The streets of the charming Chateauroux, with a hint of ‘The Taj Mahal and Bombay,’ offered double Olympic medallist Manu Bhaker and other shooters a pleasant escape from the challenging food at the Games Village.
Breaking a 12-year medal drought, the shooters have already achieved their highest ever Olympics tally with three bronze medals, and Manu Bhaker has become the first Indian athlete post-Independence to win two medals at a single edition. The shooters often remarked that the Games Village food was barely survivable.
Atif Noman, from the Punjab province in Pakistan and co-owner of the ‘Taj Mahal’ restaurant in the city center, distinctly remembered serving Manu her favorite dishes. After seeing her on TV creating history for India, Noman recalled serving her various Indian foods, adding that she had visited multiple times.
Noman recounted that Manu and her team typically ordered matar paneer, dal makhani, palak paneer, all with medium spice, and plain naan. They usually came in groups and only ate vegetarian food, he said while playing some Hindi chart-toppers. As the competitions progressed, the athletes’ visits stopped, and mostly coaches and officials continued to frequent the restaurant. Noman found it delightful to converse with them in Hindi and noted that they loved the food and visited daily. Nazim Uddin, who co-owns the restaurant and is from Sylhet in Bangladesh, founded it four years ago to serve Indian delicacies.
Uddin named the restaurant ‘Taj Mahal’ because he believed it to be the greatest wonder of the world. He mentioned that he had visited it multiple times and felt that no other historical structure, including the Eiffel Tower or any other engineering marvel, could compare. He noted that previously, Indians frequently visited the town due to a nearby Indian shipping industry, which has since closed, resulting in fewer Indian visitors.
Just 300 meters from Taj Mahal, another restaurant named “Bombay” has been serving Indian delicacies for 38 years. Mohammed Hamza, the manager who is from Afghanistan, described the experience as “home away from home” for the Indian athletes. This was the first time they had seen so many Indians, and the athletes enjoyed every moment of it. Hamza mentioned that they often gave one complimentary item to enhance the athletes’ experience.
The shooters mostly preferred vegetarian dishes like dal, roti, or vegetables without spice. Hamza noted that they often provided complimentary accompaniments and were busy serving an Indian physio and her family and friends. The athletes also gave them mementos like pins, which Hamza cherished. With a few days left for the shooting events at the Olympics, he said they would always remember this experience.
Source – The Hindu
