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[[File: Priyadarshini Chatterjee bikini.jpg|Priyadarshini Chatterjee, the queen herself <br/> fbb Femina Miss India 2016 finalist. [http://www.thehoopsnews.com/photos-priyadarshini-chatterjee-is-miss-india-world-2016-12856/priyadarshini-chatterjee-hot '' The Hoops News'' ] |frame|500px]]
+
NIMMI
 +
Aan: Mehboob Khan wanted
 +
to film the movie in Technicolor and he was wondering how to accomplish the feat. There were no
 +
proper cameras and the processing had to be done in London, which meant an enormous expense and
 +
it seemed like an impossibility. Yousuf Sahab had a series of meetings with the brilliant Faredoon A.
 +
Irani and he convinced the ace cameraman that with his kind of expertise he could shoot the entire film
 +
in 16 mm and have it blown up to 35 mm. Faredoon Irani accepted the challenge.
  
[[File: Adya Niraj bikini.png| Adya Niraj <br/> fbb Femina Miss India 2016 finalist|frame|500px]]
+
When Aan went to the Technicolor lab in London the chief technician in the lab expressed a keen-
[[File: Adya Niraj child.png| Adya Niraj: childhood|frame|500px]]
+
ness to meet Faredoon Irani to congratulate him for the skill with which he had filmed the movie using
 +
an obsolete camera. When it was blown to 35 mm nobody could find out that it was filmed on 16 mm.
  
[[File: Aishwarya Sheoran bikini.png| Aishwarya Sheoran <br/> fbb Femina Miss India 2016 finalist|frame|left|500px]]
+
Aan was a worldwide success. At the London premiere British actors and directors were so impressed
[[File: Aishwarya Sheoran child.png| Aishwarya Sheoran: childhood|frame|left|500px]]
+
by Yousuf Sahab that they were inviting him to settle down in the UK and work in English films.
  
=box=
+
The premiere of Aan in Ceylon was one of the biggest in terms of the massive crowds that lined the
 +
streets from the airport to the hotel where we were put up. They were all Dilip Kumar fans. Such was
 +
the mass hysteria that the crowds broke all cordons at the airport and breached security at the hotel to
 +
see him. In Aan Yousuf Sahab played a poor villager who was deft with the
 +
sword and was an expert at fencing.
  
=box ends=
+
I remember the London distributor of the film (titled Savage Prin-
Indian Journal of Traditional Knowledge
+
cess), [the legendary filmmaker] Sir Alexander Korda, asking Yousuf Sahab how he performed the fencing scenes so perfectly.
V
+
ol. 11(1), January 2012, pp. 70-77
+
Traditional, ethnic and fermented foods of different tribes of Manipur
+
Devi P & Suresh Kumar P
+
*
+
ICAR RC NEH Region, AP centre, Basar, Arunachal Pradesh- 791101
+
E-mail
+
:
+
psureshars@gmail.com
+
  
Traditional  knowledge  exists  among  different  tribes  on  preparing  boiled  foods,  fermented  foods,  beverages  and
+
He was so impressed that he came to India soon after and Mehboob Sahab invited him to sound the
nutritionally rich traditional foods from various indigenous crop plants, forest products and meat of wild and domesticated
+
clapper board for the first shot of Amar.
animals.  Manipur  has  great  ethno-cultural  diversity,  with  two  major  tribes,  the
+
Nagas
+
and  the
+
Kukis
+
.  The
+
Naga
+
tribe
+
comprises  the
+
Maring
+
,
+
Mao,  Maram,  Kabui,  Tangkhul,  Tadubi,  Kolya,  Khoiras/Mayangkhong,  Koirangs,  Chirus  and
+
Maring
+
where  as  the
+
Kuki
+
tribe comprises  the
+
Mizos,  Paite,  Thadou  and Vaiphei.  Meitei
+
and
+
Meitei  Pangals
+
are  two  non
+
tribal  communities  of  Manipur  who  has  individual  identity.  The  traditional  foods  of  the
+
Manipuries
+
comprises
+
Iromba,
+
Champhu,  Kangshoi,  Hawaichar,  Soibum,  Ngaree,  ,  Paknam,  Chagem  pomba,  Kangshu,  Hentak,  Khazing,  Heikak,  sticky
+
rice  chapatti/bread,
+
etc
+
.
+
Alcoholic  beverages  made  up  of  rice  are  very  common  in  almost  all  the  festivals  of  the  tribal
+
peoples of Manipur locally called as
+
Yu.
+
Among different produces, the people of Manipur have the habit of taking variety
+
of leafy vegetables which are available in plenty in the dense forests.
+
Keywords:
+
Manipur, Traditional foods, Fermented foods, Bamboo products, Ethnic foods
+
IPC Int. Cl.
+
8
+
:
+
A47G, A47G 19/26, A47J 39/02, B01D 3/00, C12C 11/00, C12C 12/04, C12C 7/00, A01G 16/00
+
Manipur is one of the eight states of Northeast India,
+
bounded  by  Nagaland  in  the  North,  Mizoram  in  the
+
South,  Assam  in  the West,  and  by  the  borders  of  the
+
country Myanmar in the East as well as in the part of
+
South. The state lies at latitude of 23°83’N - 25°68’N
+
and  longitude  of  93°03’E  -  94°78’E.  The  total  area
+
covered by the state is 22,327 km² with the population
+
of  23,  88,  634.  The  major  crops  of  this  state  are
+
wheat,  pulses,  paddy,  maize,  sugarcane,  potato  and
+
mustard.  The  major  fruits  are  pineapple,  banana,
+
papaya, passion fruit, orange, lemon and mango. The
+
major vegetables are cabbage, cauliflower, pea, french
+
bean  and  tomato.  The  major  forest  products  are  oak,
+
teak,  pine,  cane,  bamboo,
+
leihao
+
and
+
uningthou
+
.  The
+
major  export  products  are  bamboo  shoot  products
+
ginger,  pineapple,  mushroom,  etc
+
1
+
.  Glutinous  rice  is
+
cultivated in the valley and inter-most river basins of
+
the  hills.  Transplantation  methods  in  the  valley
+
cultivations  led  to  substantial  growth  of  population
+
with a distinct peasantry, associated with riverine and
+
lacustrine village settlements.
+
The  Government  of  Manipur  had  recognized  32
+
different  tribes.  They  are:
+
Animol,  Chothe,  Kacha
+
Naga,  Kom,  Maring,  Paite,  Sema,  Tarao,  Anal,
+
Gante, Kharem, Lamgang, Mao, Poumi Naga, Simte,
+
Thadou,  Angami,  Hmar,  Koirao,  Luisai,  Mansang,
+
Purum,  Sahlte,  Vaipei,  Chiru,  Kabui,  Koirangm,
+
Maram,    Mayon,    Ralte,    Tangkhul    and    Jou. 
+
These  tribes  come  into  two  major  tribes,  i.e.  i) 
+
Naga
+
:  The
+
Naga
+
tribe    comprises    the
+
Maring
+
+
Mao,  Maram,  Kabui,  Tangkhul,  Tadubi,  Kolya,
+
Khoiras/Mayangkhong, Koirangs, Chirus and Maring
+
2
+
.
+
They  occupy  the  Northern  and  North-western  hills 
+
of  Manipur.  The  staple  food  is  rice  which  is  cooked
+
either  in  earthern  pot/metal  pot  or  in  bamboo  tube.
+
Young  bamboo  shoots  are  collected  during  summer
+
season  and  are  peeled,  dried  and  then  added  with 
+
rice  for  consumption.  ii)
+
Kuki
+
:  They  are  also  known
+
as
+
Khongois.
+
 
