Turning Back Time with AI ⏳
Recreating my favourite childhood memory with AI ✨
I turned 24 last week 🎉 and birthdays remind me growing old which makes me want hoard all the good things about my life and hold them close, so they escape “change”.
This year I spent it with my loved ones, in absolute peace. While sipping coffee, my friend asks me,
What’s your favourite childhood memory? 💭
Alandur was a quaint little town in 2010 at the edge of Chennai (India), brimming with potential. Every summer growing up, it was my home. There is an informal tradition of many Indian families to visit their parents house along with the children during summers. The narrow lanes of Alandur, makes everyone a tight knit community, always sharing food and laughter. Mother’s tend to call out their kids for lunch from these terraces.
This was a trip I looked forward to every year, to meet my grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins. We occasionally planned picnics to the very famous St. Thomas Mount with my grandparents, just so we could watch the planes take off from the airport behind it. The planes flying so close above is a treat to every child. Yet the main reason, I loved these visits, were getting to see my grandfather.
My grandfather was a kind and warm person and Food was his love language. ❤️
Almost every week, we used to walk to the local vegetable market. Thin lanes, lined up street vendors selling fresh produce. One yells, “Ambadhu ku moonu” which translates to 3kgs of vegetable for 50 rupees (0.60$).
He taught me how to hand-pick the right ones. He strongly believed that making good food was more than just flavours, it was the quality of ingredients and the presentation as well. So, after picking our vegetables, we would clean them, sort them into tiny bags for future use and pick some for our next meal. 🥘
The one dish, I religiously look forward to every year is Bhelpuri. To phrase it in simple words, a Bhel Puri is an appetiser made by simply mixing puffed rice, chopped raw vegetables like onions, carrots, tomatoes, boiled potatoes, raw mango, cucumber and pomegranate with a tangy tamarind chutney (sauce), a spicy green coriander chutney (sauce) and a pungent garlic chutney (sauce).
Bhel Puri as a dish, is burst of flavours, all at once. If I had a choice, I would eat it everyday in my life (I still do once a week 😅). After mixing all the ingredients together, each one of us is handed out a plate, which, is then served with delicious happiness called Sev (crispy fried toppings made out of gram flour). My face lights up every time I receive my plate because I know what comes next - the flavourful explosion in my mouth! 😍
After finishing the first serving, I reach out to my Nana, to fill my plate. 🥹
Again.
And he fills it with his love.
Again.
👴🏽👧🏻✨
An epitome of kindness, love, care and a giver at heart, My Nana, passed away a few years ago. And I am going to share one of the best gifts I have received from him,
The Joy of Cooking! 👩🏻🍳
Here’s to turning 24 with an ode to becoming more like him as I grow up. A kind, heart-warming and happy person. 🌻✨
Thank you for being a part of journey ! ✨
Love,
Monica 🌻