Chingri Machh er Malai Curry

I once read a story which ran like this: a bloke was resting in the shade under a tree. Another bloke comes up and asks 'what are you doing?'. Now, a digression may be in order to talk about the stupidity of one who comes upon someone ersting and asks what is he doing, but well... The hero says that he is taking a siesta. The other bloke says, 'why are you resting, when you could be working?'. The hero asks 'what do you mean?'. The bloke goes on to explain: 'well, you borrow some money, buy an axe, and chop some firewood. You sell that, make some money, buy another axe, and emply someone to chop firewood with you. You expand slowly, until you own a fleet of trucks to transport the firewood and then you become a rich man'. Pat comes the reply, 'and then?'. The bloe is nonplussed. He says, 'and then, you can sit back and relax'. To which our hero replies, 'and what do you think I am doing right now?'

Get the drift? We had dinner at my place this Saturday. Sort of a mini-Bong get together with others as well. So Jishnu made an aloo posto. Now there was a certain amount of debate on whether the aloo posto should be watery and runny or whether it should be thick. Apparently the Ghotis like their aloo posto watery and tha Bangals like it thick. Which makes no sense to me, cos my Ma is a Ghoti and she makes a thick aloo posto. But the point is that there was aloo posto. I had made a rather shady daal and aloo dum. Arnab made a pretty good beguni (Calories mean nothing to a Bong). And the star was Shilpi who made an awesome chingri machher malai-curry. I mean, that rocked!!

So here is the point. We Bongs are a pretty useless race. I mean, no industry, useless in business, haven't featured in national politics for .. ever! But then, there are redeeming features. Like chingri machher malai-curry. This is one of those things which make me feel intensely parochial. What is the point in making megabucks and building funky machines if your lunch is a miserable burger?