Start of the meal

It feels a bit ridiculous to sit alone at a table in a restaurant full of people, with a thali before you that's so humongous that even Obelix, the famously gluttonous comic character, would gawk at the sight of it. The waiters have already done a double take earlier when you tell them you plan to have it all by yourself. And now that it's been served, fellow diners throw disbelieving glances in your direction, wearing smiles tinged with a sense of pity that says, "Someone please put this poor fellow in a mental asylum." In fact, one person crossing your table even vocalises his incredulity with the line, "Yeh kya hai, bhai?" But you plough on with your food regardless of all the attention, trying to muster up non-verbal signals to explain, "Listen everyone, I'd like to assure you that I'm not a lunatic, and there is a jolly good reason why I'm putting myself through this."