MG Road (Borivali) (2)

If I'm not surprised that somebody gave the Mahatma's name to this tiny nub of a street in Borivali, then it's just another sad coincidence, not ironic per se, that it would lead to the immense Sanjay Gandhi National Park. 777 sq. km., I'm told, but on a Sunday nonetheless too busy to be fully appreciated. Sumos chew up the available landscape and picknickers back up their Santros to the diodic strains of "Salaam|Namaste". Ah, nature.

Amit and I crossed under the flyover and no sooner did we get down to business than "Jumbo Vada Pav" leapt at us off a storefront. Unquestionably auspicious—have I ever seen another shop devoted to them? Someday, Bluetooth permitting, I'll yank the photo off my phone. The sign contained an ingenious devanagari ligature for which the stroke piercing the "ba" is rotated 45° off the usual (recalling Tristan's work on the Signs titles).

Nothing was jumbo besides the price: an extra 50 paise, presumably for table service. But the vadai themselves had been sunning in the glass case and were the better for it. They bit through with zero impedance, but were still fringed with a satisfying crunch. The usually tart coriander overtones had rounded and broadened. The tamarind chutney was sweet like jelly. The pav were the chewy, savory kind usually reserved for bhaji. Worth sitting for.