Notthat there is a restriction on having wazwanin any part of the year. People can relish this gastronomic delight any day andany time of the year. But wazwan doeshave a season of its own, the normal marriage season commencing April andlasting till October. This is when binge wazwaneating becomes a routine with at least 3 to 4 wazwan feasts a month. Although people find ways to have it inoff-season too, at family get-togethers and other celebrations.
Comenew season in early April when people look forward to the first wazwan feast of the year. There is thisyearning to have it and relish it. Thereis abundance of it on the copper plate, the trami,but having it in moderation to tickle your taste buds is the way to go so thatyou don’t get bored of eating it again and again the whole season. In thesetimes of busy schedules and work pressure, the feasts at the weddings relievethe stress and people not only enjoy good food but friends and relatives sharenice camaraderie.
Wazwan is a unique cuisine,exquisite. You can’t churn it out in every part of the world. It has to be geographicallyindicated, literally and metaphorically – Kashmir specific. It’s not spicy,bitter or sweet. It is all in moderation, every ingredient in right proportion.The taste is divine and awesome. This gourmet food might well turn out to be onthe Heaven’s menu as well.
Itgoes without saying that the normal seven-course meal is the be-all and end-all of all wazwan feasting. Thetraditional seven-course meal should stay and less should get wasted. Theadd-ons depict extravagance and well-meaning people do not take kindly towastage of food. Even though wazwaninvitations bring with it burdens as well, financial and logistical, but we asa society have taken it in our stride and in the end the wazwan feast is the winner, the leveller between rich and poorwhich gives an overwhelming and fulfilling experience to the hosts and guestsalike.
Kashmiriwazwan implies purity. The masterchef wants all ingredients to be pure and of highest quality from spices tomutton. However, the nuanced taste of wazwanpreparation varies from chef to chef. The quantity to be prepared matters aswell and if the guest list is too long, the quality of taste may get diluted.Besides, over the years, quite a few bad influences seem to upend the rich wazwan tradition. The thorough-bred wazas are gradually giving up thiscalling and workforce getting inducted who are just strangers to the trade.Equally disparaging to the essence of wazwanis the use of polythene disposable stuff that is ruining the feast as such.These days even the famed Gushtaba isallowed to be served, rather dropped, in a plastic bowl which is hardly foodgrade and is injurious to health. It would normally land on a mound of freshlyserved rice with spoonfuls of yakhniat the base of the Trami. The mootpoint is that we ought to serve it in traditional copper-ware with curd interra-cotta bowls.
Thoughfeasting on wedding function gives the actual word picture of wazwan, the small factoid about wazwan is that it is also immenselyenjoyed when taken at home. On weddings,important relatives by virtue of being new in-laws, do get a full Trami sent home where there is a hugecheer the moment wazwan laden trami makes a koshur entry to the house.It is absolute delight to relish a wazwanat home in small servings whereas in a formal setting of invitation one cannotfathom the whole lot heavy meal. Now it is becoming more of a norm to carrysome leftover back home in pouches which has helped with lesser wastage offood. One hopes to see more improvement and innovation in this aspect so thatsome packed food is carried home in a more respectable way as gift hampers.
Atthis hour and age when healthy eating is the mantra, wazwan is a high fat, high calorie power-diet. But for some smartthinking, the wazwan lovers with badcholesterol and high uric acid have also found ways to relish wazwan against the doctors’ advice. Theyturn vegetarian for the whole month at home while as enjoy few wholesome wazwan meals every month. Such is theaddiction and the urge to have the lip smacking cuisine.
Visitorsand tourists joining marriage ceremonies get enthused to see the lavish use ofdry fruits in Kashmiri weddings, the variety of wazwan dishes, the delicacies such as traditional kashmiri kehwa and bread varieties in the shapeof kulchas and shermals. It does turn out to be a fat Kashmiri wedding in the end,made special by wazwan.