Roadside workers sitting down to have a meal has always been one of the best sights anywhere. These men, coming from diverse backgrounds and of different nationalities, find time to get together as they take a break from work and present a picture of bonhomie, camaraderie and togetherness that can only come when they are ‘alone’, thousands of miles from their families.
I have been to this shop several times. The pakoras (fritters) this gentleman makes are awesome, particularly for those hungry souls in nearby offices as well as for starved passers-by. And this place is forever crowded.
Strangely, for a short while that I was there this morning, there wasn’t a soul in sight – but for this gentleman who was busy frying away.
He makes all kinds of fritters as well as samosas, some traditional, some ordinary everyday stuff.
Coming from the Southern Indian state of Kerala, most of his offerings have the Malayali taste but no one seems to complain.
A full breakfast here (two pieces of bread, a two-egg omelet and a glass of piping hot tea) costs a dollar and that’s enough to last any working man several hours. No wonder, then, it’s such a popular place.
This gentleman told me he starts frying at 6 am – every day, including the weekends – and stops for a meal at 11 am. He starts again at 11.15 and carries on until well past 2 pm.
After a 30 minute lunch break, he is again on the job until late in the evening (or until customers keep trickling in).
Such is the life of hundreds of thousands of expatriates in this country. These people, mainly from India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, have left their families behind and travelled half way across the globe to earn so that their folks back home live in relative comfort and luxury.
I wonder, sometimes, why we complain about the smallest possible things. We don’t seem to like so many things we have and always want more – and something different, never to be satisfied.
Look at this man, and the thousands like him. He is STANDING at work 14 to 15 hours a day and still smiles – has a kind word for every customer and never raises his voice.
These are the heroes who make us run and work! For, if not for these hard-working souls, we would be without fuel.
Food for thought, isn’t it?
Almost every household in Bahrain has to have the traditional ‘khubus’, ‘kamachi’ or ‘kuka’ – depending on the size – at least once a day. Strangely, very few, if at all, the ‘operators’ of these neighbourhood bakeries are actually Bahrainis, with a very large majority coming from India, more specifically, from the North Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.
Unlike any other country in this region, Bahrain is the only real melting pot of people from scores of countries worldwide, who follow diverse religions and ‘monopolise’ their own skills.
MANDEEPSINGS 