Tweet from professor made Twitterati explode over idligate

A seemingly harmless tweet by UK professor Edward Henderson has gotten the Twitterati, especially those who hail from the South of the Vindhyas up in arms.

There is nothing like food that speaks to people. There is something about the innate uniqueness of each dish that brings back warm memories of home, people, and associations when we talk of them. And dismissing a particularly ubiquitous food item on Twitter is a surefire way of riling up even the most peace loving of people, as one unlucky academician found out.

A seemingly harmless tweet by UK professor Edward Henderson has gotten the Twitterati, especially those who hail from the South of the Vindhyas up in arms. Why? Well, he chose to insult the delightful comfort food, Idli — every South Indian household’s staple — “boring”. No sooner had he tweeted, tweeple everywhere exploded and began a food war in Tweetsphere.

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First to take offence was Ishaan Tharoor who tweeted, “I think I have encountered the most offensive take on Twitter.” His tweet got his father, MP Shashi Tharoor’s attention who doled out more words of wisdom in his usual witty style: “Yes, my son, there are some who are truly challenged in this world. Civilisation is hard to acquire: the taste & refinement to appreciate idlis, enjoy cricket, or watch ottamthullal is not given to every mortal. Take pity on this poor man, for he may never know what Life can be,” wrote Tharoor and even gave out some tips to savour the idli at its best.

He further wrote, “Try it with a plate of steaming idlis, accompanied by coconut chutney with a garnish of mustard seeds, a red-chilli-and-onion samandi & some molagapodi w/melted ghee. If the idli batter has been fermented right, it’s the closest thing to heaven on this earth! Class will be better.”

Other users chimed in with similar sentiments. One user even schooled him on his folly. “You are looking at idli as a separate entity from chutney and sambar. there in lies the problem. the three can not be separated, they go together. so it disqualifies your statement. you are allowed to not like idli but at your own folly. what we don’t understand we dislike.(sic),” wrote a user the handle @soHbet.

Previously, biryani lovers all over erupted when a restaurant in Pune chose to write this in their banner. “All types of Biryanis other than Hyderadi biryani will be referred to as Pulao.” The image went viral, kickstarting a war of words between foodies online.

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