Matunga Special
I have been writing about a lot
of things , about my experiences while travelling through the lengths and
breadths of India , its cultural diversity , natural landscapes and of course
the gastronomical delights . But how can I forget my sweet old Matunga , that
quaint little place some where between Dadar and Sion whose boundaries though
not well defined but filled with unique
& mesmerizing shades of emotions like a flamboyant painting with the sky as the
Canvas made by the Creator Himself.
Figure this where do you remember
having qued up the last time around. May be at Siddhivinayak Temple for the
Darshan of Lord Gajanana , or at the movie theater if you have not booked your
tickets on BookmyShow , or outside some government office for getting some
important documents or if your are the old school outside the Telephone or
Electric Company office to pay your bill. But have at any time come across an
shop selling Agarbattis so famous that people que to get them.
Its here in Matunga in on of its
by-lanes you will fiind Acharya Products largest traders of agarbattis or
incense sticks since 1956 that you will find literally people queing up on
occasion like Gudi Padwa or Pongal or the upcoming Dushera . The serpentine que
starting at the shop on Laxmi Narayan Lane right upto the Kabutarkhana in
Matunga market a good 100-150 meters. Acharya Products was founded by K Y
Acharya in 1928 as a incense trading house and later started manufacturing some
of the brands themselves. Currently managed by the 2nd generation
and head of the family Raghu Achrya. They are sole distributors for nearly 32
manufactures and 500 fragant varieties of incense sticks beside another 10-12
manufactures of Dhoop sticks and brands.The first thing that hits you when you
enter the shop is the heady mix of fragrances of all the incense sticks. Theres
the strong smell of Kevda or a Mogra , mild scent of Champa or the sweet smell
of Chandan . The shop is strewn with row upon row of neatly stacked packets of
incense sticks in various sizes from small 10 stick pack to 100 stick packs to
the packet on weights of 100 gms to 500 gms. They stock the usual variety of
Gulab , Jasmine , Chandan & Lavender and even exotics fragrances like Musk
, Akashphool, Amber and Marie Gold . Even some trending scents like Citronella
and Fruit Blast.You will not only find individuals buying these incense sticks
in small lots but also small retailers coming from across the city to buy in
bulk quantities. As habit they keep small smples of the latests fragrances to
be included in these large orders as a way of Marketing their stock.
If you ask Raghu Acharya who
sometimes sits at the cash counter , what is their specialty , he proudly says
, their expertise lies in accessing and assisting their customers requirements
in regard to quality of incense , fragrance and packging.They have earned their
reputation for maintaining strict delivery schedules and by offering
competitive prices. They have huge stock of all leading brands and even have an
listed Export company to ship these products to 58 countries like US , UK ,
Eupore , UAE and even some African countries where there is a large population
of Inidans. They pride themselves on their products not containing any
restricted forest produce or any species of wild fauna and flora and which are
listed in the Appencices of the Convention on Internation Trade. A notice to
this effect prominently dispayed in the shop.They have been awarded the Top
Exporter in Handicraft category for 3 successive years between 2002-2204 and
the only company in this category to get this Hat trick of a award.To cater to
the Western world they have now expanded into Natural oil based Soaps and
Toiletaries and even Aroma oils for Aroma Therapy at leading Spa’s .So next
time you are in Matunga and need some incense stick or dhoop sticks trust your
sense of smell and walk in the direction your nose tells you in this bylane and
you will find yourself standing in fornt of Archarya Product written in bold Red on a Turmeric Yellow
backdrop and with an interesting tag line “Bhakti Me Laye Shakti”…
If you trust your sense of smell
walk just opposite to a small hole in the wall kind of shop just next to Hotel
Ram Ashraya called Quality Tea & Coffee. If you are a lover and a Cofee /
Tea addict this is the shop for you. They have been serving their loyal
clientele since 1958 . This too started as a trading shop selling tea and
coffee from tea estates especially from the south in Coorg and from up east in
Darjeeling. They have now started manufacturing their own blends of both tea an
coffee under the Quality Tea & Cofee brand. Here you will get the finest
variety of coffee which can be custom blended in 60:40 or 70:30 ratio of Coffee
Arabica & Chicory. Or you could pick the pre-blended French coffee a strong
brew to release your day long stress . They also sell coffee beans – Peaberry
beans , Plantation beans in raw or roasted form which can be hand crushed or
crushed using coffee machines to brew you own drink.
For tea lovers like me they have
a wide selection from the standard CTC to Hiltop dust which is extra strong.
Some other blended variety like A1 Premium , Mast ,Rasrang and Radical CTC
.Where CTC referes to the tea processing term of Cut Toasted and Curled .They
even keep newer Falvoured teas like
Jasmine tea, Peach tea Orange Pekos , Premium Green Peko and Green Tea .Other
flavours suited to the hard core teaf buff are Lemon Grass (Gavti Chaha) ,
Cardamom (Elaichi), Cinnamon (Dalchini) , Tulsi , Ginger and even Rose flavored
.Brew these in milk as per tradition or drink it black to savoir its flavor .
Ek chuski chai ki ek pyaali
sehath ki……
As I said Matunga is a place I am
still discovering even after staying here for 40 years there are still secrets
that lay hidden in its by-lanes like layers of
a rose petals that need to be peeled one by one to reveal its beauty and
fragrance…
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