Cuttack: Cuttackiyas have a special love for Dahibara Aloodum. They can have a plate of dahibara, aloodum and ghuguni any time in a day.
The COVID-induced lockdown, however, has put a stop to the daily outings for a plate of this mouthwatering delicacy.
While the city dwellers can do away with the outings, for the time being, they can still have a plate of the drool-worthy Dahibara Aloodum. Here is how!
Five Dahibara Aloodum sellers of the city have gone online by tying up with Zomato. Among them are Pradipta Kumar Sahu, fondly called Babula, and Trinath Sahoo.
Odisha Bytes caught up with Babula of Dhoba Sahi near Deula Sahi in Cuttack to know about his experience.
“The COVID situation forced me to do business online. We have been suffering for the last one year due to the pandemic. It was difficult for us to meet our family’s daily needs,” said Babula.
He has been selling Dahibara Aloodum online for the last one moth.
“I manage to sell at least 200 plates daily. The price of one full plate is Rs 50,” he said.
Babula, however, was initially apprehensive about the response. “Though we are open from 10 am to 10 pm, the stock gets over much before the end time,” he said.
Recalling his bad days during the first wave of the pandemic, Babula said, “The words Corona and lockdown were completely new for us. We did not understand their meanings. On the first day of lockdown, I went out with a full container of Dahibara Aloodum. The police did not allow us to do business and I had to return home. I then distributed the prepared stuff among the people in the neighbourhood for free.”
Notably, Babula had won the first prize at the 11th National Street Food Festival in New Delhi on December 29, 2019.
“After the award, my sale had improved. But two months later, the lockdown was imposed and it was a very difficult phase for me and other small vendors,” said Babula.
Babula has been selling Dahibara Aloodum in Cuttack since 1988 when he was only 14 years old.
“I have been doing this business for a long time. I had never encountered such a situation earlier. I had started selling Dahibara Aloodum within 10 to 15 days of the 1999 Super Cyclone,” he added.
Before lockdown, Babula had his stall near Shelter Chhak in Cuttack.
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