Started in 1955 by Aladdin Quraishi, Lucknow’s Wahid Biryani is known across India for its delicious Awadhi biryani. But today, after 65 years of dishing up delicious mutton and chicken biryanis, the owner of this famous joint is himself cooking and serving over 1500 migrant labourers daily with a special ‘veg biryani’ served with paneer and peas. Hats off and respect to you sir!
‘Wahid Biryani’ Serves Veg Food To Migrant Labourers
We are living in distressed times. While some people are privileged and not stepping out of their homes in fear of the virus, there are others who are walking over a 1000 kms to get back to their homes. I’m talking about migrant labourers from across the country who are packing up their meagre belongings and walking from state to state to finally reach their homes. There are some of us who write about it, some who empathise, some who criticise, and then there are others like Wahid Biryani owner Abid Ali Quraishi who has donned his chef’s hat and is personally cooking and serving migrant labourers who are making their way through Lucknow. This man deserves a standing ovation. Add to it the fact that he belongs to the Muslim community and Ramadan is on, so he is observing Roza daily. Despite that, he stands daily with a little stall set up and serves over 1500 migrant labourers. Abid has set up stalls across four points on the city’s outskirts — Chinhat, Polytechnic Crossing, Sitapur Road, and Agra Expressway.
Also read: Agra Police Offers Shoes To Migrant Workers
In an interview to the Times Of India Abid said, “Hum apni poori jaan aur poora maal laga rahe hain is seva mein (We are putting all our heart, soul and money into the service). We hope that labourers reach their homes safely and we can help them reach their homes safely.
The stalls are being manned by him, his 2 sons, his brother and some staff. Each stall has a small tricolored flag kept next to it, saluting the resilience of the Indian spirit. Abid has named his vegetarian variation the Navratna Biryani and each day he make 4 huge vessels of 15 kgs each. that’s about 60 kgs of biryani – that gets eaten up daily. With every plate of biryani, he also adds some fruits, a water bottle, biscuits and juice.
We applaud your efforts Abid Sir and your humanity. You are indeed blessed to be reaching out and helping in these times.