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Enchanted with Pakistani snacks
Enchanted with Pakistani snacks Lily B. Libo-on / 20 July 2013 A thousand Muslim residents and expatriates from Ras Al Khaimah to Dubai queue up before stalls of traditional Pakistani snacks two hours before Iftar at Pak Ghazi Restaurant & Sweets along Bank Square in Rolla. Daily, 2,500 pieces of samosa , 50 kilograms of pakoras and a thousand packs of chazaris, phenis, chapli kebab and many other Iftar snacks are sold in less than an hour. Even Omani and Saudi nationals on holiday in the UAE come to this place to take a bite and buy parcels for their families. From Emiratis to Muslim expatriates in Sharjah, Ajman, Dubai and Ras Al Khaimah, as well as travellers to Ras Al Khaimah and Abu Dhabi have their Iftar fill at this one-stop shop of Pakistani traditional snacks. Between 35 and 40 Pakistani workers serve these growing number of customers, fully satisfied with the special recipes mainly from Ghazi Mohammed Azmal, now 65, who has gone home to Pakistan and left the business to his six sons. The main restaurant started with the popular biryaini , fry chops and korma together with salted roasted meat as its main cuisine, which became popular among Emiratis, Pakistanis, Indians, Bangladeshis and Arab residents, expatriates and visitors to Sharjah 40 years back. Mohammed Azam Ghazi, one of Azmal’s sons managing the main restaurant for seven years, says that their clients increased by 15 to 20 per cent every year, prompting his other brothers to open a branch in another part of Rolla and another branch near National Paints. “As we expanded ten years after the main restaurant started, we just maintained the quality of service and offered more like mutton chapli kabab , katchoris , meat samosa , vegetable samosa , chicken chapli kebab , shami kebab, pakoras, which are popular traditional Pakistan and Indian snacks, particularly during Iftar,” Ghazi says. This 40-year-old main restaurant and the two 30-year-old branches in Sharjah are faring well, particularly during Ramadan when queues become long two hours before Iftar. An Emirati customer, Abdullah, says that he really likes the specially cooked samosas . “I come here daily to buy for my family’s Iftar snacks. I won’t get tired coming daily for a satisfying food.” Farooq Azam, 53, an old customer and on gold business in the UAE for 33 years, says that he spends Dh100 daily to buy meat samosa , chop fry mutton, halim , and traditional sweet jilabi . “I drive all the way from my home in Ajman to Sharjah just to buy these Pakistani snacks for my family’s Iftar daily. I have been a loyal customer since this restaurant began,” he adds. Indian Sayed, who always comes to buy samosa and phenis , says that his family is taking phenis during Suhoor time before the morning prayer. “This pheni is a very popular food because when we eat it in the morning and fast, you cannot feel any hunger throughout the day.” To keep his customers for years, master chef Tariq has been faithfully keeping the main recipes of the old owner, Ghazi Mohammed Azmal, who envisioned and introduced them to Sharjah in 1970. He blends all things, from vegetables to potatoes and meat, and with the secret recipes make thousands of these traditional food to the delight of all. — lily@khaleejtimes.com Continue reading
Mohammed drops in for lecture
Mohammed drops in for lecture Muaz Shabandri / 20 July 2013 It was a pleasant surprise for more than 5,000 people attending an Islamic lecture at the Ramadan Forum when His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, walked in unannounced. Calm and composed, he surprised the show’s organisers by going and sitting in the audience rather than walking up to the front row. Sitting comfortably in the fourth row, Shaikh Mohammed paid keen attention to the talk on ‘Quran and Modern Science’ by Dr Zakir Naik. He also spent some time talking with senior officials from the Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM), who hosted the talk as part of the Al Multaqa Ramadan Forum. A few minutes later, he walked out of the hall from one of the side entrances, without disturbing the lecture. Speaking exclusively with Khaleej Times after the event, Naik, expressed his happiness over Shaikh Mohammed’s surprise visit. “It is an honour for me that he came for the lecture. It really shows his generosity and simplicity. I could not see him but later I was told he was among the audience.” One of the most well-known Islamic preachers in the world today, Naik attracts people from different faiths to his talks with his deep understanding of holy scriptures and ability to cite verses at will. “If we go back to the Quran and Sunnah, the Muslim world would be in a much better shape than it is today,” he added. Organisers of the 12-day Ramadan forum hosted this year’s talk at a much larger venue by selecting the Zabeel Hall at Dubai World Trade Center. However, the new venue also proved to be insufficient as seats were completely filled within a few minutes of the lecture’s start. His powerful talk in Dubai led three people to embrace Islam as they took the ‘Shahadah’ (the testimony of faith) in public. “It gives me immense happiness when someone converts to Islam during my talk. It is a very special feeling for me,” Zakir said. Mikhail Poll, a 28-year-old Russian who converted to Islam at the lecture, said Naik’s talks had been an inspiration. “I started reading Islamic books in the Russian language and I also watched some of his lectures on YouTube, which inspired me,” said Mikhail. A lively question-and-answer session followed the talk, with several non-Muslims posing questions on different aspects of Islam. The Ramadan Forum is being held under the patronage of the Chairman of the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation, Shaikh Ahmed bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, and organised by DTCM.” muaz@khaleejtimes. com Continue reading