+
They    occupy    the    South    western 
+
and  South  eastern  hills  and  is  wide  spread  in  the
+
district of Churachandpur, Tangnoupal and Sadar hills
+
in  the  northern  Manipur.  This  tribe  comprises 
+
the
+
Mizos,  Paite,  Thadou  and  Vaiphei
+
2
+
.  Rice  is  the
+
staple  food  and  there  is  certain  restriction  in  the
+
consumption  of  animal  flesh.  Rice  beer  (
+
Yu
+
)  is  the
+
most important alcoholic beverages in all the festivals
+
of  this  tribe
+
3
+
.  Dried  fish  is  eaten  by  almost  all  the
+
ethnic  groups.  All  type  of  domestic  animals  is  eaten
+
except  cat.  They  also  eat  locusts,  dog,  all  kinds  of
+
birds and frogs.
+
——————
+
*
+
Corresponding author
+
DEVI & SURESH KUMAR: TRADITIONAL FOODS OF MANIPUR
+
71
+
Meitei
+
and
+
Meitei  Pangals are  the  communities  of
+
Manipur which does not belong to tribes. The
+
meiteis
+
are  distributed  in  the  main  valley  and  fish  is  the
+
common  article  of  diet.  Rice  is  the  staple  food  and
+
wheat  is  not  taken  in  the  form  of
+
chappatti
+
or
+
roti
+
.
+
The  majorities  of
+
Meitei  Pangals
+
occupies  the
+
Thoubal  district  and  follow  the  Islamic  way  of  life.
+
The region as a whole provides an exotic mosaic, rich
+
in the tapestry of colour, rhythm and movement
+
3
+
. All
+
the  ethnic  groups  living  in  the  hills  and  the  valley
+
prefer  wild  plants/plant  parts  as  foods  to  introduce
+
cultivate  plants.  Though  many  of  these  plants  are
+
available,  nowadays  the  number  and  quality  of
+
species are much less than past. Very few numbers of
+
introduced  plants  are  replacing  this  vast  number  of
+
wild plants.
+
Different  tribes  have  their  own  traditional  foods
+
and  beverages.  The  traditional  food  habits  of  tribal
+
population of the state are very simple and have to do
+
with the festival and rituals which forms a mosaic of
+
ethnic  cultural  combinations
+
3
+
.  Traditional  knowledge
+
exists  among  different  tribes  on  preparing  boiled
+
foods,  fermented  foods,  beverages  and  nutritionally
+
rich  traditional  foods  from  various  indigenous  crop
+
plants,  forest  products  and  meat  of  wild  and
+
domesticated animals. These foods are part and parcel
+
of  their  social  spectrum  of  life.  Traditional  foods  are
+
not  only  rich  in  nutrients  but  also  have  certain
+
curative    properties    against    many    diseases    and
+
disorders
+
4
+
.
+
Meitei
+
diet  has  been  influenced  by  many
+
other  cultures  due  to  various  socio  political  reasons.
+
Sanskritisation  is  one  of  the  biggest  factors  that
+
influence  the  change  of  dietary  habit.  From  the  meat
+
eater they became fish eater, and those who accepted
+
the  Hinduism  to  its  extreme  even  gave  up  fish  and
+
became  pure  vegetarian.  The
+
Manipuris
+
are  usually
+
two  meals  eater, one in the  morning  and the  other in
+
the  evening  /night.  Occasionally,  enjoy  taking
+
Sinju
+
vegetable  salad  with  fermented  fish  or  roasted  gram
+
flour.    Alcoholic    beverages    of    different    tribal
+
communities  have  received  attention  of  several
+
ethnobotanists  and  anthropologists.  Introduction  of
+
fast      foods      thorough      globalization      process,
+
accompanied  by  decrease  in  the  use  of  traditional
+
foods  of  local  tribe  has  resulted  in  many  diseases
+
notably    diabetes,    heart    diseases,    and    anaemia
+
particularly    to    pregnant    and    lactating    women
+
5
+
.
+
Though  the  new  generation  of  tribes  adopted  to
+
modern  food  habits,  due  to  its  importance,  it  is
+
imperative  to  document  the  traditional  food  products
+
and    their    importance    among    different    tribal
+
communities.
+
Methodology
+
The present study was conducted in Manipur state
+
covering  all  the  districts.  Thirty  different  villages
+
covering 200 different tribal people were conducted to
+
make the final conclusion. The population is covered
+
in  such  a  way  that it  comprises  of  more  than  50%
+
elders  as  they  practice  those  traditional  practices 
+
still  in  household.  The  response  of  all  sampled
+
respondents  was  recorded.  A  questionnaire  after
+
pretesting    and    thereafter    editing    by    amending,
+
recording  errors  and  deleting  queries  that  were
+
obviously  erroneous  was  filled  through  structured
+
participatory  interviews  at  the  site  residence  of  rural
+
people.  Secondary  information  was  collected  from
+
district agriculture information centre, books, reports,
+
and electronic and non- electronic sources. The use of
+
multiple  sources  of  information  was  intended  to  
+
increase `construct validity of the case study in terms
+
of seeking convergent lines of inquiry.
+
Results and discussion
+
Dietary pattern
+
Staple  diet  of  the
+
Manipuries
+
is  rice  mixed  with
+
Bora/Bada
+
fried  or  roasted  peas  or  gram  or
+
Kangou,
+
the  fried  vegetable  and  pulse.  Rice  is  also  eaten 
+
with  seasonal  vegetables  cooked  with  smoked,  dried
+
or  fermented  fish.  The
+
meitei
+
loves  it  mixed 
+
with  vegetable  chutney  (
+
Iromba
+
)/boiled  delicacy
+
(
+
Champhut  and  Kangshoi
+
).  This  is  a  mixture  of
+
various  boiled  vegetable  mashed  with  fermented 
+
fish  and  chillies.  Others  like
+
Parkia
+
roxburghii
+
(
+
Yongchak
+
),    lotus    rhizome    (
+
Thambou
+
),    green
+
Makhana (
+
Thangjing
+
), etc are
+
Manipuries
+
exclusives.
+
The
+
Meities
+
eats more than hundred varieties of leafy
+
vegetables.  They  learnt  a  very  special  art  of
+
fermenting soyabean, bamboo shoots and fishes from
+
time  immemorial.  They  make
+
Hawaichar
+
from
+
soyabean,
+
Soibum
+
,
+
Shoidon
+
and
+
Soijin
+
from  the
+
bamboo  shoots.
+
Ngaree
+
and
+
Hentak
+
are  made  from
+
the  small  fishes.  Carefully  done  fermentation  is  very
+
important for the safety reasons. Otherwise occasional
+
food  poisoning  is  heard  from
+
hawaichar
+
and  mixed
+
vegetable salad/chutney
+
7
+
.
+
Iromba
+
an eclectic combination of fresh vegetables,
+
bamboo    shoots,    fermented    fish    and    chillies.
+
Heithongba
+
is  a  pungent  dish  of  lemon,  sugar,  salt,
+
aonla
+
and tamarind.
+
Maroi morok thongba
+
, is another
+
INDIAN J TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE VOL 11, NO. 1, JANUARY 2012
+
72
+
type of speciality.
+
M
+
orok
+
stands for green chilli, as a
+
result,  this  dish  is  bit  hot  in  taste.
+
Madhurjan
+
is  a
+
sweet  made  of  milk,  sugar  and  gramflour.  A  black
+
lentil  called
+
Ooty
+
is  compulsory  at  all  feasts.
+
Vegetables consist of cauliflower/
+
lai patha
+
called
+
Sak
+
with  pumpkin  made  into a  hot  and  spicy  curry  along
+
with  spinach  and  banana  inflorescence.  A  wonderful
+
salad called
+
Sinju
+
made of finely shredded vegetables
+
and  raw  papaya,  tossed  in  herbs.  A  dessert  made  of
+
rice  called
+
chak-hao
+
is  deep  violet  in  colour  and  is
+
combined  with  milk,  sugar,  coconut  and  dry  fruits.
+
Suktani
+
is a combination of neem leaves,
+
basak
+
leaves
+
and  sugar.
+
Sweet  Kabok is  made  up  of  molasses  and
+
rice is a famous snack among the
+
Manipuries
+
.
+
Preparation of some Traditional foods
+
Soyabean products
+
Hawaichar
+
Hawaijar
+
is  an  indigenous  traditional  fermented
+
soyabean with characteristic flavour and stickiness. It
+
is consumed commonly in the local diet as a low cost
+
source of high protein food and plays an economical,
+
social and cultural role in Manipur. There is intent to
+
upgrade the status of
+
Hawaijar in order to increase its
+
marketability  and  profitability.  In  the  traditional
+
method  of
+
Hawaijar
+
preparation,  medium  and  small
+
sized  soyabean  (
+
Glycine  max
+
L.)  seeds  are  cleaned
+
and  sorted. The  graded  soyabean  seeds  are  dipped in
+
water where the water level should be twice than that
+
of  the  seeds  and  leave  it  overnight.  The  seeds  are
+
washed  properly  for  two  to  three  times  with  running
+
water  which  is  followed  by  cooking  either  by  using
+
pressure  cooker  or  by  conventional  methods.  The
+
solid  portion,  i.e.  the  cooked  soybean  was  placed  in  a
+
bamboo basket after draining off the water portion. The
+
greasy  portion  is  washed  with  lukewarm  water  till  it
+
becomes  non-greasy,  and the  remaining  water  was
+
drained off completely and the content is turned upside
+
down  once  or  twice.  The  water  portion  is  said  to be
+
useful  in  washing  cloths  in  olden  times.  The  drained
+
water  is  believed  to  help  in  curing  TB  and  also  good
+
for  women.  Thrice  folded  cloth  is  placed  in  a  coarse
+
bamboo basket.  A thick layer of
+
Ficus hispida
+
leaves,
+
locally known as
+
Asse heibong
+
or banana (
+
Musa
+
spp.)
+
leaves  are  placed  upon  it.  The  cooked  soyabeans  are
+
placed  in  alternate  layers  above  that.  At  the end,
+
another cloth which is folded 2 to 3 times is placed and
+
then the whole content is tied tightly with another cloth
+
to make air tight. This should be placed under the sun
+
during day times and near the fireplace at night in order
+
to  let  the  fermentation  process  complete  properly  and
+
also  to  avoid  maggots  damage.  The  fermented
+
soyabean,  i.e.
+
hawaichar
+
is  ready  in  3  days  during
+
summer  and  during  winter it  takes  5  days.  In  order  to
+
add more flavour it was kept near the fireplace as long
+
as  possible.  Ancient  time’s  rice  husks  were  used
+
instead of cloth.
+
Hawaichar
+
can be eaten raw with salt
+
and chilli or cooked, etc. The preparation of
+
hawaichar
+
by natural fermentation leads to variation in quality due
+
to  varying  methodologies,  fermentation  time  and
+
temperature  of  incubation.  The  fermentation  takes
+
place under uncontrolled environmental conditions that
+
often  leads  to  unsuccessful  fermentation  and  poor
+
quality  products  which  might  be  due  to  native
+
fermenting microflora
+
8
+
.
+
The  traditional
+
hawaichar
+
is  characterised  by  its
+
alkalinity  (
+
p
+
H  8.0-8.2),  stickiness,  and  pungent 
+
odour.  The  preparation  of
+
hawaichar
+
is  very  simple,
+
similar  to  that  of  Japanese
+
Itohiki-Natto
+
(the  whole
+
soyabean  seed  is  used  for   fermentation)
+
9
+
.  But  in
+
Kinema
