Dried meat products

The local from Tangkhul in Manipur shifted to Mumbai 13 years ago to look for a job, eventually joining the staff on a cruise liner. But then this store "just happened" recently, with the family starting it on a whim. All the vegetables and meats are sourced from her hometown, and flown down to the city thrice a week. And there is a certain pride in Muivah's voice when she tells us that each and every item is organic because, well, that's just how things roll in that part of India.

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So let's then list out some of the products that the shop offers. There is king chilli, or bhut jolokia, of course (a Northeastern store that doesn't sell bhut jolokia is like a samosa without any filling). Then there's akhuni, or fermented soya beans, banana shoots, cured fish, squash, myriad local spices and a variety of dried meat pickles placed neatly on the two shelves. The fridges contain vegetables like long bean, mustard, pumpkin and passion fruit leaves; yam stems; different offshoots of the brinjal and onion families; wild coriander; and some veggies that are so local to her hometown that Muivah doesn't even know the English names for them. And the cold storage containers, meanwhile, house smoked pork, tripe, or wild buffalo intestines, and duck meat apart from a few frozen ready-to-eat dishes, like a wonderfully fragrant pork curry that we pick up for later. The shop also has some packed goods like Chinese green tea, biscuits, cola, beauty products and the like, but that's not what we find Northeast Groceries to be special for. Instead, it's the fact that there's a steady stream of Northeastern locals flitting in and out of the matchbox place while we are there that, in our eyes, makes the shop stand out. Then there's the fact that the items are extremely reasonable. Most of them, even the meats, are priced between Rs 100 and Rs 300.

Meme Muviah

But what seems especially endearing to us is the location of the store, in the vicinity of a mosque. We are living in times when certain sections are literally up in arms against the dietary habits of others. But here we have a neighbourhood store peacefully, and openly, selling a wealth of pork items in a Muslim-dominated area. Think about it. The whole exercise is testament to the tolerant diversity that is integral to our country. So, in these increasingly divisive times, isn't the quiet existence of this store something we should all be proud about?

Lotus Roots

At Northeast Groceries, Majit Gali, Kalina, Santacruz East.
Timings 10 am to 11 pm
Call 9769969040

Also check out

         Call 7506553743

         At Ram Mandir Marg, close to the fish market, Khar Danda

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