The majheni life

Its just another day at Malcolm Baug in Jogeshwari Resident Yazmaity Postwala is zooming around on her scooter through the gated community that houses around 400 Zoroastrian residents delivering the dayrsquos meal to 300 families She has no time to stop for a courtesy chat when a neighbour waves at her The focus is on getting the right parcel basis a clientrsquos dietary preference to the right home And on timeBut when a senior citizen she caters to stops her for a health and weather chat she canrsquot refuse Itrsquos the case with Franak Doctor 75 who lives with her 82yearold husband five buildings away from Postwala On Wednesdays she is delivered her favouritemdashthe Parsi chicken fritter speciality chicken farcha with boiled eggs and potato wedgesChicken farcha packed and ready to goPostwala keeps the spice low in this delivery just the way the Doctors like itldquoGhanu tasty banaviyuch yoursquove made it delicious Thank yourdquo says Doctor to PostwalaFitness instructorturned home chef Yozmaity Postwala caters meals for 300 families at Jogeshwaris Malcolm Baug delivering them on her scooter dailyThis sweet friendship is relatively new and born of the Coronavirusinduced lockdown Like most senior citizens Doctor was wondering where she would get her next safe and tasty meal from when the government announced restriction of movement and facilities Prior to this Doctor cooked her own meals but the lockdown meant she could not go out to get supplies given their age and susceptibility to the infection One day they decided to try Postwalarsquos meal and were happy with it to continue ldquoYozirsquos food was a god send in a very unpredictable time It is comforting to know that our meal is hygienically prepared and safety protocols have been followed Now it has become a daily affairrdquo says DoctorA fitness instructor and nutritionist by training Postwala had her own challenges to deal with during the lockdown The single mother of three has an old mother to take care of With no income Postwala took to cooking ldquoIt was the only thing that came to mind as so many people around me especially the old and elderly from my colony were without their house helps Initially I started with a few accompaniments Then I realised they were keen to have full meals deliveredrdquo she adds As Postwala gained confidence she began experimenting with main course dishes and the appreciation was instant ldquoYozi is an angel My goodness What amazing chicken frankies that girl makes I also love her cheesy grill with mashrdquo says 61yearold Zarir Kheshwala On the carefully structured weekly menu are chicken kebabs mutton Kheema pattice and everyonersquos favourite chicken dhansak Although Postwala is back to being a personal trainer she says she wonrsquot give up the kitchen which she has christened YozAmazeHome chef Meher Sinor readies a batch of chicken puffs for deliveryThe Parsis love their traditional eats and often the best meals are prepared at home ldquoOur food is distinct and certainly not easily availablerdquo says Meher H Sinor 52 home chef and resident of Dadar Parsi Colony This former school teacher turned to home catering a few years ago when her mawa cake became a hit first with friends and then with neighbours Slowly her food became synonymous with small parties and gatherings at the colony ldquoI never say no to an order The lockdown changed my perspective further when I began sending meals to the elderly including my 80yearold neighbour because there was no one to cook I took charge till alternative arrangements were made I felt blessed that I was able to help feed them in uncertain times When you see someone feel happy with your food itrsquos a different sort of satisfactionrdquo she addsSinorrsquos top dishes include chicken puff mince meat puff topli paneer daal ni pori bakes sev and malido Sinor also makes continental Moghlai and Chinese dishes including pot rice prawn cocktail and Russian cutlets with help from daughter Vahista who has professionally trained in bakingCheesy chicken with garlic bread The home chef says its her snacks that are a bigger hitThe lockdown brought forth the idea of help and community bonding even more strongly in Parsi baugs because they were built with the hope of offering a safe cheap and communityled housing environment to the cityrsquos Parsi and Iranian Zoroastrians At Contractor Baug in Mahim 42yearold Yasmin Eduljee was known to cook elaborate meals for her family Her maternal Bohri Muslim lineage added to the variety in her cooking and occasionally she took party orders But during the lockdown with her husbandrsquos work discontinuing she decided to hold fort and start home catering While she did make tiffins for lunch and dinner itrsquos her snacksmdashcutlets samosa kathi roll kebab pav hotdog and idli sambharmdashthat were fast sellers ldquoThere was a sudden demand for meals from senior citizens facing difficulty getting supplies I started with a few families I knew personally and from there things picked up really well On an average I was catering 15 meals a day and the demand was higher on weekends and festive occasions like Parsi new year It was a great way to look after one another in the most difficult time we have seen in our living memoryrdquo says Eduljee She points out that home chefs like everyone else were also devoid of helpContractor Baug resident Yasmin Eduljees mini meal lunch boxThey had to cook and clean in their own homes and home school their kids It was possible for her and others like her to manage to cater because all members of the family pitched in ldquoIt was team work at its best and we experienced a different sort of bondingrdquo