Remembering Gangu
Remembering Gangu Patrick Michael / 19 July 2013 The death of Gangu Batra in Long Island, New York, on Tuesday has shocked those who knew and worked with him during his long years in the UAE as the CEO of Jashanmals. “He was an amazing human being, a legend in his own right and he had a tremendous impact on us. We as a family owe so much to him,” said Suhail Jashanmal. Batra, 83, leaves behind three children — Meena, Kavita and Shashi — and five grandchildren. He will be cremated early next week in Long Island. Gangu, as he was affectionately known, was a disciplined leader who rose from the ranks to head Jashanmals as its Group CEO. He retreated from corporate life in Dubai about 18 months ago and left for his family home in Long Island to be with his children and grandchildren. Time — and those who worked with him and knew him in the UAE and around the world — will judge him as talented businessman, a gifted leader and a visionary CEO who served Jashanmals for 57 long years. Batra knew his market, knew his business and he knew his cash register. And he always got the job done. “He was a great leader, a great friend and mentor not only to us but to all those who worked with him and the companies he dealt with around the globe,” said Tony Jashanmal over the phone as he waited to catch his flight to New York to attend Batra’s funeral. “I have received tributes from friends and business houses that Batra worked with praising his business acumen and mentoring. He was the ideal businessman and a thorough professional. He was a father figure to all of us and the staff enjoyed working with him because they knew he would walk that extra mile for them,” he added. Even in his late seventies Batra loved what he did. Despite all that he accomplished he still felt he was only just starting. It was so characteristic of the man who turned around a troubled company into one of the most recognised and successful ones in the Gulf. “Once in every while you meet an individual who not only leaves a lasting impression on you, but also changes your outlook on life, work and values. Gangu had that unexplainable charismatic quality. I have lost my elder brother,” said Tanvir Kanji of Inca Advertising. This writer had the privilege of meeting Gangu on several occasions. It was the force of his intellect and his dedication to Jashanmals that always struck me. His piercing eyes and gravelly voice had a certain authority about it. When he walked into a room you could hear a pin drop. Such was the presence he commanded. He was not feared or trifled with. He was known for his repartee and he could crack a joke at the drop of a hat and have everyone in splits. “I knew Gangu Batra when I was a student, studying in India. It goes back to the early 50s in Kuwait, when I came on holidays. It was always extraordinary to watch how delicately he managed the family members of our company, in those days known as Jashanmal & Sons. It was because of his professionalism that today the same Company is a limited liability one. We doff our hats to this young man who started as salesman and became the CEO of Jashanmal Group of companies,” said Mohan Jashanmal. There will be many who will miss Batra’s smiling face around the dinner table at the Sebastian Restaurant at Intercontinental (now Raddisson). where he would often break into fluent Arabic leaving many of us who had been around long enough to have learned the language, embarrassed. “I will miss his quarterly roundtable dinners with Hisham Al Shirawi, Ahmed Ramdan, Ahmed Al Banna and others,” said Ram Buxani, President, International Traders (ME) Ltd, Dubai. “The vacuum created by his passing away will be difficult to fill. Batra was a human par excellence who had carved a niche for himself in Dubai. His smiling face will always be remembered as a symbol of inspiration.” Batra had very eventful tenures as Acting Chairman of IBPC as well as Chairman of the Electronics Forum, now known as TEG. Although he did not belong to electronics industry, he played his role well. “I carry nostalgic memories of my association with Gangu which goes back at least 45 years. He used to live in Kuwait and manage the Jashanmals there under Naraindas Jashanmal, Tony’s father. I used to sell Gangu Nylex brand nylon embroidered sarees of Japanese origin that Jashanmals used to market. I always found him to be very understanding and fair and it is these qualities that brought us even more closer when Jashanmals shifted him to Dubai,” he added. Gangu Batra will be missed. He will also be remembered. — patrick@khaleejtimes.com Continue reading
