44 food stalls from 19 states...

Forty four food stalls, over 100 items from 19 different states, from the popular Bihari Litti to our own Masala Dosa, from Rajasthani Dal Bato Churma to the well presented Bamboo roasted rice of Arunachal Pradesh and what not.

Every person who thronged the coastal city to witness the National Youth Festival-2012 could satisfy his tastebud as the most awaited food courts set open at Karavali Utsav Grounds in the city on Thursday.  

The expert professional cooks from the youth clubs of different states who have been specially invited to participate in the Youth Festival food court section to serve the tastebuds of the participants in particular and the public in general, did their work promptly on the first day which received much appreciation from the food buffs. Probably, the tough time was faced by the food lovers in choosing the food for tasting as each food was unique from the other.

Rajiv Kumar, the Secretary of Nav Yuvak Sarv Kalyan Samsthan, who has come from Bihar along with Biharilal was busy selling hot jalebis made out of urad dal, litti and choka and chena ki salthi. Speaking to Deccan Herald, he said that the above dishes are very popular in Bihar and are given utmost priority in wedding functions. “Be it a top politician or an actor from Bihar as well as from Mumbai do not miss eating Bihari jalebis and lattis if they come to our State,” he said proudly.  

Most of the teams who have put up the stalls consist of 5-7 people with at least three cooks who prepare the food in a small kitchen type shed provided to them behind their stalls. There are stalls from the youth clubs from Chandigarh, Tamil Nadu, Jammu and Kashmir, Haryana, Delhi, Sikkim etc.

Out of total 44 food stalls, first 29 stalls serve vegetarian food and the rest serve the non-veg food. While nine other stalls sell dry druits, pickle, amla items.

Handicrafts at Yuva Krithi

If food stalls grab the attention of the food lovers, the adjacent portion of the food section is Yuva Krithi, an exhibition of handicraft items from various parts of the country is inviting art and craft lovers alike. In one of the rarest occasions, several handicraft items representing each State have gained their entry to Yuva Krithi and are made available under one roof.

Marble craft exhibition from a team from Agra, wooden craft by a couple from Kerala, 3D paintings by youngsters from Punjab, calligraphy art by a friends duo from Delhi are some of the items that are on display at the exhibition.

Jayanth Kumar from Urwa said that he was taken by surprise to see all items available in one place. “I always wanted to try food items from different States of India and my dream has realised with the Youth Festival coming to Mangalore. I have decided to come and try food varieties for the next four days, while my wife will roam around in the handicraft exhibition which is her favourite pass time,” he said.The exhibition will be open till January 16 from 10 am to 10 pm everyday.