The midnight munchies cure

“It was the most horrible thing I’ve ever tasted, but you should try it at least once,” says Reena Bhartiekka of the pasta-chowmein dished out by an imaginative hostelmate at her college hostel in Jagdalpur, Chhattisgarh. Before you accuse the medical student of questionable recommendations, try imagine a life of curfews well-overshot, and study nights spent munching on ‘jugaad food’—the life most hostelites enjoy.

Like the open roti-taco that Reena actually likes (more on that later), midnight feasts are every hostel’s open secret. “Mostly on days when we hit a stumbling block with studies, we gather in front of the adjacent boy’s hostel, where many of our friends stay, pool in resources, and start a party,” laughs Reena, who believes food to be the ‘common connect’ between friends from different cultural sociology-cultural backgrounds. “Sometimes, we start with staples like omelette, Maggi and coffee, to end up devouring dhokla, thepla, dal-bati-churma and asra (rice-and-jaggery cookie) all in the same night!” shares Reena, crediting family members for loading them up with homemade treats during vacations. So what’s the best part of these nightly escapades? “Sometimes, when friends would lose touch over the vacation, our first feast back acts as an ice-breaker all over again,” Reena points out before revealing the recipe of the dubious roti-taco. Take a crisp roti, load it with saucy Maggi, crush spicy chips on top—and do it all with leftovers.

For Shweta Shroff, 21, who stayed in Yuvita Sharan Hostel and Telang Hostel at different points of her Chartered Accountancy articleship in Mumbai, midnight snacking with hostel friends came with the thrill of breaking curfews, especially with ‘sisters’ on the prowl. “We’ve been caught many times, throwing surprise birthday parties, singing songs in a hush-hush volume, playing dumb charades, or just wolfing down pastries, wafers, chips, paranthas, suhalis (spiced flour crackers) and what not!” recalls Shweta. Not reproachable, when bedtime, for students and working women alike, is set at 10.30 pm. Then there’s the added attraction of treasure hunts and secret-angel games during the Christmas season. “For all the cakes and cookies, my home loot of Marwari snacks was what made everyone’s mouth water,” boasts the former hostelite who nurses fond memories of splitting gond ke laddoo with her entire gang.

Splitting food with friends is as important to 23-year-old *John Selvam as is sharing a good rapport with his Fergusson College hostel security guards. “Throughout our junior year we had to sneak in food packets through the windows of our ground floor rooms,” rues the Nursing student who found great benefits in keeping things friendly with the “Mamus at the gate”. Since outside edibles are off limits for the boys who usually eat at their hostel canteen, such liaisons are necessarily if you want to smuggle in a non-vegetarian dinner, cigarettes and the occasional beer. But that’s only when John and gang are feeling lazy. “Otherwise we have excellent in-house cooks who can whip up anything from spicy chicken curry to bhakri ki roti,” he says of his friends. In a hostel thronged by Keralites, John’s favourite snack is Murukku and pickle. “Initially, we would use velcros to tape induction stoves under our beds, using the forbidden device to heat food for our secret dinners.” he adds. The remains of these feasts, if disposed as regular trash, would raise suspicion. This gave birth to the practice of carrying out it with books and stationary, in duffel bags.

“It seemed like a pain at that point, but now the old routine seems amazing!” John sighs, before asking if his name can be disguised. John’s (*name changed) college guards might dig him enough to overlook a few youthful adventures, but the same cannot be said for the rest of the college.

HELPING HAND

Since outside edibles are off limits, forging friendships with hostel security guards are necessary if you want to smuggle in a non-vegetarian dinner, cigarettes and the occasional beer