Filmsy and translucent packets of salt and pepper have for long aided us in sprucing up the insipid Indian thali served in plastic, compartmentalised plates which we struggled to make space for on the side-upper birth, taking extra care to not spill over the runny and unappetising daal on our laptop as the train rocked us away to known and unknown destinations.

This imagery is so well-ingrained in our memory that when we find ourselves inside the newly opened IRCTC automatic food vending court at Mumbai Central station, using those same packets of salt to sprinkle over freshly made fries (Rs 60) makes us feel out of place. The news itself had been hard to believe, for we had accustomed ourselves to the no-nonsense vada pav and copied versions of global potato chip brands available at platforms. So, we accept this cafeteria — serving fresh pizzas, fries, juice, and Indian, Thai and Chinese meals — not just with joy, but with a lot of gratitude, in spite of their endearing spelling mistakes, where sauce becomes "souce" and margherita becomes "margaretta."