Season of sabha servings
Andal. Kutcheri. Bhajan. Kolam. Vaikunta Ekadesi. Thiruppavai. Sabha. These are the words that keep Margazhi moving, from pre-dawn hours to late evenings. But tucked between the sabha gate and the concert hall, another ritual unfolds with consistency the sabha canteen. Visit any sabha in the city, and the people may change, the set-up vary and menus differ, but the tradition remains constant. Be it before the first keerthanai (devotional song), during a break in the tani avartanam (solo percussion performance), queues are present all the time. Long banana leaves are laid out as rasikas gather, debating ragas over a proper sabha canteen meal. Over the years, the sabha canteen has become as essential to the Margazhi season as the devotion and the kutcheri itself. This demand is what makes the job of caterers challenging. What began as a practical add-on meant to serve rasikas navigating packed concert schedules with easy access to traditional South Indian meals has gradually evolved into a cultural anchor of the season. Today, sabha canteens are no longer secondary to the concert; for many, they are the destination. People plan visits around menus, return on multiple days to sample different offerings, and treat the canteen as integral to Margazhi experience itself. In this ecosystem, food does not merely accompany music; it converses with it. Traditional trial Across sabhas, one philosophy quietly unites caterers: repetition dulls interest, but reckless innovation risks alienation. The balance lies in testing, listening and refining. Every year, we introduce new dishes to the menu keeping in mind all the suggestions and reviews from customers, says Venkatesan Krishnan of Sastha Catering Services, serving for the ninth year. Sabhas additions this year include walnut halwa, strawberry kesari, sapota kesari, red rice dosa and seven-taste uthappam, sitting alongside a vast traditional spread. With 12 varieties of idli, 40 varieties of dosa and 27 varieties of rasam, the intention is clear, If we serve the same dishes every time, people wont be interested in visiting, he explains. Yet nothing appears overnight. New dishes are tested months in advance. We do not immediately put out new dishes. Just two months before the sabha starts, we run a few trials in the kitchen take the feedback, correct it, and present it. This approach reflects a wider pattern. The kitchens function as laboratories, where audience response determines everything. RS Kumar of Sattvaa Catering Services, now in its seventh year, points out that the season has reshaped how people approach sabhas. Now, apart from attending kutcheris, people are coming just to have the canteen food, he says. Items such as pidi kozhukattai, kuzhipaniyaram, ammini kozhukattai and live dosa counters are designed not to replace everyday fare, but to offer what cannot easily be recreated at home. Interestingly, experimentation has also led to restraint. After presenting nearly 35 items last year, Sattvaa consciously reduced the menu to 1718 dishes this season. Many people suggested that it is fine to have fewer items and concentrate on not wasting the food, Kumar says. The result is visible on the banana leaf. Now, no one leaves extrasFood wastage is a big concern for the customers more than for me. Across sabhas, all three catering services also provide Jain and no-onion, no-garlic food, a practice that balances devotional sensibilities with inclusivity, even as menus grow more experimental. A sweet novelty If there is one area where these kitchens seem most willing to push boundaries, it is in satisfying the sweet tooth. Across canteens, innovation is concentrated around sweet flavoured items familiar in form, but reimagined through ingredients. Fruit-based and ingredient-driven sweets dominate this season, offering novelty without disrupting the emotional comfort associated with a Margazhi meal. This season, fruit-based innovation takes centre stage, sitaphal kozhukattai, chiku panniyaram, red banana panniyaram, pineapple dosa, strawberry dosa and guava kozhukattai. K Srinivasan, whose family catering legacy dates back to 1947, is particular about execution. The pineapple dosa will not just be pieces of cut pineapple placed in the dosa, but fresh pineapple pure will be combined with dosa batter, and the fruit will be put for extra crunch and flavour. Even here, novelty is filtered through one question: We might do anything new and innovative, but also think about whether people will enjoy having it. At Sastha Catering, alongside classics, makhana payasam has been introduced, while strawberry and sapota kesari add colour and curiosity to the counter. Venkatesan recalls how even unconventional additions can find acceptance when thoughtfully executed. Two years ago, we added watermelon rasam, and people appreciated it because it had both sweet and sour, he says, seeing audience responses as a positive sign. This willingness to experiment within boundaries finds its most elaborate expression at Mount Batten Mani Iyer Event and Catering Services. Srinivasan has consistently held on to a no-onion, no-garlic lunch philosophy since he started sabha canteen services in 2010. We never use onion or garlic in our lunch items because I wanted to present a homely and healthy food, he says. Yet homely does not mean static. Over the years, dishes such as konguthaen sweet pachadi, apple paayasam, elaneer rasam, noodles paayasam and fried ice cream have made appearances. Only this month, people enjoy this variety; otherwise, they will rely on the usual restaurant chains in the city, Srinivasan says, explaining why Margazhi becomes a rare window for culinary risk-taking. Behind these menus lies intense, often invisible labour. Kitchens open as early as 2 am, running without pause through breakfast, lunch, snacks and dinner. Yet caterers speak of this month with reverence rather than fatigue. Margazhi is considered a divine month, which makes the month itself special, Venkatesan says, linking food to the larger spiritual rhythm of the season. As concerts conclude and sabha lights dim, the canteen remains a place of warmth, conversation and quiet satisfaction. Long after a raga fades from memory, the taste of a particular rasam, dosa or sweet lingers becoming part of Chennais collective Margazhi memory.
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