanding and trust among each
other. Most of the Sikh students, originally, were from Swat, one of the
militancy-hit war-on-terror zones in the northern part of Pakistan. “We enjoyed the
comfort level and we discussed the similarities and stereotypes about our
beliefs in the society,” says Mubashar Iqbal, 16, a Muslim student based
in Lahore. The most interesting part of the camp according to all of us,
he says, was meeting, observing, studying and knowing about Sikh culture
and religion. “We enjoyed their jokes and asked about the history.” He
says the key thing they learned is to live with diversity and tolerate
that diversity. “We talked about discriminations, blasphemy laws, Xmas,
Islamophobia, and related issues too,” says Malik Raymond John, another
participant. Many of the participants saw the Sikh students the first time
in their lives. “‘Treasure hunt’
game was the most interesting part of the camp everybody enjoyed but the
biggest treasure we have hunted in these three days is understanding each
other, love, tolerance and knowing and respecting humanity,” says Sarah,
15, a Lahore Grammar School student. “We have known that differences
exist but we need tolerance to get along with each other.” The students played
football, cricket, basketball, group challenges, team work, scavenge hunt
in these three days. The teams comprised of mixed religions (each team had
a number of Sikhs, Christians and Muslims together in the same team). One of the participants
in the camp from a Muslim family was not allowed to interact with
non-Muslims in his daily life because his parents taught him that ‘they
were not good’. He ditched his parents to participate in the camp
telling them that he was attending preparatory classes for O level exams
and was sitting in mock-exam. But, one day, he was
caught and his father asked him why he was sitting with Sikhs and
Christians. He innocently answered, “Sikhs and Christians can also
appear in the exam.” “My parents also stop
me from going to a Christian barber just because he has another
religion,” the student says. “Now, I have convinced my mother to some
extent and she has some acceptance and understanding that we should not
behave like this,” he says, adding, “I have come to know that humanity
is above all religions. I had never interacted with other religions,” he
says, adding, “We should not treat minorities like this. They are just
like us — human beings, and believe in God.”
During the camp,
arranged in collaboration with St. Anthony’s High School, the students
also addressed some of the stereotypes related to their religion and
educated the participants about them. Some of the similarities the
students noticed in their religion were belief in One Supreme Power,
propagate peace, tolerance and give everyone the freedom to practice their
own religion. The camp helped the participants to combat the stereotypes
which included why Sikhs wore turban, why Muslims did not eat pork and how
Christmas was celebrated. “Through this, we hope
to promote a sense of harmony, tolerance, co-existence and respect in
these young minds,” said Tooba Fatima, the camp manager. “It also
provided an opportunity for our young members to create an atmosphere
where students from different religions could sit together and feel
comfortable talking about how they could improve the interaction between
all three religions,” she further added. The Seeds of Peace (SOP)
is a non-profit organisation dedicated to preparing teenagers from areas
of conflict with leadership skills required to promote co-existence and
peace. The Interfaith Harmony Camp was part of Seeds’ ventures and
Community Outreach Program. vaqargillani@gmail.com |
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landmarks of the city. Lately, he has been taking a keen interest in
tracing down old residences as well as havelis.