+
(another  Indian  fermented  soyabean),  it  is
+
dehulled and cracked into pieces before fermentation
+
10
+
.
+
Unlike
+
Kinema
+
there  is  no  addition  of  firewood  ash
+
during
+
hawaichar
+
  production.  Microorganisms  were
+
isolated  and  identified  in
+
hawaichar
+
by  molecular
+
techniques  and  resulted  that  three  major  phylogenic
+
group,  i.e.
+
Bacillus
+
group  comprising
+
Bacillus  subtilis
+
and
+
Bacillus
+
licheniformis,
+
and
+
Staphylococcus  spp.
+
comprising
+
Staphylococcus aureus
+
and
+
Staphylococcus
+
sciuri
+
are involved
+
11
+
.
+
Dried Hawaichar
+
There are two types of dried
+
hawaichar
+
commonly
+
prepared by the people of Manipur. The first method
+
involves  the  common  technique  of making
+
hawaijar
+
.  
+
After  one  week  of  preparation,  salt  is  mixed  along
+
with  the
+
hawaijar
+
.  The  whole  content  is  poured  in  a
+
bamboo (any bamboo with a longer internodes, bigger
+
hole and thinner outer part) where it is sealed with the
+
bamboo  leaves  and  tied  very  tightly  with  a  plastic
+
sheet. This is then placed in top of the fire place in the
+
kitchen  for  one  week.  The
+
hawaijar
+
obtained  from
+
this has lesser smell and taste better. This can be kept
+
for a  longer  period  of  time.  The  second  method is to
+
dry  the  fermented  soyabean  i.e.
+
hawaijar
+
in  direct
+
sunlight and make it moisture free.
+
Pickled hawaijar
+
This method is practiced recently by the people of
+
Manipur. The fermented soyabean i.e. the
+
hawaijar
+
is
+
DEVI & SURESH KUMAR: TRADITIONAL FOODS OF MANIPUR
+
73
+
fried  in  oil  along  with  some
+
m
+
asala
+
and  add  a  pinch
+
of  salt  to  taste.  This  is  then  filled  in  a  bottle  along
+
with the excess oil and sealed. This can be stored for a
+
longer period of time.
+
Paknam
+
Onion leaves, chilli, salt, half tablespoon of sodium
+
bicarbonate,  turmeric,  spices,
+
garam  masala
+
and
+
ngari
+
are required for the preparation of
+
paknam
+
. All
+
the  contents  are  smashed  properly  then  gram  flour  is
+
added into it, which should be mixed thoroughly and
+
placed  in  one  or  two  layers  of  turmeric  leaves.  The
+
whole  content  is  baked  on  a  hot  pan  and  a  heavy
+
weight  is  placed  upon.  After  30  to  45  minutes  it
+
imparts  a  typical  flavour  which  indicates  the  product
+
is  cooked.
+
Paknam
+
can  be stored  for  a  day  or  two  at
+
the maximum.
+
Tree  mushroom
+
paknam
+
can  also  be  prepared
+
where all the  ingredients  are the  same  except  that  no
+
besan
+
and  sodium  bicarbonate  is  added  and  tree
+
mushroom  is  added  along  with  the  other  ingredients.
+
Nganam  paknam
+
is  another  kind  of
+
paknam
+
where
+
small fishes are used while preparing the
+
paknam
+
. In
+
this  case  also,  no
+
besan
+
(gram  flour)  and  sodium
+
bicarbonate is added while small amount of asafoetida
+
and cut green chillies are added.
+
Chagem Pomba
+
Cucumber,  carrot  leaf,  squash  and  its  leaves,  etc
+
are taken and then broken rice is added to it of about
+
50 gm Some other vegetables which are cut into small
+
pieces  can  also  be  added.  The  contents  are  fried  in
+
mustard  oil,  but  stirring  with  spoon  is  restricted.  All
+
the spices are added and a small amount of asafoetida
+
to  it  and  kept  it  for  at  least  2  whistles  in  pressure
+
cooker. Fennel (
+
Foeniculum vulgare
+
) was added when
+
almost cooked, instead of coriander in it.
+
Sea food based products
+
Ngari
+
For  the  preparation  of
+
ngari
+
(fermented  fish),  a
+
typical small type of fish locally called as
+
phabou nga
+
is used. Daily meal of
+
Manipuries
+
is never completed
+
without
+
ngari
+
,  which  is  eaten  either  in  the  form  of
+
chutney (
+
iromba or morok metpa
+
) or as an ingredient
+
in    other    curries.    The
+
phabou    nga
+
is    washed
+
thoroughly  with  water  and  sundried  properly  till  it
+
becomes  crispy.  Crushing  of  the  fish  head  should  be
+
done  properly  with  the  help  of  a  hammer.  A  special
+
vessel  is  used  for  the  preparation  of
+
ngari
+
,  where
+
mustard oil is plastered, the dried fish is then stacked
+
in proper order. The container is closed air tight after
+
filling. In order to make it air tight, sand is placed on
+
the top and fermentation is allow to occur naturally. It
+
takes about 3 to 6 months to mature and ready to eat.
+
It imparts a typical odour which indicates that the fish
+
is well fermented and ready for eating.
+
Kangshu
+
Kangshu
+
is  another  typical  traditional  food  which
+
is  eaten  by  the
+
Manipuries
+
.
+
Centella  asiatica
+
(Indian
+
pennyworth) is cooked in a pressure cooker up to two
+
whistles  after  washing  with  water  for  the  preparation
+
of
+
kangshu
+
.  Product  is  cut  into  small  pieces  after
+
draining  the  excess  water.
+
Morok  metpa
+
(mixture  of
+
ngari
+
,  chilli  and  salt)  is  added  in  it  and  is  mixed
+
thoroughly.  To  add  flavour  roasted  prawn  or  fish  is
+
added  and  finally  coriander  is  added.
+
Kangshu
+
can
+
also  be  prepared  by  using  bamboo  shoots  instead  of
+
Centella asiatica
+
. In this case, the bamboo shoots are
+
cut  into  pieces  after  washing  with  running  water  and
+
kept  it  overnight,  and  then  the  next  day  it  is  again
+
washed  and  cooked  in  a  pressure  cooker.  Thereafter
+
the  same  procedure  is  followed  as  in  case  of  the
+
above.
+
Hentak
+
Hentak
+
was  used  by  the
+
Manipuries
+
before
+
ngari
+
came  into  existence.
+
Phabou  nga
+
or
+
ngakha
+
is  used
+
for
+
hentak
+
preparation,.  This  fish  are  sun  dried  after
+
thorough washing till the moisture content in the fish
+
is  the  lowest.  It  is  then  crushed  into  powder  form.
+
Wild
+
colocasia
+
stem  is  crushed  after  washing  and
+
cutting  into  pieces.  The  powdered  fish  and  the
+
crushed  wild
+
colocasia
+
stem  are  mixed  properly  and
+
are  rolled  in  round  form  and  stored  in  a  container,
+
then after 3 days it is again crushed with the help of a
+
pestle  and  mortar.  This  crushing  is  done  at  a  regular
+
interval  if  to  be  stored  for  a  longer  period  of  time.
+
Instead of
+
colocasia
+
stem, onion can also be used but
+
hentak
+
made out of it can not be stored for long.
+
Khazing
+
It is the small sized prawn which is available in the
+
Loktak  lake
+
of  Manipur.
+
Khazing
+
is  available  in  the
+
market  as  dried  form  or  is  consumed  in  fresh  form.
+
When  it  is  thoroughly  dried,  it  is  used  in  making
+
curries.  Dried
+
Khazing
+
has  a  very  long  shelf  life.  In
+
other  way,  the  freshly  catch
+
Khazing
+
is  fried  along
+
with mint leaves (
+
Mentha arvensis
+
).
+
Heikak
+
Heikak
+
is a hydrophilic plant and the fruit is black
+
in  colour  and  irregular  in  shape  is  consumed  by
+
INDIAN J TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE VOL 11, NO. 1, JANUARY 2012
+
74
+
almost  all  the  people  of  Manipur.  It  is  consumed  by
+
e
+
ither boiling it in water or by converting it into flour
+
and used for preparing
+
chapatti
+
.
+
Sticky rice chapatti/bread
+
This  kind  of
+
chapatti
+
or  bread  is  prepared  during
+
the  festivals  like
+
Gan-ngai  or  Lui-ngai  ni
+
or
+
Christmas  by  the  youths.  The  required  amount  of
+
sticky  rice  is  soaked  for  3-4  hrs  in  plain  water  then
+
sun drying is carried out on a bamboo tray known as
+
yankok
+
locally.  When  it  is  dried  completely  with  the
+
least moisture in it, grinding is done in a mortar till it
+
becomes  powder.  The  coarser  part  is  removed  with
+
the  help  of  a  sieve  and  ground  again.  In  another
+
container  sugar  solution  is  prepared,  the  amount  of
+
sugar  depends  upon  the  desired  taste  of  the  person.
+
Now, the rice flour is mixed with the sugar syrup and
+
chapatti
+
is  prepared.
+
Bread  can  be  prepared  in  two
+
different methods, i.e.
+
1
+
Boiled  method:
+
In  this  method,  the  mixture  of
+
rice flour with the sugar syrup is made very hard
+
and  round  in  shape  which  is  then  wrapped  with
+
cardamom  leaves  and  tied  properly.  In  another
+
container water is boiled and the above content is
+
poured  and  cooking  is  carried  out  for  an  hour.
+
This  kind  of  bread  can  be kept  for  one  week  but
+
gets hard if kept for long so, the cardamom leaves
+
are removed and the content is fried in oil.
+
2
+
Fried method:
+
The mixture of rice flour with the
+
sugar syrup is made softer by adding more water
+
and  made  to  round  shape.  A  small  amount  of
+
edible oil is also added in it. Then in the fire place
+
some  charcoal  is  removed  just  near  by  and  the
+
content  is  put  on  top  of  it.  When  this  becomes
+
black  in  colour,  it  is  turned  upside  down  so  that
+
the  other  part  also  becomes  black.  The  upper
+
black portion is scraped out and the remaining is
+
used  for  consumption.  This  method  is  the  oldest
+
form  of  making  bread  by  the  hill  people  of
+
Manipur.
+
The
+
Tangkhul
+
people  of  Manipur  prepare  another
+
special kind of
+
chapatti
+
from
+
sesame. In this method,
+
the mixture of rice flour with water is made very hard
+
and  even  coarser  part  of  the  rice  flour  can  also  be
+
used. No additional items are added with it, not even
+
salt. Then similar to the fry method, some charcoal is
+
removed just near by and the content is put on top of
+
it  near  the  fire.  In  a  mortar,  raw  sesame  is  ground
+
where  a  small  amount  of  water  is  sprinkled  in  it  and
+
salt  is  added  to  taste.  When  oil  started  coming  out
+
from  the  sesame  the  above  content  is  added  and
+
ground  along  with  it.  But  if  excess  amount  of  oil
+
comes  out  then  it  is  removed  manually.  The  mixture
+
can be used in preparation of
+
chapatti
+
.
+
Bamboo based products
+
In Manipur bamboo forest covers an area of around
+
3218  sq  Km.  The  most  commonly  available  bamboo
+
species      are
+
Bambusa      aurndinaca      (saneibi), 
+
Bambusa pallida (Kal-sundi), Bambusa nana (Khok),
+
Dendrocalamus  giganteus  (meiribob),  Dendrocalamus
+
flagellifer  (Longa  wa),  Dendrocalamus  hamiltonii
+
(Wanap/unap/pecha),  Dendrocalamus  sericeus(Ooii)
+
and
+
Melocana bambusoides (Moubi/muli), Teinostachyum
+
dulooa      (Dulu),      Teinostachyum      wightii(Nath),
+
Bambusa  tulda  (Utang).
+
 
