Page 93 - UpperCrust e-Magazine Third Quarter 2024

MONIQUE MUSINGS | MONIKA PATEL

Sweetgreen. Simply pick your grain, your a pricier version, Theodora. The menu is
protein, your veggie, your sauces, combine not extensive and divided into cooked
them in a bowl and voila, a healthy variant and uncooked seafood, bread, vegetables
is yours for the taking. Using their technical and larger plates. The Mexican touch to
brains they have created a seamless the seafood adds much deliciousness. We
production line and even taught non- ordered almost everything on the menu
Indians how to make Indian food using and thoroughly enjoyed the shared smaller
precise measurements. The enterprising plates, but the pasta did not impress. On
trio have catered events at NYU, the Indian the other hand, everything at Sailor is worth
embassy and the Indian consulate at the trying. And no wonder, given the chef is
UN. All their masalas are freshly ground none other than the controversial British
in-house and they bottle their own lassi. chef, April Bloomfield, known for having
Even the masala chai is brewed fresh and the Midas touch with food. In fact, despite
served out of a steel thermos. They hope to being relatively new, Sailor is among the top
branch out and turn Ambo into a franchise. 100 restaurants in NYC.
All recipes are sourced in-house from family Talking of accolades, a Broadway show
members and tried in their kitchen before receiving much acclaim is Suffs, the Hillary
being incorporated into the menu. Clinton-produced musical about the
There is one New York offering I suffragette movement. Based on a book by
could never get enough of and that is Shaina Taub, the polished production not Yoga on
Times Square
theatre. Theater for a New Audience in my only won Emmys for best score and best
Brooklyn neighbourhood presented a part book, but given this is election year, it is also with the still-to-be-discovered and uber-
Bangla, part English play by Shayok Misha very topical. The play focusses on historical talented folks. This is the charm of New
Chowdhury. Despite being very long and events that eventually gave white women York. It’s a web that draws you in.
extremely Indian in its sensibility, it got the right to vote. In fact, at the end of the I was attracted by the novelty when
an amazing response from a mainly non- play, it is poignant because the black women a friend asked me to join her for yoga in
Indian audience. The director very cleverly who supported the movement knew they Times Square. This is the 22nd year for
adapted the translations of the language still had to continue their fight. Activists like Mind over Madness yoga celebrating the
on the set via digital projections so the Carrie Catt, Alice Paul, Ida Wells have been solstice at Times Square and though it
audience was never at a loss to follow the superbly crafted along with women like precedes International Day of Yoga (June
proceedings. The nuances of how families Polish-American suffragist, Rose Lyons and 21), it now celebrates this event, too.
behave, their old-fashioned attitudes, the socialite-turned-suffragist Inez Milholland, Participants are given free yoga mats and
goings-on in a typical Indian middle-class whose tragic story was very well portrayed. water bottles, an entire area in Times Square
home were cleverly adapted for stage by the Even the men’s roles are played by women. is cordoned off, and throughout the day,
skilled actors and the innovative set design. The play has all the makings of success with yoga sessions are conducted by experienced
A Bengali man from the US arrives at his the scheming, the angst, the coercions, and renowned yoga teachers. The event
aunt and uncle’s home in Calcutta with his the hidden relationships, the protests, the is not only free, but seamless to register
black boyfriend to interview prostitutes and beatings in jail and the relentless drive to and conducted smoothly despite the large
queer people for a project. The play is about get the right to vote. The audience clapped turnout. Oblivious to hovering tourists, it
the dynamics between the characters and along, wept, cheered as the women sang was exhilarating doing a headstand in the
the flamboyant supporting cast while also out their message. middle of New York and to feel a sense of
exploring being gay and Indian American. A different genre of creators was feted belonging. Also exhilarating was watching
There is no conclusion, and the play is at a fundraiser for the Indie film, Attracting. India win the T20 World Cup at Fitzgerald’s
more like a glimpse into someone’s life, but The screenplay by Jessica Jiji follows a pub, surrounded by a sea of cheering desis.
it ends on a note of hope and a standing struggling actor trying to make it in NYC. The mood was joyous as everyone downed
ovation, too. If the film manages to get funded, it will their drinks, devoured fries and gave their
Brooklyn is fast gaining the reputation be a hilarious insight into the neurotic and throats a mighty workout.
of being a foodie’s paradise. Two new normal people who inhabit this city. It was Here’s a tip for people who do not
restaurants in Fort Greene are testament to held at The Stonewall Inn, scene of a violent enjoy cooking but love Indian meals. Nidhi
this, Theodora and Sailor. Tomer Blechman is uprising against gay people and a beacon Tuki, artist-turned-entrepreneur, moved
already a cult figure with his restaurant, Miss especially during Pride Month. From large from Calcutta to NYC 20 years ago and
Ada. Not too far away, he has also opened productions to small creators, the city hums discovered a love for cooking. A few years

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