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Monday, May 09, 2005
No batata wadas in Patiala
In response to the Girish Shahane article that I linked to here, Vimalanand Prabhu writes in:
No, I am not going to start a Wada v Tikki debate on this blog – I like both. For more on the subject of Maharahstrian business culture, read Gaurav Sabnis's post, "Why Anantashram deserves to go out of business".
There are many Marathi businessmen in the old "Anantashram" mould. Just go to "Aathavale and Shahade" just outside Dadar station, who sell handloom cotton towels, etc. Request for a towel (we call it pancha, it is made of a thin cloth like a dhoti). He will show you a towel, max two. All this with a blank expression on his face. It is as if you are placing a burden on him by buying stuff from his store. Similarly, go to "Vaman Hari Pethe" Jewellers, once again outside Dadar station. Similar attitude. Everytime I have been there, I wonder why I went there in the first place. But the quality of goods, and the reliability (important for gold and all) really is impeccable.
[...]
[O]ne more thing about the above-mentioned Marathi businesses is that they proudly acclaim in their advertisements, "Aamchi kuthehi shaakha nahi" (We do not have any other branches/ franchises). As if it is a great honor. They will never understand the logic of McDonalds. Alas, we will never get a Batata-Wada (Marathi equivalent of Aalu-Tikki, but much better) in any part of India other than Mumbai.
No, I am not going to start a Wada v Tikki debate on this blog – I like both. For more on the subject of Maharahstrian business culture, read Gaurav Sabnis's post, "Why Anantashram deserves to go out of business".