+
About  20-30  MT  bamboo
+
shoots  are  consumed  annually  for  the  production  of
+
canned  bamboo-shoots.  Canning  is  done  either  in
+
brine  or  in  syrup.  Export  of  these  canned  bamboo
+
shoots are done in Japan, Singapore, China, Thailand,
+
Hong  kong  and  UK  The  chemical  constitution  of  a
+
raw  bamboo  shoot  in  percentage  are;  moisture,  88.8;
+
protein,  3.90;  fat,  0.5;  minerals,  1.10;  carbohydrate,
+
5.70  and  calorific  value,  43  Kcal.  Some  important
+
products made from bamboo are:
+
Soibum.
+
 
+
Tender  bamboo  shoots  are  collected  and
+
cleaned, outer sheaths should be removed. Only inner
+
white  portion  is  used  for  fermentation.  There  are
+
many  ways  for  the  preparation  of  fermented  bamboo
+
shoot, i.e.
+
1
+
Inside  a  pit:
+
In  this  method,  a  pit  is  dug  and  a
+
basket made by using bamboo of the shape of the
+
pit  is  placed  into  it.  Care  should  be  taken  to
+
slightly inclined the bamboo basket while placing
+
so as to allow the flow of the water produced by
+
the  bamboo  shoots  during  fermentation.  Wild
+
colocasia
+
leaves is put in and around the pit in a
+
thick  layer  of  about  2-3  inch,  then  the  bamboo
+
shoots are made into longitudinal shreds and kept
+
in  air  tight  condition.  The  fermented  bamboo
+
shoot is ready for sale or for making curry within
+
3  to  5  days.  These  fermented  bamboo  shoots  are
+
locally  known  as
+
soibum
+
(Fig.  1).  The  water
+
collected  from  this  can  also  be  preserved  and  is
+
used again in new fermentation of bamboo shoots.
+
Now  a  day,  instead  of  wild
+
colocasia
+
leaves,
+
plastic  sheets  are  used,  provided  holes  are  made
+
in  the  bottom  to  allow  drainage  of  water.  This
+
kind of fermented bamboo shoots can be kept for
+
a longer period of time i.e. for one month or more
+
DEVI & SURESH KUMAR: TRADITIONAL FOODS OF MANIPUR
+
75
+
if  kept  air  tight.  The  degree  of  sourness  shows  a
+
r
+
apid  increase  in  the  initial  stage  of  fermentation
+
but as it reaches a peak point at about 7-10 days,
+
it started decreasing. These methods of preparing
+
fermented  bamboo  shoots  are  followed  in  almost
+
all the hill districts of Manipur. Bamboo varieties
+
such as
+
Sanaibi, Nath, Unal, Longa wa, Meiribob,
+
Ooii,
+
etc are used for this purpose. Care should be
+
taken  to  avoid  varieties  such  as
+
Utang
+
and
+
Knok
+
as  they  are  not  edible
+
12
+
.
+
Sanaibi
+
is  the  best
+
bamboo    shoot    variety    for    preparation    of
+
fermented  bamboo  shoots,  which  is  followed  by
+
nath
+
variety. But
+
Unal
+
variety gives better texture
+
and appearance.
+
2
+
In  an  earthen  pot
+
  :
+
This  method  of  the
+
fermentation  of  bamboo  shoot  is  the  same  as 
+
said  above,  the  only  difference  is  that  instead  of
+
fermenting  the  bamboo  shoots  inside  a  pit, 
+
an  earthen  pot  is  used  where  a  hole  is  made  at 
+
the  bottom  for  the  drainage  of  excess  water 
+
during  fermentation.  During  fermentation  in  an
+
earthen  pot  some  people  prefer  to  add
+
Heibung
+
for  enhancing  the  fermentation  and  also  for  a
+
sourer taste.
+
3
+
In  open  condition:
+
In  open  condition,  wild
+
colocasia
+
leaves  are  used  in  thick  layers.  The
+
sliced  bamboo  shoots  are placed  on top  of it and
+
are again covered with these leaves. Fermentation
+
is  allowed  to  take  place  in  this  way.  No  other
+
addition is done in this method.
+
4
+
Dipping  in  water:
+
For  this  method  a  special
+
bamboo variety is used i.e.
+
nath
+
variety. Locally it
+
is  called
+
nath  ki  soibum.
+
 
