Uniqueness is what aptly describes Kashmiri culture. Nowhere in the world would you find the traditions and practices found here. Whatever we eat and drink looks naive to the outsiders.
No doubt, pizzas and burgers have made way into our eating habits and the traditional foods and drinks may have lost the popularity they once enjoyed but still there are people and practices that keep on reminding us of our tradition and culture.
Nun Chai or traditional Kashmiri salty tea is one of the features of our tradition that is fast losing its charm especially among the middle class of the Kashmiri society.
Although in cities and towns, most of the upper middle class have discarded the use of Nun Chai. But there are some places where Nun chai can be all, end all.
Baramulla’s Nun Chai Galli is one such exclusive place which is still taking forward the legacy of making and serving the unique Kashmiri Nun Chaii.
In the main market of Varmul town, there are decades old restaurants that serve Nun chai throughout the day and that too in the typical Kashmiri style. One such restaurant belongs to Bashir Ahmad Gojri which is located in the famous spot of Baramulla- Nun Chai Gali.
Bashir, who started working as a waiter in the same hotel five and a half decades ago, feels extremely happy to have been a part of this small restaurant that has sustained what he calls the traditional integrity of our culture.
“When I started working here, there was no concept of Lipton tea in those days, so all the hotels would run by selling the traditional nun chai and we have taken forward that legacy and are still adhering to it,” Bashir added.
The façade of the hotel itself tells the tale of its age. Bashir’s restaurant and a few other small restaurants are the oldest hotels in the town.
When you enter these hotels, the delectable smell of nun chai from the samovars greets you. It’s amazing to see tables occupied every time you enter these hotels indicating that nun chai is still relished by one and all.
Looking at the people sipping Nun chai in traditional kashmiri cups literally makes one feel the rawness of the Kashmiri culture.
“The best part of these hotels is that we serve everything traditional. With Nun chai, all kinds of traditional bread like bakirkhani, kulcha, lawaas etc are served here,” says Bashir Ahmad.
“Nun chai reminds us of our roots, our culture, so it’s satisfying for me to serve this. There are a lot of people who do not usually take Lipton tea. Instead they are addicted to nun chai.”
He said that at 2 pm, the lunch time, you can find this shop full of customers.
“Some people can’t think of leaving the habit of taking nun chai,” he added.
Abdul Rashid Sofi, an employee of the telecom department, says that he has been coming here regularly for the past twenty five years.
“Nun chai has become an inseparable part of my life. And the way it’s served here adds to its taste. Samovar chai is a distant dream in our houses now,” he added.
Altaf Hussain, a local shopkeeper says that unless he doesn’t visit Nun chai Gali of Varmul town to have a cup of samovar chai, exhaustion doesn’t leave him.
“It gives me a strange vigour to carry on my hectic work for the rest of the day,” he added.
Ayaz Ahmad, another hotel owner, is of the opinion that the popularity of nun chai has lessened over the past few years, but there still are hundreds of people who can’t afford not to have a cup of tea in his restaurant.
He says in some upper middle class households, it’s considered a little awkward to have nun chai. Moreover the concept of bed tea in Kashmir has also encouraged the less use of namkeen tea.
Defending the popular claims that a lot of nun chai being harmful for the health, Ayaz says, “There are also a lot of myths associated with nun chai. Some say that it causes stomach ulcers. Another silly thing that people say is that a lot of nun chai can cause cancer.”
“I say it because I have seen people having 10 to 12 cups of nun chai in my restaurant per day for several years now and they are quite healthy,” he further added.
The nun chai gali of Varmul town is famous all over the area with people from distant places visiting the hotels to relish a cup of salt tea before moving back to their respective places.
