Tirunelveli's Gift

word of mouth ...

A Ganesh Nadar

Tirunelveli is a bustling town which stretches for just five or seven kms in all
directions. Shops and houses crowd the sides of the roads. But if you have the time to
go behind the houses you will be amidst lush green fields. The fields can be found
.right in the centre of the town

There is a huge bus terminus which is awake around the clock. Here you can see men
hurrying-scurrying around in dhothis, lungis and pants. Women in colourful saris
walk at a more sedate pace. Majority of the young girls still wear a thavani or half-
.sari or perhaps the salwar-kameez. Jeans and skirts are a rarity

There are bus routes to every place in Tamil Nadu -- inter-state buses to Trivandrum,
Tirupathi, Ernakulam and Bangalore too -- out of this busy little town. The railway
station is just a three minute walk. Trains are available to the temple town
Tiruchendur, the touristy Kanyakumari, the state capital of Madras and one even to
.Bombay

Around the bus station are innumerable shops selling cloth, das-paisa-type bags,
stationery --tempting but useless knick knacks that you never need and of course
innumerable STD booths. And even three computerised colour labs where you can
develop a film roll in one hour flat while you drum your heels waiting for your
Kulesekarappattinam ramba fast connection. There are few good hotels and
.innumerable smaller cheaper ones

The Arasan ice cream parlour outside the bus depot, stands out in its décor, service
and taste in these parts. College students can be found at this 'modern' hang out.
Tirunelveli has a number of colleges, a law college and even a medical college
attached to the huge government hospital. The famous Arvind Eye Hospital of
.Madurai has a very big branch hospital here

The huge Thiru Nelliappar temple dwarfs everything around here. Legend says that a
farmer put his paddy out to dry here, told his gods to keep an eye on it and went to
bathe in the Tambiraparani. While he was bathing, it started raining heavily. He
hurried back wondering what had happened to his paddy. While it continued to pour,
he saw that the paddy remained unaffected because on that spot it was not raining.
The lord had protected it 'like a hedge'. In Tamil paddy is 'Nel', hedge is 'Veli' and
.'Tiri' is holy, therefore the name Tirunelveli

There is a road right around the temple. The road houses the wholesale grains,
.provision and electrical market. One stretch is filled with cloth shops

.The River Tambiraparani meanders sluggishly right through the heart of the town
 Like any other bus terminus and any other town, there are
plenty of sweet shops around. But now don't forget we are
describing the town of Tirunelveli, whose sweet shops are
famous all over the South for its halwa. And unlike other
places where all sweets sell, in Tirunelveli this sweetmeat
.outstrips all in sales and popularity

The Tirunelveli halwa is a continuous love affair between the halwa and saliva.
Mention it to anybody and you will see them smacking their tongues in anticipation
.and appreciation

The most popular shop, in my estimate, must be selling over Rs 100,000 worth of
halwa everyday and another ten must be selling at least Rs 10,000 of the commodity
every 24 hours day. But nobody mentions figures because the Tamil Nadu tax
.officials are so sincere, honest, diligent and sharp eared

But though the halwa shops outside the bus terminus do brisk business, enquiries
reveal that none of these halwais are the pioneers of the original Tirunelveli halwa.
The pioneer I was told was a mile away in a place called 'Town'. Just as people going
to South Bombay say "I am going to town" -- this area of Tirunelveli is simply known
.'as 'Town

From the 'Junction' there is a bus to 'Town' every five

minutes. The fare is only one rupee. This bus crosses the
famous three tier bridge across the railway line and travels
past an automobile spare parts market, a few theatres, a mela
.'and then reaches 'Town

The market was as crowded as the Junction area. Buses proceed at a frantic pace
inspite of the crowd. An elephant walked past leisurely. From the main entrance of the
Nellaipper temple you must turn left to reach the town's famous halwa shop. The sixth
shop on the left is known as Iruttukadai' -- literally translated it means 'dark shop'. It
has no board identifying it. It has been known as the 'Iruttukadai' for the last five
.decades

The shop was closed. The wooden shutters were down. At 5.45 pm a small crowd
gathered outside the shop. The shop opened at 6 pm sharp. The halwa was already
packed in ¼, ½ and one kg packs. Only smaller amounts needed to be weighed and
.parcelled out

One customer wanted 3 kgs in 1/4 kg packs. He explained, "My friend is going to
Bangalore tomorrow and from there to the US. Please pack it specially for me!" The
shopkeeper tried to convince him that their packing was very good but the buyer was
persistent. Finally twelve ¼ kg packs were repacked with additional cellophane paper
at no extra cost. Some wanted to send it to Madras. Others to Bombay. Quite a few
bought 50 or 100 gms and ate it on the spot, glued to the floor as they wolfed the
halwa down with relish. The owner continuously pleaded, "Please throw the leaves
into the garbage bin." But most people just threw the leaf on the road, wiped their oily
.hands on a paper and threw that too on the road
 When I chatted with the owner K Bijli Singh I was surprised
to learn that the famous Tirunelveli halwa was a Rajasthani
gift to Tamil Nadu -- introduced by the Rajput community in
Tirunelveli -- 85 years back. "Earlier we used to make it
ourselves, now we use local cooks but the recipe remains
with us". Bijli Singh and even his late father Krishna Singh
were born in Chokkanpatti village of Tirunelveli districts. They have been here for
.five generations

So while the rest of the country knows the Rajputs for their fighting skills, in
.Tirunelveli they are known for their culinary skills

The basic difference between this halwa and others is the ingredients used. But if only
ingredients matter then you may wonder why Tirunelveli halwa made in Madras or
Bombay tastes different. "Simple," says Bijli Singh with a twinkle in his eye "Here
."we use Tambiraparani water

Krishna Singh was the man who started the shop. In those days he used to make the
halwa himself and thus was busy during the day in his kitchen. In the evening he used
to sell it. Bijli Singh has stuck to that routine. "I haven't changed the décor or the 40w
bulb. You see if I modernise people will think the management has changed. I'll lose
business. I love tradition and sentiments." Even his cash box remains a box made
.from dry palm leaves

Some time ago he was interviewed by the Tamil magazine Kalki. "A man came from
Malaysia with that Kalki in his hand" he said proudly. "And bought halwa." And
when this gentleman left Tirunelveli a few days later by train he was surprised to
discover that quite a few had the same idea as him. Passengers departing from
!Tirunelveli were each carrying a precious bag of 'Iruttukadai' halwa

Iruttukadai's Tirunelveli Halwa

.Soak one kg of whole grains of wheat for eight hours

.Hand grind. Let the milk-like batter settle

Pour the milk-like batter and 4½ kg sugar into a wide iron karhai or wok. Heat,
stirring continuously till it begins to boil and bubble. Then add 2¼ kg ghee. Boil it
.down till it thickens and is nearly solid

.Pour onto a greased thali or plate. Let it cool and cut or serve into desired portions