+
This  method  is
+
commonly  used  by  the  people  of  Bishempur
+
district  of  Manipur.  As  the
+
nath
+
bamboo  is  very
+
small and long, it is sliced longitudinally as whole
+
for  about  2-3  cm  and  it  is  placed  in  a  container
+
(plastic  buckets  are  generally  employed  these
+
days)  where  water  is  poured  just  to  dipped  the
+
contains.  It  is  covered  and  kept  till  sale.  The
+
fermented  bamboo  shoots  are  ready  to  sale  after 
+
3  days.
+
Nath
+
variety  gives  very  tasty  fermented
+
bamboo shoots but it can’t be stored for a longer
+
duration of time.
+
5
+
Dried
+
Usoi
+
(bamboo  shoot):
+
For  this  purpose
+
any bamboo shoot variety which is edible is used.
+
All  the  bamboo  shoots  are  sliced  to  small  pieces
+
and is boiled with water then drying in a bamboo
+
tray under the sun is carried out after draining off
+
the  excess  water.  This  dried  bamboo  shoots  are
+
packed in plastic sheets and used in off season or
+
is send for sale
+
4
+
.
+
6
+
Dried
+
soibum
+
(fermented  bamboo  shoots):
+
In
+
this  method,  after  the  completion  of  normal
+
fermentation of the bamboo shoots, they are dried
+
either under the sun or in top of the fire. For this
+
method  the  Tankhul  people  of  Manipur  uses  a
+
special  type  of  bamboo  shoots  variety  which  is
+
very small and long, locally known as
+
ngathan
+
. It
+
gives  a  twisted  appearance  after  drying  just  like
+
noodles.
+
7
+
Fermented bamboo shoot Pickle:
+
The
+
soibum
+
in
+
general (fermented or dried) are consumed by all
+
the  people  of  Manipur  devoid  of  any  caste  or
+
tribe.  It  is  eaten  as  raw  with  fermented  fish  or
+
boiled and cooked form with any  meat or fish or
+
vegetables.  It  forms  an  important  food  part  in all
+
the    festivals    observed    by    the
+
Manipuries
+
.
+
Nowadays,  in  some  small  scale  industries  the
+
bamboo  shoots  are  blanched  after  slicing  into
+
small  pieces  in  hot  water  to  reduce  its  enzyme
+
activity  and  are  treated  with  KMS  (1%)  for 
+
10 min. After which it is sun dried and packed in
+
an air tight container and is send for sale.
+
Alcoholic beverages
+
  
