A viral video of a 3D printer nozzle making jalebis at an eatery ignited a debate on tradition versus technology when billionaire Anand Mahindra shared the clip with his 11 million X (formerly Twitter) followers.
Mahindra, known for his interest in innovative tech across India and beyond, expressed mixed feelings, confessing his attachment to the traditional method of handcrafting jalebis. His tweet read, "I’m a tech buff. But I confess that seeing jalebis being made using a 3D printer nozzle left me with mixed feelings. They’re my favorite & seeing the batter squeezed out by hand is, to me, an art form. I guess I’m more old-fashioned than I thought…"
While many users in the comments assumed the video was from an Indian restaurant, a quick search revealed the video is from an eatery called ‘Pipal Aur Bata Ki Mashoor Jalebian’ located in Faisalabad in Punjab, Pakistan. The original video was shot by a Pakistani tech vlogger and businessman Nouman Khalid.
The tweet generated a lively discussion, with one user citing a video where lassi was made in a semi-automatic washing machine for mass consumption.
However, not all responses were positive. Some users expressed disapproval, with one insisting, "This isn't looking even good. No to this. Jalebis being made by hands are the best." Another commenter embraced the modern approach, asserting, "Modern problems require modern solutions."
One user said: “Jalebi and symmetry should never go together. There’s art in asymmetry, sir!” to which the Mahindra Group Chairman responded with a “well said”.
Many shared similar videos such as a donut making machine.
Another X user shared Anand Mahindra’s sentiment. “This nice but terribly entangled stuff is no match for the real jalebis. Anand, the place I grew up in, Udhampur, jalebis were made by letting thinnish batter to flow out of a hole in the bottom of a “lota” by gravity and dropping into a “kadhai”. That was skill of a special kind.”
With more supporters for hand-made jalebis, it seems, when it comes to food, tradition wins over technology.
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