Much ado about 'upma'

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Taking things out of context and creating a mountain out of a molehill seems to be the favourite pastime in the country now. This time, the talk of the town revolved around actor, director and producer R Parthiban reminiscing his love for ‘upma’ and jokingly suggesting that it should be considered the national dish.

This harmless statement went on to evoke panel discussions, Twitter wars and heated arguments across the country. But honestly, why?

So we went around asking Bengalureans what they think about this ‘national outrage’ and if these arguments were even necessary.

Deepika Singhania, a writer and marketer, points  out, “I love ‘upma’ but it has to be made properly. If someone tells you that they don’t like the dish, it’s probably because they haven’t had a good version of it yet. It is a true saviour when midnight cravings strike. But as helpful as this dish has been, should this be our national dish? Of course not!”

“We have way too much diversity in the country to have just one dish represent us. Then again, I am a hardcore ‘biryani’ fan so let’s talk about that instead?” she grins. Just like what happens in  almost every countrywide debate, Parthiban’s words were twisted and taken out of context, feel many.

Rumela Nellore, a homemaker, says, “Everyone is free to have their own opinion but someone’s opinion doesn’t make it a rule. I’m not a big fan of ‘upma’ but it seems like everyone wanted a light topic to be discussed on the social media and this was the only thing they could lay their hands on. I mean, it’s just food, not a life and death problem!”

Controversies are the perfect breeding ground for memes and one of the funniest ones that Nandini Swaminathan came across dealt with the annoyance one felt when mom says she’s making ‘upma’ for breakfast. The fashion blogger says, “The dish brings back memories as my dad often made it for me. It was the first dish he learned to make. That being said, it seems like we love to outrage over just about anything these days. I mean, it’s hilarious that a random comment made it to the headlines and news hour debates.”

Copy editor Divya Mithra, agrees. “It’s sad that the world chooses to ignore grave issues like babies being thrown out of vehicles and women being raped on an hourly basis. There is so much that we as a nation need to fix, so let’s focus on what’s important please!,” she says.

We guess it’s safe to say that the simple and humble ‘upma’ will remain a part of the South Indian buffet as it’s just not ready to take over the country yet.