Mirza Galib was very fond of Mangoes... The article gives lots of information on various varieties of Mangoes. My favourite is Chausa also known as Samar-e-Behisht
May 31 2015 : The Times of India (Delhi) http://epaperbeta.timesofindia.com/Article.aspx?eid=31808&articlexml=When-karela-is-a-mango-31052015007005 *When Karela is a Mango * Sohail Hashmi Beyond the venerable Alphonso and delectable Dussehri, there is a whole world of quirky, fragrant mangoes waiting to be savoured The mango season is upon us, but north India is unlikely to see too many fruits this year. Unseasonal rains and hailstorms have taken a heavy toll of all early flowering varieties, and so Baiganpally, the earliest variety of Andhra mango, wrongly called Safeda, is having a field day. But the original Safeda and much else besides is available in the neighbourhood of Delhi, a bare 40 km away at Rataul. The journey will take you through long patches of crowded strips of potholes that call themselves roads.But the riches that await you at journey's end will make you forget all the bumps, breaks, jolts and jerks suffered in your search for mangoes that connoisseurs like Ghalib spent a lifetime praising. There are, of course, the star names among mangoes, led by the venerable Ratnagiri Alphonso. This league includes Malda, Baiganpalli, Langda, Chausa also known as Samar-e-Behisht (the fruit from heaven), and Dussehri.But what few know are the many delectable mangoes that are on the verge of becoming rare because there is little hype surrounding them. There is Karela, so named because the fruit looks like the bitter gourd, of which only one tree survives in a private garden in Bhopal.Then there is Neelam from the south, succulent and fragrant, which rarely reaches the northern market. This variety is more well-known in the Sindh area of Pakistan. Sarauli, another variety found across UP and Delhi, is rapidly becoming a rarity because of its very short season It looks somewhat like the Sindoori but it does not have a red tinge at the top. The Kesar of Gujarat is another variety that is barely known outside of west India. In Rataul, you will see Gola Safed, Surkha, Malik Pasand, Kalkatiya Aaman, Lakhnawi Deenga, Lalit and Gol Badhiya -all varieties that are becoming increasingly rare. There are virtually thousands of varieties that were developed in orchards spread across India but only a few produced in sufficiently large quantities to make a mark in the major mango consuming areas. But for a taste of at least some of these exotic varieties, a trip to Rataul might be well worth the effort. Amongst the biggest orchards set up here by local landowners are Maulvi Hakimuddin's Noor Bagh; Mazhar-udDin Siddiqui's Kaataki Bagh (named after the month of Kar tik); and Aftab ud-Din Siddiq ui's Bhopal Walon ka Bagh. There are inter esting stories behind these orchards. Maulvi Hakimud din was for some time deputy rev enue minis ter in Bhopal about 100 years about 100 years ago; he later worked as the tehsildar of Amroha and rose to become deputy collector.He was always interested in mangoes but it was perhaps his stint at Amroha, a place that gets its name from its mangoes and rohu fish, that led to a lifelong passion for rare varieties of mangoes and grafted new ones. After him, his younger son Badr-udDin Chishti, set up a nursery that provided cuttings of these rare varieties to those interested, and thus many mango varieties spread to areas where they were not traditionally grown. This included faraway Multan. Chishti was followed by Mohammad Aafaaq, a close relative, who developed the nursery and began a scientific catalogue listing 400 varieties along with a short description of each type. At least one printed copy is in the possession of the current inheritor of the Noor Bagh, Zahoor Siddiqui. Siddiqui, a former history teacher at Delhi University, and his wife Nishat Saiyada, a former teacher, have returned to the village after retirement to start a school for girls in their ancestral havelis. They also host hordes of mango-hungry people every year. The visitors arrive in bus loads, braving the hot humid weather. They come not just to feast on the famous varieties though these too are grown here, but also to gorge on Mazhar Pasand, Zard Aaloo, Malik Pasand, Khas-ulKhas, Makhsoos, Shakar-Chini, GulabJamun, Husnara, Bride of Russia, Heer, Ubedi, Deenga-Lakhnawi, Suhag, Lalit, Jog-Bachcha, Kacheriya and scores of other less celebrated types. The feast begins with traditional monsoon lunch of poori and aaloo ki tarkari, seetaphal ki sabzi, raita and laal mirch lehsan ki chutni along with food for the carnivores as well, followed by as many mangoes as you can eat and everyone gets to carry home 5 kg of the choicest. The monies saved after paying for expenses go as a contribution to the school. The writer is an academic, historian and mango lover <http://epaperbeta.timesofindia.com/Article.aspx?eid=31808&articlexml=When-karela-is-a-mango-31052015007005#> <http://epaperbeta.timesofindia.com/Article.aspx?eid=31808&articlexml=When-karela-is-a-mango-31052015007005#> -- With best wishes S Chander -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Thatha_Patty" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
