English - Overseas Indian

europe diaries
DESI
FLAVOURS
IN HELSINKI
In the land of the Midnight Sun, at least two dozen Indian
restaurants are serving mouth-watering delicacies which
are an instant hit among Finnish, says Kavita Bajeli-Datt
When one thinks of this Land
of the Midnight Sun, the
first thing that comes to
mind is reindeer and bear
meat. But the Finnish capital of Helsinki
boasts of at least two dozen Indian restaurants
that serve mouth-watering palak paneer,
chole-naan, kadi-pakora, butter chicken
and other delicacies.
How come Indian food is a major hit
with the Finns?
“People love Indian food here. From dal
to curries to naans, you name it. It is very
popular here,” Rumon Rehman, a
Bangladeshi national, who works in Namaskaar,
told IANS. Namaskaar is among
the first Indian restaurants that opened
here. Much has changed since. This city of
one million people now has a Gandi, Maharaja,
Samrat, Indian Taj and Mount
Everest, to name just a few. But what is interesting
is that most of these restaurants
are run by either Nepalese or
Bangladeshis — not Indians!
Rehman claimed Namaskaar was first
started with the help of an Indian and it
soon became synonymous with authentic
Indian food. Seeing its success, others took
its franchise and opened new outlets with
the same name.
A walk around the Finnish capital,
known for its lakes and islands, reveals
38 Pravasi Bharatiya | June 2012
many restaurants with Indian names. It is
easy to see their popularity with the Finns
as well as with the international expat
community. And the beautiful summer
drives them to these roadside restaurants
for what locals consider exotic cuisine.
“We love the breads and the lovely spicy
curries. Basically, I love Indian food. They
have so much to offer in both the vegetarian
and non-vegetarian menu,” said Helina,
a college student. She added that
India and its rich cultural tradition also
created a buzz among her friends to try out
Indian food.
“People here know about India. Some
of my friends have been to India. I hope I
also get a chance soon. My aim is to taste
the hottest curry possible so I can boast
about it,” Helina said.
Keeping the tastes of the local people in
mind, the Indian cuisine on offer here is
milder. Apart from Indian food, restaurants
also offer a wide variety of South
Asian delicacies from Nepal, Pakistan and
Bangladesh.
Rehman said apart from the natives loving
the Indian spread, many Indians —
either traveling or working in this Nordic
country — make a beeline for their restaurants.
“Indians are always hunting for Indian
food and if you are a vegetarian, then the
chances are greater. I have met so many
(Indians) in the past years. They are so
happy to see an Indian restaurant in a faraway
land,” he added.
Aware of the popularity of Indian food,
Finnair, which operates direct flights to
Helsinki six days a week from New Delhi,
tries to provide authentic food on its
flights.
“Indian meals are made at Finncatering
where they follow Indian recipes. We
know Indians are particular about their
food; that’s why we change our menu
every four weeks,” said Saksela Marjaana,
Service Manager, Intercontinental flights
Inflight Customer Service. She said
their executive chef Juha Stenholm
and his colleagues also visited India
on a learning trip and picked up tips
from the local catering company about
the Indian culinary world.
From dal makhani, green peas pulao
and paneer labadar to dal tadka and
spicy lentils, the customers — especially
the vegetarians — are given a
wide variety to choose from.
“Indian food has become quite popular
internationally. We just try to
bring the authentic taste to our customers,”
Marjaana added.
Letters to Santa Claus,
with love from India
dear Santa Claus, I need a little help
in my studies so that I can bring
laurels to my family”; “Please ring
my doorbell, I want to give you a gift”.
These are some of the thousands of letters
that are written by children from India to
a most-loved cherubic man in red robes, a
flowing white beard and a hearty laugh,
and, of course, a bag full of gifts.
Welcome to Rovaniemi, which is a commercial
centre of Finland’s northernmost
province Lapland, where the sun never sets
in midsummer and is best-known the world
over as the hometown of Santa Claus.
What is common in all the letters to
Santa is the gentle reminder for a “gift” or
a desperate appeal for a visit.
“Please call me,” writes Parvathy from
Hyderabad, while Pooja and Praneeeti
from Delhi inform Santa Claus that they
“believe with whole heart” that he exists
and want to be his elves. Harneet Kaur
from Chandigarh writes that she has
“heard” so much about Santa Claus that
she wants him to visit her “at least once.
Please do come”.
All letters land at the main post office located
in the heart of Santa’s Workshop Village
and is manned by his favorite elves.
It is always Christmas at the post office.
It wears a very festive look with giftwrapped
packets, Christmas cards and
souvenirs and the sound of Christmas car-
ols in the background. No wonder it attracts
400,000 visitors every year.
Santa Claus, who can be met on any day
of the year at the Santa Claus Office on the
Arctic Circle, has received 15.5 million letters
from 198 countries since 1985. And it
is not that Santa Claus does not reply.
He has replied to more than 40,000 letters
in 12 different languages, including
English, Italian, Polish, Finnish, French,
German, Korean and Chinese.
According to Katja Tervonen, one of
the elves at the posti, or post office, more
and more children from South Asian countries
are writing to Santa Claus.
“We are getting thousands of letter from
Japan, China and South Korea,” Tervonen
told IANS.
In fact, Japan and China are in the list of
top six countries from where Santa Claus
receives the maximum letters.
While Britain tops the list with 150,000
letters, Italy follows with 100,000 and
Poland with 45,000. Interestingly, Finland
comes fourth with 26,000 letters, followed
by Japan (25,000) and China (18,000), Tervonen
said.
Ketan Sahah from Surat writes: “I love
you and our children love you too.”
“Do not fail to send me the Christmas
gift. We are eagerly waiting. I love you
Santa,” writes Jayant from Lucknow.
— Kavita Bajeli-Dutt
June 2012 | Pravasi Bharatiya 39