Navroze, the Persian New Year, is celebrated by the Parsi and Zoroastrian communities, and Iranis. It is a celebration of the spring equinox and expressing gratitude towards nature. Traditions include offering prayers at the fire temple, visiting family and setting the Haft-Sin table laid with fruits, dry fruits and sweets.
This year, key products that are sourced from Iran are off the shelves, while some like dry fruits have become dearer. Confectionery including Gaz (Iranian nougat), Baklava and Soan Halwa, have run out of stock, because of the unrest in the Middle East and adjacent regions.
Bibi Fatehmeh with pieces of Gaz at Cafe Colony & Stores in Dadar
Dadar’s Cafe Colony & Stores has always stocked boxes of Gaz for Navroz. This year, at the 92-year-old cafe, you’ll only find a jar filled with pieces of Gaz. Owner Bibi Fatehmeh says, “I’m not selling them by the box. I have unpacked what I had in stock and am selling it by the piece so more people can have it. We have to adapt to the times.”
Market research
Mukesh Gala at Royal Foods at Crawford Market. PICS COURTESY/PHORUM PANDYA
At Crawford Market, Mukesh Gala aka ‘Royal Takla’ owns Royal Foods for the past 26 years. “We introduced Gaz 25 years ago. This is the first year it is unavailable. Irani anjeer, Pista Halwa and Plain Halwa are available, but Soan Halwa is out of stock. The cost for Irani Mamra almonds has shot up from R2800 to R3400 per kg. We’ll have to see what happens in the coming months,” he says.
Irani anjeer
Zereshk berries, used on Berry Pulao, are procured from Iran in small packets of dried and compressed bricks. Most cafe owners, including Kyani & Co, say they have enough stock to last the year. On condition of anonymity, a shopkeeper in Crawford Market said that Zereshk berries are usually carried by people who visit Iran, and sold here. “You need to know which shop to visit,” he reveals.
Sugar-free and vegan sweets made from chikoos
Commenting on market patterns, Pratik Pawar of A-1 Dry Fruits at Crawford Market says since the pandemic business is hit by 40 per cent. “We’ve been running this store for 23 years now. Now, people source as per their needs. Khari Baoli (Old Delhi) and Crawford Market have the best produce.”
Kitayun Rustom and Kurush Dalal
Go local
Kitayun Rustom, resident of Ness Baug is swapping with alternative, locally-sourced produce. “We are chikoo farmers in Dahanu. We make sugar-free and vegan chikoo mithai, including a fudge and millet ladoo. One can innovate and create different products from locally available ingredients,” Rustom explains.
“Nature gives us fruits so we place these on our Navroze Haft sin table to express our gratitude. At such a crucial time in world history, we should create a fusion of cultures and also move to sustainable lifestyles. India is abundant in peanuts, currants, raisins, dates, pomegranates and desiccated coconuts that can be incorporated. Noghl is a traditional and famous Persian sweet and can be replaced with Nokuldana prasad found in India. The purpose is to celebrate the bounty of nature.”
Adjust and adapt
Archaeologist and food historian Kurush Dalal says dry fruits don’t come a few days before the festival so the current demand is met. “What will happen in the next two to three months is to be seen. We do have alternatives of California almonds and pistachios. Saffron is an important product from Iran, and this shortfall will have repercussions,” he says, adding that Iranian apple exports to India are a major component of India’s fruit imports, often accounting for around 23 per cent of its total apple imports.
“These apples, mainly from regions like Urmia and West Azerbaijan, are preferred for their competitive pricing, bright colour, and high-quality, typically arriving via Bandar Abbas to ports like Nhava Sheva. The regional tension between Afghanistan and Pakistan is also likely to disrupt produce coming in from Afghanistan. “Supply of Kandhari apricots and a variety of badams will be disrupted,” informs Dalal.
When we reach out to Britannia & Co, third-generation owner Afshin Kohinoor answers the call. “I have enough Zereshk berries in stock but no Gaz. I have three boxes of Baklava left, jaldi lai ja nahi toh khatam thai jase (Come buy them soon or they will be over),” he shares, underlining the sign of our times.
Berry bounty
Zereshk berries used for Berry pulao
Zereshk berries called barberries from Iran are used in Berry Pulao. At one point, they were so scarce in India, that they were like rationed saffron.
Table of tradition
The Haft-sin table has seven symbolic items for Navroze to celebrate spring. Each of the seven items begin with the letter S in Persian. Sabzeh (wheat, barley), Samanu (sweet pudding), Senjed (dryfruit), Seeb (apples), Seer (garlic), Somagh (sumac berries), Serkeh (vinegar)
