Rajpori Shirmaal: Break the Special Tchot

Kashmir holds distinct name for having its various mouthwatering delicacies and special bakeries

Pulwama: The spring breeze of green lush meadows, the pristine of snow clad mountains, the full bloom of mustered and saffron fields are not the sole splendors of Kashmir but the delicacy like Wazwan, Noon Chai and Rajpora baked Shirmaals drives side by side for the cordiality of its visitors.

Kashmir remains thronged by its local as well as foreign visitors throughout the year. Visitors not only enjoy the glimpses of nature here but wish to taste the famous delicacies of valley.

Kashmir holds a distinct name for having its various mouthwatering and tasteful delicacies and Rajpora baked Shirmaal is one among them.

Shirmaal is the sesame daubed circular bread with crisp and furrow surface that turns brown after its baking.  In every nook and corner of the valley Shirmaal is baked everywhere but the Rajpora Shirmaal is the instance of lip-smacking in its taste.

Rajpora is the village in South Kashmirs Pulwama district, situated 7.5 Kilometers away from Pulwama. The village is known to be the domicile of well-known intellectuals.

The key person behind the secret of this mind blowing and delectable bread which is famous throughout the valley is considered a famous baker Ghulam Qadir Sofi who is believed to be the first person to bake Shirmaal in Rajpora at very first instance. At this juncture almost 15 families across the Rajpora village are engaged with this job of Shirmaal baking.

Gh. Hassan Sofi (60), a baker from Rajpora, who himself claims to be a first apprentice of Ghulam Qadir (a key person behind the Rajpora baked Shirmaal), said that “Bread baking is our ancestral profession, and being a son of Ghulam Qadir I am the first who learnt this art directly from him and all the contemporary Shirmaal bakers of Rajpora are directly or indirectly my trainees.”

Talking about the distinction of Rajpora Shirmaal, He said, ‘It befits the customer’s perpetual chosen bakery as anyone who so ever tastes it once, wishes to have it forever’.

Abdul Rashid Sofi (52), another baker from Rajpora, stated that although Shirmaal is baked everywhere in Kashmir but Rajpora baked Shirmaal is special among all as of its quality baking. Expressing his satisfaction he said, “We need not to send our Shirmaals in markets to sell them out but customers from every nook and corner of the valley visits us directly that let us to sell our product at satisfactory costs.”

The Rajpora roads are constantly observed abuzz with gigantic rush of customers who travel from far flung areas of the valley to buy these Shirmaals directly from its bakers. In an average every baker of Rajpora sells at least 30-40 kg’s of Shirmaals every day, costing 120/kg, reveals Mohammad Hussain Sofi, a baker from Rajpora.

People in Mammoth are seen while buying Shirmaals at bakers’ colony Rajpora on the Occasions like Eid and other religious cum nonreligious celebrations. On these occasions every baker sells atleast 5-6 quintals of Shirmaals that is quite satisfactory, Hussain adds.

To prepare this delectable bread, its bakers commence their day at pre-dawn and culminate at dusk after expensing their habitual efforts with concocting it. Amid smokes passing tears in eyes, its bakers kneads the flour and ghee with the sugar added boiled water the dough is rolled into small rounded balls and widened to a bread size on a wooden plate then furrowed with figure tips and daubed its surface with sesame seeds intermingled in eggs and refined milk powder. The head baker then pastes them on the oven walls blazed with almond firewood to bake these Shirmaals crispy for almost 15 minutes until its color turns to brown.

Moreover local and nonlocal customers there are other customers who visit Rajpora at regular intervals to purchase these Shirmaals because of its distinctive taste and eminence quality.

“Every Sunday I visit Rajpora bakers to purchase Shirmaals for our weekly home consumption,” relates Tota Akhter, who is a regular customer. She adds besides regular purchases for family consumption they are buying these Shirmaals to gift their relatives and friends on various occasions.

Customers are very fond of these Shirmaals as they believe Rajpora baked Shirmaals are astonishing to present as remarkable gifts as the taste and quality of these Shirmaals is worthy enough. “Gift item should be something exceptional so is Rajpora baked Shirmaal as there is no comparison in its taste and quality as well, reveals, another customer,” Zahid Ahmad Chat.

Adding further, Zahid states, they gifted these Shirmaals once to some of their relatives and the savory of these Shirmaals made them the regular buyers of this bakery.

For the sustenance of this delectable bakery there is a need to support its bakers in every aspect. A group of bakers demands, they must be assisted economically to bear the bulk production costs of this bakery and there should be favorable market place at both domestic as well as international level for the promotion of this valley famed Shirmaal.