Page 279 - Sanidhya 2025

KHANE MEI KYA HAI?

Love on a Plate

“In our home, love didn’t just wear a uniform—it also

simmered in the pressure cooker.” My husband, the CRPF
officer was mostly busy and away on duty, but I Sapna Ajay Bharatan
discovered that my own service continued in a different w/o Shri Ajay Bharatan, IG (Retd.)
way—through my kitchen. Every meal I prepared was not

just food on a plate, but comfort, discipline, and care
rolled into one. While his duty was to protect the nation,
mine was to protect the health and happiness of my Undoubtedly, there have been several challenges too on
family, one sabzi-roti and one dal-chawal at a time. this path. Home-cooked meals weren’t always glamorous.

Cooking, for me, isn’t just about filling stomachs. It is There were days when I felt like a magician turning
about filling hearts. There is a certain joy in watching my yesterday’s leftover dal into today’s parathas, or
grown children even today when they come home on convincing my children that spinach could, in fact, make
holidays, sneak into the kitchen, peep into the pan, and them stronger than their favorite superheroes. Many

ask, “Khane mei kya hai, Ma?” The sparkle in their eyes times I got successful in my mission, but as the little
when I say “butter chicken” is brighter than Diwali lights. hungry mouths grew older and smarter, they very often
But when I say “lauki sabzi”… well, let’s just say their caught my tricks and refused to compromise for the
home coming enthusiasm vanishes into thin air, and they cleverly reincarnated dishes. Many times fights have

start plotting escape strategies worthy of a commando erupted when the tempting roadside jalebi impudently
mission! Their dad invariably, would be the leader of the competed with my humble home-made kheer. But deep
pack in these ‘lauki’ escaping missions. down, we all knew and understood that every meal I
prepared was healthier and safer than anything we could

I recall wistfully the bygone days when my little ones with have ever bought from out.
flushed pink faces and soiled uniforms sprang out of Outside food has its attractions, of course. The smell of
their school buses and dashed up the stairs straight to sizzling samosas from the street vendor can tempt even
the kitchen door sniffing delightedly on the aromas the strongest willpower. My children argue, “Ma,

wafting from within. The excited anticipation on their everyone eats burgers and pizza these days.” True. But
chubby faces and the eager fervor to enjoy the food was not everyone has seen the oil in which that burger patty
something I could never trade for anything in this world. was fried—it probably remembers Independence Day
As a mother it gave me immense pleasure in satiating the better than we do! And let’s not even talk about the

hunger of my young ones with tasty, nutritious and “secret sauces.” I’d rather keep my children’s secrets safe
balanced home cooked meals, knowing precisely how it than trust one from a ketchup bottle.
would contribute towards laying the foundation of their
robust health for life. The beauty of home-cooked meals lies in control. I know