The  commonly  consumed  alcoholic  beverage  in
+
NIMMI recalls: His break-up with Madhubala was imminent by the time we completed the shooting of Amar. I think ''' he came to know about Premnath and Madhubala being more than just friendly co-stars. '''
Manipur is prepared from rice. It is commonly known
+
as
+
Yu
+
.  In  this  case,  any  kind  of  rice  is  used  for the  
+
preparation  of  alcoholic  beverage  but  the  
+
Tankhul
+
tribe  used  only  sticky  rice.  In  some  of the  alcoholic
+
beverages  yeast  is  required  for  conducting  the
+
fermentation. This is prepared as described below.  
+
Preparation of yeast (
+
Hamei
+
)
+
  
The quality of rice beer is partially depending upon
+
WAHEEDA REHMAN
the quality  of  yeast  used. It is  otherwise  called  as  
+
Aadmi [released in 1968]Even though the director was Bhim Singh it was Dilip Sahab who was at the helm.It was a mystery to me why Dilip Sahab did not give his name as director in the film credits when all
Hamei
+
the hard work behind the camera was being done by him, motivating both the technicians and artistes
by
+
to give their best.  
Kabui
+
tribes  and
+
Chamri
+
by  the  
+
Tankhul
+
tribes.  For  preparation  of
+
Hamei
+
,  finely  grinded  rice
+
powder,  where  the rice  was previously  soaked  in
+
water  for  2-3  hrs  is  thoroughly  mixed  with  the bark
+
powders of
+
Yanglei
+
(Fig. 2).  
+
  
The  mixture  is  kept  in  large  vessel  and  water  is
 
added slowly till the mixture made into paste with the
 
required consistency. The paste is then spread on the
 
bamboo mat/banana leaves and made into small cubes
 
or  tablet form.  The  prepared  tablets are  sun  dried till
 
the material is completely dried.
 
Hamei
 
can be stored
 
in  cool,  dry  place  for  over  a  year.  For  1  kg  rice,
 
around  8-10  gm
 
Yanglei
 
is  added.  Three  different
 
kinds of alcoholic beverages are consumed. They are:
 
INDIAN J TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE VOL 11, NO. 1, JANUARY 2012
 
76
 
a)
 
Y
 
u  angouba:
 
For  the  preparation  of
 
yu  angouba
 
the  rice  is  soaked  in  water  for  around  2-3  hrs
 
along with some germinated paddy. For 1 Kg rice
 
around  100gm  germinated  paddy  is  added.  After
 
this,  the  water  is  drained  out  and  the  soaked  rice
 
is  crushed  with  the  help  of  a  mortar  till  powder
 
form. In another vessel water is boiled and in this
 
boiled  water  the  crushed  rice  is  added  with
 
continuous  stirring  till  it  gets  cooled  then  it  is
 
covered  by  a  muslin  cloth  and  kept  for  2-3  days
 
without  any  disturbance.  Within  these  days  form
 
started  coming  out  and  a  typical  flavour  and
 
odour is released. This indicates that
 
yu angouba
 
is  now  ready  to  consume.  The
 
Tankhul
 
tribe  of
 
Manipur uses  a typical  pot  which is  of  the  shape
 
of a conical flask, so after pouring the content it is
 
sealed  with  cow  dung  and  ashes  mixture.  This
 
tribe  uses  only  paddy  and  not  rice  for  the
 
preparation  of
 
yu  angouba
 
,  and  it  is  known  as
 
Khor
 
in their local dialect
 
12
 
.
 
Yu angouba
 
can’t be
 
stored for a longer period of time. It can be stored
 
for a maximum of 7 days.  This kind of alcoholic
 
beverage if consumed within 2-3 days then is said
 
to  be  beneficial  for  our  body,  it  is  compared  to
 
drinking of milk but in a limited quantity i.e. 500
 
ml at the maximum.
 
b)
 
Atingba:
 
In this type of alcoholic beverage rice is
 
cooked and spread in a container or in a tray made
 
of  bamboo.
 
Hamei
 
is  mixed  properly  along  with
 
the cooked rice. The whole content is transferred
 
in a vessel then a little amount of water is poured
 
just to dip it. Then cover with a muslin cloth. Heat
 
is  released  for  2-3  days
 
13
 
.  After  which  water  is
 
again poured to ease the heat.
 
Atingba
 
is ready to
 
drink  after  6-8  hrs  of  pouring  the  water  but  this
 
will  give  a  very  light  drink.  A  proper
 
Atingba
 
is
 
formed  after  4-5  days  of  fermentation  during
 
summer  and  after  7-8  days  in  winter.  This  kind 
 
of  alcoholic  beverage  can  be  consumed  for  only
 
1-2  days  after  fermentation  but  can  be  kept  for
 
around 1-2 months which is used for preparing
 
Yu
 
.
 
The
 
tankhul
 
tribe calls this type of wine as
 
Patso
 
.
 
c
 
)
 
Y
 
u:
 
Yu
 
in kabui or
 
Acham
 
in tankhul is prepared
 
from
 
Atingba
 
.  This
 
Atingba
 
is  poured  in  an
 
aluminum pot and is cooked in low flame. Above
 
to this pot an aluminum funnel is placed and from
 
this a pipe is connected to the otter part of the pot.
 
This  pipe  is  used  for  collecting
 
yu
 
.  The  pot  is
 
covered tightly with an aluminum plate. On top of
 
this  another  aluminum  pot  is  placed  containing
 
cold  water.  All  the  connecting  points  are  sealed
 
properly    with    cow    dung    paste.    Distillation
 
continuous  until  all  the  alcohol  present  in  the
 
content is  out.  This can  be  checked  by  dipping  a
 
small  stick  into  the  boiling
 
Atingba
 
and  lit  it,  if
 
produce  green  flame  than  it  indicates  that  the
 
alcohol  content  is  more
 
14  ,15
 
.  So,  based  on  this
 
technique  the  distillation  process  is  continued.
 
The  remaining  content  after  the  extraction  of 
 
yu
 
is  used  as  pig  feed.  This  type  of  alcoholic
 
beverage  is  very  hard  as  compared  to  the  others
 
stated above (Fig. 3).
 
