Shashi Tharoor’s witty response to rasgulla comparison goes viral
What followed was spot on, as Tharoor delivered a detailed and humorous defense of the iconic South Indian dish in his trademark style.The viral post claimed, ‘Rasgulla is nothing more than an idli dipped in sugar syrup’ and called it the ‘most overrated desert’.In response, Tharoor wrote, “Really! Mixing a rasgulla with an idli is not just a culinary error; it’s a profound cosmic misunderstanding.”Explaining why the comparison made little sense, Tharoor said the two dishes belong to completely different culinary categories.“To begin with, the comparison is practically a biological impossibility. He is comparing chenna (fine, glossy, milky primordial curd) to cooked rice and black gram (urad dal). Their compositions are completely different,” he writes.“One is an airy, spongy lattice designed to trap light sugar syrups; the other is a dense, healthy, steamy matrix of complex carbohydrates and proteins. They have absolutely nothing in common in taste, consistency, structural integrity and purpose of existence,” he added.Tharoor then described the idli as ‘one of the greatest engineering marvels of the culinary world’ and praised the science behind its preparation.“Idli is not just a ‘bland cake’.’ It is a master class in biotechnology. Balancing the delicate microflora of wild fermentation on a cold night to achieve the perfect idli, resulting in a steamy cloud that is a triumph of gut health, lightness and nutritional balance,” he writes.Calling idli a ‘South Indian culinary genius’, Tharoor said it is perfectly suited to absorb the flavors of sambar, molaga-podi and ghee.“To suggest that an idli should be accepted even dipped in sugar syrup is to fundamentally misunderstand its dignity,” he remarked.He ended the post by saying that people are free to criticize rasgulla on their own merits, but idli should be kept out of the debate.“If this lady finds rasgullas overrated, argue the merits of their sponginess or sweetness. But please, leave the sublime, perfectly fermented, steamy glory of idlis out of your dessert-table debate, ma’am!” Tharoor wrote.
