The tunnel 5

Like light, darkness can add taste to your life. It’s an acquired taste. It’s more tempting and tantalizing. Any kind of art form needs inspiration for evolution. I the base form it’s just showcased as a normal performance or an eye-catching element. Once in a lifetime, of one in a million chance, it transcends it’s base form and gets a signature. If we brush upon history, we can count the number of people who became famous.

Everyone had a single moment in their life that added inspiration to their art. They say it’s a feeling that strikes you for few seconds.  

So, here I am on a culinary trip to find the perfect experience. I am a cook. Well, I was one. Now I am no more than an oven. What I serve are hot piping delicacies with the usual taste that holds peoples taste. I always wanted to change this thing. I wanted them to experience food that not just fills their stomach. I wanted them to taste food that fulfills their desires.

En route several adventures, I landed upon an unusual spot. It was a tunnel adjacent to a coastal area. The beach added a little salt to my curiosity. With more anticipation as seasoning, I went inside a dark void. There was no one and nothing around me. It was just me. And when I was alone I was myself. The darkness brought out the desire inside me. As I kept walking, all my other four senses were at its peak. The smell, the air around my skin, the dry ambiance and the sound of the backwaters opened my mind. In the darkness, you give in or give up. I completely surrendered my will to it and it lingered longer than I expected.

After few minutes my moment occurred there. A small spec of light fell on a crystal blue spot. Amongst the dark void, this puddle was in the spotlight. This was a nature’s spectacle that was adorned to enlighten me. I bent down and had a sip of that water. And that’s where I got my moment of inspiration. The water had a blend of salt, sweetness, and sourness. It was mixed with several minerals that flowed inside the tunnel. I got my secret ingredient.

All my dishes from that day had a tinge of darkness and refreshing taste of that spring water. The blend not only changed peoples taste, it changed their mood and expression.

Sometimes we need a tunnel view to improve our art form.

Ashwin Muralidharan...