Figs.1—3: (1)Street vendor selling
 
S
 
oibum
 
in local market, (2) Yeast tablets and (3) Traditional preparation of
 
Yu
 
DEVI & SURESH KUMAR: TRADITIONAL FOODS OF MANIPUR
 
77
 
Another  kind  of  alcoholic  beverage  prepared  from
 
ba
 
nana is commonly consumed by the
 
naga
 
tribes of
 
Manipur  known  as  Banana  wine;  this  is  prepared  by
 
fermenting the ripe banana in a closed container with
 
a  little  amount  of  water
 
16
 
.  No  inoculum  is  added  for
 
conducting  the  fermentation.  The  wine  is  ready  to
 
drink  after  3  days  and  is  advisable  to  consume  it
 
within 1 or 2 days after opening the cover.
 
  
==Conclusion==
+
When I was working
The  society, culture,  traditions,  ethics  and  food
+
in Satyajit Ray’s Abhijan [1962], Mr Ray asked me if I could speak to Dilip Sahab about a film he
habit of any community cannot be seen in the isolated
+
had in mind, an idea he believed was perfect for Dilip Sahab. I spoke to Dilip Sahab but he did not
mode  as  they  are  all  intermingled  and  much  more
+
give any reply. He just looked thoughtful. So I told Mr Ray to speak to him. I gathered later that Dilip Sahab did not agree to do the film because it required him to appear bare bodied.  
complex. The ecology provides a range of probability
+
to select the plant and animal sources, culture decides
+
the  tradition  and  the  ethics  determines  the  habit  of
+
eating the food. The traditions maintained by various
+
communities  of
+
Manipuries
+
are  having  strong  ethical
+
issues.  The  advent  of  modern  civilization  has
+
adversely  affected  the  tradition  and  heritage  of
+
community  and  thus  the  younger  generations  are 
+
not exposed  to  traditional  practices.  There  should 
+
be  focused  efforts  to  promote  traditional  food 
+
systems  within  rural  communities. Rewarding  and
+
acknowledging    young    people    who    demonstrate
+
interest  and  awareness  in  the  health  of  environment
+
and  in  their  traditional  foods  would  also  raise  the
+
profile  of  these  issues. Traditional  foods,  community
+
dinners  can  also  provide  opportunities  to promote
+
food  products  and  knowledge  about  ethnic  foods.  In
+
future, the nutritional and microbial aspects of various
+
traditional foods are needed to be analyzed.  
+
==Acknowledgement==
+
We  heartily  thank  to all  the tribal  people  who
+
shared their traditional knowledge with the authors to  
+
compile this manuscript. The financial help offered to
+
conduct  this  survey  by  GOI  from  CSS  Horticulture
+
mission is also highly acknowledged.
+
References
+
1
+
Haokip  &  Ngamthang,  Basic  Delineation  Map  of  Manipur,
+
Profile    on    state    of    environment    report    of    Manipur, 
+
(Ministry of Environment and Forests, Manipur), 2006-07, 4-9.
+
2
+
Census  Population,
+
Census  of  India
+
,  (Ministry  of  Finance
+
India), 2001, 12-18.
+
3
+
Bareh  HM,
+
Encyclopaedia  of  NE  India  1.  Arunachal
+
Pradesh
+
, (Mittal Publication, New Delhi), 2001, 2-233.
+
4
+
Singh  RK  &  Sureja  AK,  Centurion  women  and  diverse
+
knowledge  systems,
+
Indian  J  Tradit  Knowle,
+
5  (3)  (2006)
+
413-419.
+
5
+
Mao  AA  &  Odyou  M,  Traditional  fermented  foods  of  the
+
Naga tribes of North-eastern India,
+
Indian J Tradit Knowle,
+
6
+
(1) (2007) 37-41.
+
6
+
http://www.manipur.webs/
+
7
+
Singh  NR,
+
Dietary  pattern:  Edible  wild  plants  of  Manipur,
+
(ADAM Publications), 2003, 7-9.
+
8
+
Tamang JP, Ethnic fermented foods of the eastern Himalayas,
+
In:
+
2
+
nd
+
  
International  conference  on  fermented  foods,  health
+
HARISH SALVE
status  and  social  wellbeing
+
 
,  SASNET,  Dec  17-18,  2005,
+
His troubles began when the Income Tax Department decided to assess him on allegations of having
(Anand Agricultural University, Anand), India, 235.  
+
earned black money – something for which Bollywood was, in public perception, notorious. The as-
9
+
sessment would not only result in a large demand for escaped tax, but also penalties equal to the es-
Ohta T,  
+
caped income, and possible prosecution for evasion of tax.
Natto
+
 
, In:
+
A raid conducted upon [A. R. Kardar,] the disgruntled producer[and director]
Legume-based fermented foods
+
of a movie called Dil Diya Dard Liya [1966] (clearly stage managed by him) supposedly yielded evidence
, edited by  
+
by way of secret accounts maintained by him in which there was an entry against DK of a sum of Rs
NR  Reddy,  MD  Pierson,  &  DK Salunkhe,  (CRC  Press,
+
10 lakh. There was no corroborative evidence to show that anything was paid by him or received by
Florida), 1986, 85-95.  
+
Dilip Sahab; nor indeed was there any material to suggest that the producer had a sum of Rs 10 lakh
10
+
(a king’s ransom at that time) to pay in cash. Yet an allegation was made that Dilip Sahab possessed
Sarkar  PK,  Tamang  JP,  Cook  PE  &  Owens  JD,
+
concealed income; penalties were imposed and there was a threat of a potential prosecution.
Kinema
+
 
-a  
+
The assessment was made. He wisely pursued legal remedies, and there was some respite when an
traditional  soybean  fermented  food:  proximate  composition
+
appeal against this perverse assessment was allowed.
and microflora,  
+
 
Food Microbiol
+
The year 1974 saw a spate of preventive detentions of those alleged to have committed economic
, 11(1994) 47-55.  
+
offences (however tenuous the allegations) and personal liberties became a hostage to a shrill cam-
11
+
paign to trample underfoot the rights of those alleged to be economic offenders in the march towards socialism.
Jeyaram K, Singh WM, Premarani T, Devi AR & Chanu KS,
+
 
Talukdar  NC  &  Singh  MR, Molecular  diversification  of
+
My first case
dominant  microflora  associated  with
+
was Income Tax Officer vs Dilip Kumar alias Yousuf Khan, to be heard by the tribunal on a day-to-day
Hawaijar
+
basis in June 1975.
- a  traditional
+
The hearing was set for the second week of June 1975.The hearing began and the department’s representative – a senior and experienced officer – tried
fermented soybean (
+
tirelessly to put across the department’s case to the tribunal – only to increasing chagrin of the mem-
Glycine max L.
+
bers whose tentative comments were carping to the point of being cynical as to what this case was all about.
) food of Manipur, India,
+
 
Int J Food Microbiol
+
And then all hell broke loose.
, 122 (2008) 259-268.  
+
 
12
+
On 25 June the infamous Emergency was declared.
Manihar  Singh  A,  
+
 
History  of Manipuri  Literature
+
My father had to seek a short adjournment as (being a Congress MP) he had to fly to Delhi for a day
,  (New
+
or two.
Delhi: Sahitya Akademi), 1966, 12.  
+
 
