Wonder Woman in a nauvari saree

As joggers brush past us at 9 am, we wait under the Princess Street flyover to meet Sampada Mukadam. Her entry is the stuff of superhero movies. Draped in a fuchsia silk nauvari (nine-yard) saree, wearing strings of golden beads and a nathani (nose ring) that glints in the sun, the 52-year-old arrives on a Harley Davidson.

She radiates confidence, unperturbed by the curious stares of cabbies and bikers. The giant bike purrs to a halt as Sampada parks it and gets off swiftly. "I've been riding bikes for 26 years. So, I have control on the clutch and brakes. However, my legs are unable to touch the ground on this bike," admits Sampada, who incidentally straddled a Harley for the first time earlier that morning. With help from her 26-year-old son, Sanket, she managed to tame the beast in 10 minutes.

Sampada uses butter paper to wrap Puran Poli. Pics/Bipin Kokate

Meet the biker chick
On Gudi Padwa (March 28), the Girgaum resident will mount the same motorcycle to lead 70 women in a two-hour Shobha Yatra - a traditional procession celebrating the Maharashtrian New Year - from Ganeshwadi Ganpati Mandir to LT Marg Police Station. All the participants will be draped in nauvaris.

Sampada is nothing less than a local hero, becoming the first woman in Mumbai to participate in a Gudi Padwa rally, back in 2003. She recalls, "The committee members were surprised at my request but there was no rule stating that women couldn't participate in bike rallies. I rode a Hero Honda Sleek then, and behind me were 21 men on motorbikes. The entire neighbourhood was awestruck!"

A smile plays on her lips as she fondly recollects the moment many elder Maharashtrian women bowed to her like she was a 'devi'. "They felt that with this feat, I had given the nine-yard saree the respect it deserves. My idea was to keep our culture alive while adapting to times," she says, adding that she finds the nauvari comfortable, considering she has been wearing it since childhood. Her advice: "You should know how to drape it. Never try to tuck the saree folds with pins, or it will tear."

Staffer Vandana Kumbhar tosses a griddle to flip the Puran Poli

The lady behind the store
For most part of the day, Sampada is dressed in a simple salwar kameez, manning Vinayak Keshav Co, the legendary establishment near St Teresa's Church, known for its Maharashtrian snacks and sweet offerings. Married to Sanjay Mukadam, she is the third generation owner, who took over the shop post her husband's demise 11 years back.

The 500-sq ft shop was set up back in 1921 by Vinayak and Keshav Mukadam, siblings from Ratnagiri. Unable to visit Mumbai frequently ("Back then, the only mode of transport was a boat", she says), Vinayak handed over the reins to Keshav, a Girgaum resident, while he started a similar shop in his native place. "We began as a provision store. At that time, Girgaum was extremely crowded. In the early 80s, my father-in-law (Nandkumar) took over. He began selling traditional snacks and sweets too," she reveals.

Nandkumar Mukadam, the second-generation owner introduced the traditional Maharashtrian sweet at Vinayak Keshav Co.

What's in a poli?
Apart from packaged snacks and Chinese curries, the store offers a variety of Maharashtrian items - pure ghee laadoos, including nachni and dinka (edible gum) variety, jackfruit chips (available from April to May), cashews from Sampada's farm in Ratnagiri, bhajani chaklis (made using roasted mixed flour) and chiwda - all made in-house. Two of its bestsellers are the soft nutmeg-laced Puran Polis (Rs 28 per piece) and crispy thin Tel Polis (Rs 40 per piece). "Not many know the difference. The Puran Polis are made using wheat flour and maida, and stuffed with bengal gram and jaggery. Tel Polis are made only with maida, with a sugar stuffing, and prepared with oil for a longer shelf life," shares Sanket, the fourth-generation owner, who moonlights as a Salsa and Latin dance instructor.

Toss it right
A favourite not just with the locals but also celebrities like Viju Khote, Atul Parchure, Nitish Bharadwaj and politico Sharad Pawar, these treats score over the versions found at most other shops because they aren't outsourced from traders but freshly made, every day. "Initially, we would stock them from a Maharashtrian lady. One day, she didn't turn up, so, my mother-in-law (Vijaya) made 20 Puran Polis at home [we live nearby] and sent them to the shop. They sold out quickly. We still use the same recipe," she says.

In a section of the shop that has been converted into a mini factory, seven old-time staffers spend two hours every morning, preparing both the varieties with machine-like precision - each moon-shaped poli fluffs up exactly 20 seconds after it is slapped on the griddle. Instead of using a spatula, Vandana Kumbhar, a staffer trained under Vijaya, tosses the griddle to flip the poli. Sampada laughs, "Working in a kitchen is like being in a chemistry lab," and reasons, "Since the covering is thin, spatula will tear it and the stuffing will spill. So, you toss the griddle." In another corner, a worker braves the heat from a large tava to make Tel Poli, flattening the maida dough with hands and creating triangular treats.

What's next?
With the diamond market shifting to BKC, the mother-son duo has noticed a decrease in crowds in the neighbourhood. "It's not as glamorous as it used to be," shares Sanket. Sampada admits it's difficult to sustain a shop in today's times. "We have been able to thrive because of our traditional items, and the way we make them. You cannot survive only on packaged products."

Sanket seconds, "Earlier, buying traditional fare from shops was frowned upon. Customers believed that the quality wouldn't be good enough. But now, it's different. While we would sell a tonne of ingredients for Diwali snacks earlier, now, we sell more finished items because no one has the time make them at home."

As the shop completes 98 years next January, the scion shares his plans, "We've started stocking Tel Polis in 10 stores across Mumbai, including Panshikar, Bedekar and Prashant Corner in Thane. While the shop will stay as is, I am keen to expand the production unit and supply our in-house items to stores across Mumbai and reach out to other parts of Maharashtra."