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If you ask anyone about Karwa Chauth, the first thing they’ll mention is a day-long fast, that too, without food and water. However, when you ask a little longer, the conversation turns into what to have for Sargi thali, whether water is allowed after the evening katha, and the feast after the moonrise. Even though everyone knows the Sargi thali essentials and everything about post-vrat dinner plans, what happens in between is less written about.
While I gathered everything from women who have been fasting for years, there was a scary feeling long before Karwa Chauth. Breaking the patriarchal norms, my husband fasted with me for Karwa Chauth. And it helped me ease the nervousness since we played like a team, as it should be. So, why don’t you read on to know how a foodie couple made it through the day without munchies and successfully ticked all the boxes of the vrat mandate.
The Sleepless Sargi Thali
As per the Karwa Chauth tradition, you have to wake up before sunrise, eat the Sargi, and then begin your fast. I looked at that plan and made a counter-proposal. What if I didn’t sleep at all?
Image Credit: Garima Johar
And that’s exactly what happened. My husband booked a late-night movie show, and we passed some time munching on popcorn and giggling in the cinema hall. After heading back home, we stayed awake until 4 AM, got dressed for the Sargi like it was a pre-dawn red-carpet event and sat down to the most serious breakfast of my life.
I started with some fresh-cut fruit, coconut water, paneer ke parathe, and a bowl of curd. Then there was a bowl of phenia, the Karwa Chauth quintessential, lots of water, and a tall glass of cold coffee. I can’t start my day without cold coffee. I realised I couldn’t start a fast without it either. If you’re wondering whether that’s allowed, I’d point out that technically, the sun hadn’t come up yet.
Image Credit: Garima Johar
The Long Afternoon
Here’s something nobody tells you about your first Karwa Chauth: no matter how late you wake up, the day is long. And no matter how many glasses of water you chug with your Sargi thali, you’ll still wake up thirsty. My husband, who was fasting too, and I both slept until 12 PM. Then we did what any sensible, slightly bored, increasingly hungry couple would do. We got in the car and drove around, with no destination and no snacks to be found. We killed a few hours this way.
Back home, I started getting ready, and my husband vanished into the other room with his phone. He came out holding a saree. He had decided to learn how to drape one from a YouTube tutorial, and he was taking it very seriously. There was a lot of pausing and rewinding. I’m not going to say how many tries it took. He was hungry, I was hungry, and he still didn’t hurry. If you want a recipe for a successful Karwa Chauth, start with a husband who watches tutorials without being asked.
The Evening Katha
After getting ready, we headed to a nearby temple for the katha, carrying a puja thali that might look simple, but it felt like the life of the festival. It was filled with a mix of sweet and savoury mathris, almonds, raisins, and cashew nuts. We also carried a decorated pot filled with water mixed with a little milk and two diyas my mother-in-law had made herself out of atta.
We sat through the katha with folded hands and rumbling stomachs, listening to the story of devotion that this whole day is built around. It’s a story about waiting, which, by then, I understood completely.
Image Credit: Garima Johar
The Mandatory Cold Coffee
After the katha came the photographs. Then came the pit stop, a much-needed cold coffee and chai break. Since we finished the katha around 7 PM, my husband made a sacrifice that I will remember for the rest of my life. He decided to skip his chai.
I, however, did not make the same sacrifice. I had my cold coffee. Nevertheless. Unapologetically. Straw in, eyes closed, a small moment of pure joy in an otherwise very long day. My husband watched me drink it with the dignity of a man who has made a choice and will live with it. I have never loved him more. I have also never felt less guilty about a beverage.
The Moon Chase
Image Credit: Magnific
I remember the good old childhood days when my mother would take my brother and me to head to the rooftop to check if the moon was up. And we used to take turns as if running up the stairs was an ever-so-exhausting task. Little did I know there would be a time when I’d not only have to wait for the moon but also run up the stairs on an empty stomach.
And if you have never waited for the moon on Karwa Chauth, let me explain the stakes. The entire day builds to this single moment, and the moon does not care how thirsty or hungry you are. And to make things more dramatic, it was a cloudy evening!
The First Sip
At around 9 PM, the clouds parted, and we could finally spot the moon. We gave the arghya to the moon, and I’ll admit that my eyes stung a little. We’d been fasting for each other, each of us holding the same long hunger, and this was the finish line.
Then, the part I’d been waiting for all day: we fed each other. First water. Then a few bites of mathris, and we forgot to click pictures, listened to our growling stomachs, and sat down at the dining table. While the dinner was being prepared, the sister-in-law had bought a platter of our favourite nibbles. We thoroughly enjoyed some steamed momo, ram laddoos, and spring rolls, whilst sipping on Coke. We ate these in whatever order the mood demanded, which is to say, wildly.
The Most Awaited Dinner, At Last
Image Credit: Magnific
And then came the main event, the meal that proved that comfort food is a love language. A plate filled with my all-time favourite rajma chawal with a bowl of kadai paneer. I paired the dinner with some salad and coconut water to cool everything down. Circling back to phenia for dessert, we ended the Karwa Chauth feast as it deserved.
