Vada Pav

During 90’s when I was in Mumbai, I used to eat Vada Pav. It was cheap. Two for Rs.2.00 with hot chutney. Other parts of Maharashtra do sale the same Vada pav minus the taste. Mumbai’s Vada pav was totally ‘alag’. A simple menu of boiled potato wrapped in gram flour and then fried and sandwiched in a pav(bread).

Now coming to the point, Mr. Udhav Thackeray, champion of Maratha cause, prefer to change this simple ‘Vada Pav’ to ‘Shiv Vada’. Please don’t ask me about the remaining pav. Keep it for the Goans. They may name it ‘Vasco Pav’. Mr.Udhav’s logic, if a beedi can be called “Sambhaji beedi” then why Vada-Pav cannot be renamed “Shiv vada”? My knowledge got a boom after this holy revelation. According to him ‘Shiv Vada’ should be named after Shivaji, the great Maratha warrior of 16th century. Though then there was no Vada pav but there was Aurangzeb. The Mughal emperor (he was great too ). Shivaji challenged Mughal expansionism, colonialism etc, etc. He had huge success in doing so. He used guerilla tactic. Sword was his weapon. After several wars he established Hindvi Sawrajjya. He became Chatrapati Shivaji Raje & continues to rule every Marathi-Non Marathi Heart till today.

Time passed quickly, in 21st century Mr. Balasaheb ( wo mere liye Adarniya & Pitasaman hain) established Shiv -Sena . There was no Aurangzeb then. There was ‘Loongi’ and ‘Beard’. He thundered ‘Loongi hatao’. He too had huge success in doing so. He used ‘ Marathi-Asmitaa’ as his tactic. Hate was his weapon. After Riots he Established Shiv-Rajjay, though for just 05 years. He became ‘Hindu Rhiday Samrat’ for few Marathas and few more non Marathas.

Opportunities pass even more quickly. Thackrey house was not ordinary house but it too got split like any other house. Balasaheb’s copy-cat is being brought in front by the same script writer who had helped Shiv-Sena to come in exist during 1977. That time the reasons were to check the communist, Muslims etc, etc. Time has changed, not the script. So here is MNS. This time North Indians are at the receiving end, God alone knows what the future plans are. Muslims might have learnt their lessons. Nephew & Son have turned their hate guns to each other. Money was never a problem. Power is the target. ‘Aamchi Mumbai’ and ‘Shiv-Vada’ are the weapons. No one knows what is going to be established. No one knows who is going to be a ‘Maratha Khan’ and how many years?