The sound of the shutters being opened breaks the solitude and peace that the night had ushered in. The first light of the day is already out, and the chef is in.

The slabs are spotlessly clean now. The large freezer is filled with vegetables that have been stacked neatly. The utensils that were washed last night are gleaming and ready to use. In a short while, utter mayhem will reign. The solitude will be replaced with the sounds of cooking, of people talking and heartily swearing. The spotless and clean slabs will be messy and overflowing. The utensils will be out of the basket and in the stove or oven or fridge, depending on the recipe. 

And I? I will be happy.

Every place has an aura of its own. I am the aura of the kitchen of a café in the city of Mumbai. This café is famous for fast-food. Sandwiches, pizzas, cutlets, croissants, coffee, milkshakes – you can find all these here.

I have seen people enter the kitchen timidly and soon become a part of the chaotic organization that works here. For the amateurish, the kitchen feels like a maze, difficult to understand yet something they have to tackle. For the trained, it feels like home.

Sometimes there is lot of shouting. Other times, the people are so in tune with each other that they understand what is to be done, by whom and how – all without exchanging a single word.

I am a complex field. Noise and chaos define me. But I am much more than cooking and recipes. I am a part of the people working here. I am their story, both told and untold.

Take for instance the head-chef who just walked in. He has two senior assistants who in turn have two assistants each. Excepting the seniors, the other assistants fear the head-chef. He is an absolute terror to work with. His name – Danny – while sounding very gentle, invokes terror in the hearts of the juniors.

At fifty years of age, Danny is a handsome guy, tall and well-built with salt-n-pepper hair. At 6”2’, he towers over everyone. He is an excellent chef, one of the best in his field. His legendary cooking is what makes people flock to the cafe in large numbers.

But only I know that he carries a weight in his heart, a weight that descended upon it years ago when he first decided to train for a chef and was subjected to ridicule and taunts. It was an age where guys did not venture into the field of cooking to make it a profession. Despite all odds, he managed to carve a niche for himself as a chef, and yet, the weight of everything he had to fight against still bears down upon his heart.

He runs his hand reverentially over the kitchen slab, offering a silent prayer of gratitude. I take pride in the fact that only I know this side of his. He straightens up as his senior assistant Rakhi Sharma walks into the kitchen.

Rakhi is thirty years old and is a fireball, taking no nonsense from anyone and dishing justice out to everyone without any discrimination. Why, Danny himself has been at her receiving end many a time. Not many know that she is an abuse-survivor, and her tough exterior hides a tender and bruised heart.

“Morning…” She mutters. Clearly she isn’t a morning person. Danny replies back, hiding a smile. Rakhi doesn’t know but Danny has a huge crush on her. He has been fascinated with her since the day she walked in. Two years have gone by and yet Danny has never found the courage to ask her out.

“Morning, people…” Alok walks in, the other senior assistant to Danny. Alok is exactly opposite in temperament to Danny and Rakhi. He is easy-going, smiles and jokes a lot and shares a very good rapport with everyone. He is the one the junior assistants rush to in case of any crisis.

It saddens me that it is Alok’s last working day at the restaurant. He is just fifty but has decided to retire, stating that he wants to relax and enjoy in his golden years. But I know that his wife has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, and he wants to be with her. He knows that her good days will be outnumbered very soon by not-so-good ones, and he wants to make the most of his time with her.

The junior assistants – Vikas and Shaila - scamper inside the kitchen, muttering hurried ‘good morning’ wishes. Vikas prepares coffee and everyone gathers at the center of the kitchen, enjoying their moment of calm before the storm arrived.

“So, Alok, last working day ha…” Danny remarks casually. He never shows it but Alok has always meant a lot to him, and he would be missing the guy terribly.

Alok shrugs and smiles. “It is a bittersweet feeling, Boss…” He looks around the kitchen, wanting for things to be normal again. The kitchen has been his source of happiness and comfort. He longs for the good old days to come back. He knows they won’t.

“I will miss you.” Rakhi says and for a while, they all go quiet. I can feel their emotions, specially of the juniors who will miss Alok the most. He has been a mentor and a friend to them.

Alok smiles sadly, unable to say anything. He is thinking about how life would go on as usual in the café but his would never be the same again.

Suddenly Danny, ever the pragmatic, raises his hand to get everyone’s attention and taps his watch. The juniors are the first ones to move and they stand at the counter from where customers can place their orders.

---@@@---

 “He wants WHAT now??” Rakhi asks incredulously. “Is he delirious??”

“A veg… vegetarian omelette.” Shaila finishes breathlessly, relieved to have gotten it out.

Rakhi looks at Danny and Alok in disbelief. Danny shakes his head while Alok sniggers. “One time! I argued with that guy just one time!” Rakhi exclaims in anger.

As she watches Shaila linger uncomfortably, her stance softens and she inhales deeply. “You know what… he wants a vegetarian omelette, we will give him one.”

She hastily prepares a batter of chick-pea flour and adds veggies into it. Then she prepares pancakes out of the batter. Needless to say, the pancakes look and smell like omelettes. My girl has actually prepared a vegetarian omelette!

When Shaila tries to take the plate, Rakhi firmly shakes her head and grins savagely. “I am personally going to deliver it to him.”

Danny and Alok share an amused look.

“Poor bloke won’t know what hit him..” Danny mutters.

Few minutes later, Rakhi walks in, looking subdued and flustered. There is a funny look on her face.

“All well?” Danny asks curtly, not taking his eyes off the onions he is chopping.

“Yeah… seems he wanted to ask me out on a date.” She says, trying to sound casual. I can sense her mixed feelings. There is the exhilaration of wanting to get into a relationship with someone she finds attractive. There is the fear of getting hurt again. For now, the exhilaration is winning. She sighs. “I agreed. Let’s see where this goes.”

Danny’s hand stills. It feels to him like someone placed a cold fist on his heart. He looks at Rakhi. There’s a glow on her face. She looks as if she is anticipating something. He has never seen this look on her face before.

He smiles wistfully, recognizing a lost cause. She’s young and has a lot of life to look forward to… He takes a deep breath and doesn’t comment anything, allowing himself to wallow in heartbreak for few seconds. Then he resumes his work.

It is amazing how the day passes by. It is already night and time for everyone to leave. The café had closed an hour ago. All the chefs are tidying up the kitchen. Once done, they all assemble at the center table as if by mutual understanding.

“Alok, I will miss you, man.” Danny says, feeling ridiculously sentimental. To him it feels as if he has lost two friends in a single day. Alok wouldn’t be there from tomorrow, and Rakhi – well, he never really had a chance with her, to be honest.

Alok hugs Danny and looks around the kitchen, not wanting to leave now that he knows that a difficult battle awaits him. His eyes get all misty. He wishes that it hadn’t come to this, that he could have enjoyed few more years of doing what he loves. He inhales deeply and smiles at everyone.

“Go easy on these two.” He tells Danny while gesturing to the juniors. Shaila is openly crying while Vikas looks utterly lost. Danny chuckles and nods. Alok hugs everyone in turn and they all leave the kitchen.

I can hear the sound of the shutters being drawn. Another day has gone by. Tomorrow will be different. A new chef is coming. The vibes will be different between Danny and Rakhi. The juniors will take some time to adjust to Alok’s absence.

And I? I will be there, like always. People come and go. But I, the aura of the kitchen, stay forever, a witness to stories both told and untold.