Trash to Treasured Art

This is the story of one man who gives a new form to everyday objects that in most homes would find their place in the nearest trash. Anil Patwardhan is an extremely agile and active 80 year old who finds pleasure and peace in his unique art. He is the father-in-law of Bhakti Patwardhan, our FOI President for 2021. During his visit to Little Rock in the summer, he reminisced that as a kid he enjoyed watching his grandfather create works of art. Later as an adult, work and family life took priorities, but he enjoyed fiddling and creating things whenever he could. After retirement, when he had all the time on his hands, he embraced his passion for creating art with renewed vigor. He was inspired to create something from common items that everyone uses-match boxes, ice cream sticks, broom sticks, buttons, fruit seeds, nut shells etc. He starts every creation by drawing all the details to scale on paper first. Then comes the process of choosing the correct materials and giving shape and form to his idea with the collected materials. Sometimes the objects he collects inspire him to create a piece and other times he gets an idea and then gathers the suitable materials. His first creation was a rocking chair that he had seen in his childhood and he managed to create an exact replica. Buoyed by his success he began making more complex pieces. He joked that he was like a small child when it came to collecting objects. His art though is not a child's play. It takes him hours and hours of grueling work involving chiseling, sawing, finishing, painting and polishing to bring the imagined piece to life. On suggesting that he make videos of his work or start an instagram account to show his work, he laughed heartily and said that social media was not for him. He was happy to gift his art, he said and content to see the joy that his art brought to the recipients.

A peek inside "Harsha's Kitchen"

Everyone likes a break from the kitchen. Even more so, if delicious and healthy home cooked options are readily available. Ambrish and Harsha Pandit provide a tiffin service of fresh vegetarian Indian food, which they promise will remind people of their home. Hailing from Maharashtra, they specialize in Maharashtrian cuisine but they also provide sumptuous Punjabi and South Indian food. They have a regular tiffin for weekdays that consists of four chapatis, dal, sabzi and rice and a special tiffin on Saturdays where they make some unique delicacies that cannot be found in restaurants and are time-consuming to make at home. One example is the special Maharashtrian tiffin that features sol kadhi, a dish unique to Maharashtra. It features amsul or kokum (a type of fruit) in cool buttermilk spiced with green chilies and garnished with coriander. People with a sweet tooth will also enjoy the Saturday special tiffin, which includes a dessert. 

The couple said that they have received rave reviews from their customers about the taste, quantity and price of their meals. This year, they also provided a variety of Diwali snacks and they turned out to be so popular that people rushed back asking for more. After all, nothing can beat fresh Diwali snacks. Ambrish and Harsha said they are touched by the response they have received so far and that they greatly value the connection with their customers. They hope that they will get to know more people through their food. Don't wait, give yourself or your partner a break and contact Harsha's Kitchen at 209-278-6686 (text) or 201-356-7787 (Whatsapp) for wholesome delicious food.