These people make litres of thandai for society residents during Holi

After an exhausting round of plastering each other in colours and splashing water, one looks forward to getting revitalised. At that time, a glass of chilled and sweetened thandai is the best option. And a few good Samaritans in Navi Mumbai expertly prepare the drink at home for hundreds of society residents on the day. The fortunate ones not only line up to relish the refreshing drink but some also take it home in bottles.

Toral Dave, a resident of Chadda Crescent society in Vashi has been making thandai for other society residents for 22 years now. Belonging to the Marwadi community, she is adept in making the beverage with a variety of ingredients to get the authentic taste. "For us, thandai is a staple for every occasion and function. As I have learnt it from my mother, it is not a herculean task and it is fun to prepare it for everyone in the society during Holi. You feel satisfied and rewarded just seeing everyone, from kids too adults, enjoying the drink," she said.

Dave goes for the elaborate procedure rather than the simple way and has an assortment of ingredients to add to her beverage. "I make around 15 litres and it takes me two hours. I soak green fennel seeds, dried rose petals, khus khus in water and grind it to a paste. I then use a cloth and water to wholly extract the essence from the paste. I boil the milk and cool it before adding the essence, honey and lots of ice. I also make it a point to add finely diced cashew nuts, almonds, pistachio and powdered green cardamom," she said.

Another true blue native of Rajasthan is Avtaar Poddar, a resident of Vashi's Vardhman Palace society in sector 17, who has another way of preparing the Holi refreshment. "To prepare around 20 litres of thandai, I use five bottles of Guruji ki Thandai, unboiled milk and 5kg of ice. What brings flavour is spices like black pepper and green fennel seeds (saunf), rosewater and almonds that are ground to paste and sieved before mixing," said Poddar adding, "It has been a practice to make thandai during Holi and since I have a know-how, it is a pleasure to serve it to all the residents who look forward to it every year."

At Kesar Harmony society in Kharghar, Yogeshwari Killa gets an advance request from many residents to give them an opportunity to relish thandai as she has been making it for four years. "At least 250-300 residents gather for Holi, so we make 100 litres of thandai. Holi is all about getting together with friends, family and enjoying good food. Living a demanding life, we are not able to do so often, hence I see it as an initiative to make other residents enjoy," she said, to which her husband Vinod Killa concurs.

She said it does not take more than an hour to make it if one gets the composition right. 'It is 70% milk, 20% thandai essence and 10% ice. I add lots saffron strands (kesar) for flavour and colour. We also make use of cans to mix and whisk the drink so as to make it foamy," she concluded.