Kashmiri Bakery, Noida

Sector 53. In middle of rows of car repair shops.
Roshan Lal Kashmiri Bakery
Tuesday Closed

Took these photographs one early Sunday morning.
 

As I walked towards the delivery counter of the bakery, nearby, their previous customer – a balding, portly well-past middle age gent wearing checkered Bermudas (or what resembled Bermudas), a T-shirt horizontal striped in two hues of blue and sporting a pair of rubber chappal, who (I noticed) had bought a bagful of girdas and lavasas, kick started to life his turquoise painted, JK three-digit number plated, late 1980s model Bajaj Chetak scooter and left; bag of girdas and lavasas packed safe in the front dicky.

Next in line was a domestic help of some family, a ‘jeer bai‘, placing an order for rotis.While her order was getting ready, the shop help discussed weather and this and that with her. After she left, I had the entire shop to myself, so I took some photographs while my order for girdas and lavasas was getting ready.

Taking orders on mobile.
They are planning to open a branch at Greater Noida.

Kandur Waan / Kashmiri Bakery / Naan Wai

And we carried our bread and bakery with us.

These Hindu bakehouses, usually operating from rented shop spaces near localities with sizable population of Kashmiri Pandits, are mostly run by Hindus of Kistawar.

Often near the oven, you can find a sketch of a pooch-bellied woman, Lal Ded. Pooch belly a cover for her nakedness.

Kashmiris tell a strange story in which this woman dived into a burning oven of a Kandur on seeing a ‘man’.  Some say it wasn’t like that. Nonsense! Bring the baker to the witness stand.

Don but such apparel as will cause the cold to flee.
Eat but so much food as will cause hunger to cease.
O Mind! devote thyself to discernment of the Self and of the Supreme,
And recognize thy body as but food for forest crows.

– Lal Ded

Another bakery at night.

All breads, and kashmiris have variety of breads, have shrunk in size. Lavaasa now come in size of Girda and size of Girda is inching towards kulcha. And all of them seem to have too much baking soda.


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