13
+
My youthful anger at the injustice heaped upon this iconic Indian, increased exponentially at what I
Hijam  Irabot,  
+
considered dishonest suspension of democracy under the power of numbers and rhetoric – a view I
Imagi  Pujah, Imphal,
+
still maintain.
  (Irabot  Leirak  Phonba
+
It was in this surcharged atmosphere that the hearing went on for about three weeks.
Lup), 2005, 12-17.  
+
 
14
+
Realizing the potential of his client’s skills in vocal mesmerization, my father obviously decided to
http://www.kanglaonline.com 
+
unleash him upon the unsuspecting members of the tribunal at some time (although he did not, as a
15
+
foxy interlocutor, disclose his intentions to us).
Chatradhari  S  &  Irabot  H, (Soyam  Publication. Imphal).  
+
 
1996, 23-34
+
The opportunity presented itself in a moment when the tribunal members asked my father about
16
+
how a movie was produced. My father asked for leave to ask his client to explain the process – this
Lokendrajit  S,
+
brought the roof down on the department’s case!
Irabot  Ki  Seireng,  Ritu
+
 
,  (Manipur  Sahitya
+
What chance did those poor mortals – of an age when they possibly swooned over Suhaana Safar
Parishad. Imphal), 1997, 9 -1
+
in their youth – have against the scene that had just unfolded.
 +
 
 +
By the end of that day, the fate of the case was sealed even if the arguments carried on. Dilip Sahab
 +
spoke for over 40 minutes explaining not just how movies are made but how he had been pilloried.
 +
This was followed by a two-minute silence – almost as though to mourn the death of the department’s
 +
case.
 +
 
 +
I joined the bar in 1980 – and the first case I appeared in the Supreme Court was the petition for
 +
leave to appeal by the Income Tax Department against the tribunal judgment in favour of Dilip Sahab.
 +
 
 +
To my immense joy, it lasted for all of two minutes before the judges threw it out!

Revision as of 21:26, 8 September 2017

NIMMI Aan: Mehboob Khan wanted to film the movie in Technicolor and he was wondering how to accomplish the feat. There were no proper cameras and the processing had to be done in London, which meant an enormous expense and it seemed like an impossibility. Yousuf Sahab had a series of meetings with the brilliant Faredoon A. Irani and he convinced the ace cameraman that with his kind of expertise he could shoot the entire film in 16 mm and have it blown up to 35 mm. Faredoon Irani accepted the challenge.

When Aan went to the Technicolor lab in London the chief technician in the lab expressed a keen- ness to meet Faredoon Irani to congratulate him for the skill with which he had filmed the movie using an obsolete camera. When it was blown to 35 mm nobody could find out that it was filmed on 16 mm.

Aan was a worldwide success. At the London premiere British actors and directors were so impressed by Yousuf Sahab that they were inviting him to settle down in the UK and work in English films.

The premiere of Aan in Ceylon was one of the biggest in terms of the massive crowds that lined the streets from the airport to the hotel where we were put up. They were all Dilip Kumar fans. Such was the mass hysteria that the crowds broke all cordons at the airport and breached security at the hotel to see him. In Aan Yousuf Sahab played a poor villager who was deft with the sword and was an expert at fencing.

I remember the London distributor of the film (titled Savage Prin- cess), [the legendary filmmaker] Sir Alexander Korda, asking Yousuf Sahab how he performed the fencing scenes so perfectly.

He was so impressed that he came to India soon after and Mehboob Sahab invited him to sound the clapper board for the first shot of Amar.

NIMMI recalls: His break-up with Madhubala was imminent by the time we completed the shooting of Amar. I think he came to know about Premnath and Madhubala being more than just friendly co-stars.

WAHEEDA REHMAN Aadmi [released in 1968]Even though the director was Bhim Singh it was Dilip Sahab who was at the helm.It was a mystery to me why Dilip Sahab did not give his name as director in the film credits when all the hard work behind the camera was being done by him, motivating both the technicians and artistes to give their best.


When I was working in Satyajit Ray’s Abhijan [1962], Mr Ray asked me if I could speak to Dilip Sahab about a film he had in mind, an idea he believed was perfect for Dilip Sahab. I spoke to Dilip Sahab but he did not give any reply. He just looked thoughtful. So I told Mr Ray to speak to him. I gathered later that Dilip Sahab did not agree to do the film because it required him to appear bare bodied.

HARISH SALVE

His troubles began when the Income Tax Department decided to assess him on allegations of having earned black money – something for which Bollywood was, in public perception, notorious. The as- sessment would not only result in a large demand for escaped tax, but also penalties equal to the es- caped income, and possible prosecution for evasion of tax.

A raid conducted upon [A. R. Kardar,] the disgruntled producer[and director] of a movie called Dil Diya Dard Liya [1966] (clearly stage managed by him) supposedly yielded evidence by way of secret accounts maintained by him in which there was an entry against DK of a sum of Rs 10 lakh. There was no corroborative evidence to show that anything was paid by him or received by Dilip Sahab; nor indeed was there any material to suggest that the producer had a sum of Rs 10 lakh (a king’s ransom at that time) to pay in cash. Yet an allegation was made that Dilip Sahab possessed concealed income; penalties were imposed and there was a threat of a potential prosecution.

The assessment was made. He wisely pursued legal remedies, and there was some respite when an appeal against this perverse assessment was allowed.

The year 1974 saw a spate of preventive detentions of those alleged to have committed economic offences (however tenuous the allegations) and personal liberties became a hostage to a shrill cam- paign to trample underfoot the rights of those alleged to be economic offenders in the march towards socialism.

My first case was Income Tax Officer vs Dilip Kumar alias Yousuf Khan, to be heard by the tribunal on a day-to-day basis in June 1975. The hearing was set for the second week of June 1975.The hearing began and the department’s representative – a senior and experienced officer – tried tirelessly to put across the department’s case to the tribunal – only to increasing chagrin of the mem- bers whose tentative comments were carping to the point of being cynical as to what this case was all about.

And then all hell broke loose.

On 25 June the infamous Emergency was declared.

My father had to seek a short adjournment as (being a Congress MP) he had to fly to Delhi for a day or two.

My youthful anger at the injustice heaped upon this iconic Indian, increased exponentially at what I considered dishonest suspension of democracy under the power of numbers and rhetoric – a view I still maintain. It was in this surcharged atmosphere that the hearing went on for about three weeks.

Realizing the potential of his client’s skills in vocal mesmerization, my father obviously decided to unleash him upon the unsuspecting members of the tribunal at some time (although he did not, as a foxy interlocutor, disclose his intentions to us).

The opportunity presented itself in a moment when the tribunal members asked my father about how a movie was produced. My father asked for leave to ask his client to explain the process – this brought the roof down on the department’s case!

What chance did those poor mortals – of an age when they possibly swooned over Suhaana Safar in their youth – have against the scene that had just unfolded.

By the end of that day, the fate of the case was sealed even if the arguments carried on. Dilip Sahab spoke for over 40 minutes explaining not just how movies are made but how he had been pilloried. This was followed by a two-minute silence – almost as though to mourn the death of the department’s case.

I joined the bar in 1980 – and the first case I appeared in the Supreme Court was the petition for leave to appeal by the Income Tax Department against the tribunal judgment in favour of Dilip Sahab.

To my immense joy, it lasted for all of two minutes before the judges threw it out!

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