A Quest for the Elusive Grail

 

An urban quest for an elusive restaurant fills me up with the zeal to be determined in life. Weird, huh? It's just the tip of the iceberg. Bank on it.

There was this place in Saukarpet we had heard about from some friends. It formed the basis of many a wonderful tale about them serving the greatest thali in Chennai. So, today, my friend and I decided to increase their profit margin just that wee bit.

We set off on this urban quest. The moment we reached Saukarpet, with no previous experience of the place, we realized that it wasn't going to be an easy quest. The place was a literal maze, with towering buildings coming on to the roads, hundreds of speeding vehicles, and gazillions of people lining each side of the road. The din created was overwhelming to say the least; so much so that when I got left behind a handful of people, I had to text my friend, saying "Wait up! I think these people are trying to take me WITH them!!"

Asking for directions didn't help, either. The people there seemed confused about the place, some pointing down a road and then, the second left, and others pointing down the opposite way,and then, the third right. Confused? Yes, so were we, in a degree not all of you can imagine. It seemed like the place was itself a cosmic quirk! Different people have been to the place at different times but no one knew the exact address; thus indicating that it wasn't a real entity after all. We were wandering around like people in asylum yards when we chanced upon a man who looked like he knew where the place was; all this was decided by noticing his protruding belly.

Following his directions, we came up to a place named "Aggarwal Bhavan". We groaned. What we were looking for was an "Aggarwal Bhojanalay". With bitter expressions on our faces and swear words on our minds which would put sensor boards to shame, we realized why people were confused.

We went inside "Aggarwal Bhavan" and tried to find out if they knew about the other Aggarwal establishment. Thankfully, they did, somewhat. They gave us the landmark and told us to look around.

We reached the landmark,all the while pinching our legs to keep them awake. I thank the Heavens for making me look left and spotting a narrow by-lane. A little down the lane, shone a faded and unassuming neon sign; the sweetest and the most fulfilling one I had ever seen. Aggarwal Bhojanalay, it said.

After walking for eighty seven minutes, we finally found the figurative grail. The food really was worthy of the sensationalistic claims people used to defend by crossing their hearts.

Our tummies satisfied, and with a song on our lips, we came back home. The importance of being determined dawned on us and will probably leave an impression for a long time; and three days IS a long time for us.