Onkar Kulkarni (BOMBAY TIMES; August 24, 2024)

Urmila Matondkar loves indulging into Mumbai’s popular snack wada pav. In a special shoot with Bombay Times celebrating World Wada Pav Day (August 23), the actress went hopping from one stall to another gorging on the snack.

In a fun chat we asked the actress which of the following ingredients of wada pav reminded her of Bollywood actors and she set the rapid fire round on fire! She told us, “I will say that the spicy batata bhaji reminds me of Kareena Kapoor Khan and the crispy besan coating of the wada reminds me of Sara Ali Khan.”

About the chutneys that go with wada pav, the actress added, “The sukha red hot chutney I believe reminds me of not one person but a couple - Katrina Kaif and Vicky Kaushal, together as a jodi! And the teekha hari mirch you take a bite of with every wada pav bite is Deepika Padukone.”

Ask her who does she think of looking at the soft-soft pav and she is quick to add, “Salman Khan, because he might come across hard from outside but he is way too soft from inside.”

Of late a lot of reels have been going viral where the Mumbai snack is gaining popularity in Delhi.

Urmila who’s followed such reels says, “Wada Pav is way healthier for Delhiites than a lot of unhealthy food that they eat there. I have seen some horrible reels of fake paneer being made there. Well, my advice to them will be to indulge in our snack instead and my most important food tip to them will be to ask the vendor to add dry red chutney, green chutney and have every bite with a bite of a deep-fried green chili.”
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A true-blue Mumbaikar, Urmila Matondkar always has a great time snacking on the city’s favourite snack – wada pav. For an exclusive shoot with us, the actress turned up early in athleisure, ready for a morning of wada pav stall hopping in the busy Dadar locality. “Wada pav is food for the soul,” she said as she took a bite of the snack with teekhi hari chutney, dry red spicy chutney and green chilli to go along with it.

‘If I start a wada pav ka thela, I would call it Soul Food’
As she took the first bite at a wada pav cart in Dadar, she said, “It is scrumptious and value for money. I just love it! If ever I start a wada pav ka thela, I would call it Soul Food.” Going down the memory lane, the actress, who attended her school and college in Dadar, says, “My school was in Dadar East, while the dance academy I trained at was in Dadar West. Between the two locations, there is a very famous wada pav wala near Dadar station, where I would stop to buy it and gobble it on my way.”

‘I feel proud that wada pav has got global recognition today’
The Rangeela actress feels happy that the humble Maharashtrian snack has got global recognition. “I have tried wada pav in different parts of India, but never abroad. I grew up eating the authentic version, and I feel nothing can match it. So, I avoid it, but I feel proud that people across the globe know about it now and enjoy it.”

'I might skip dinner if I have a wada pav as an evening snack'
The snack is also made at her home. “If we have wada pav as an evening snack, I sometimes skip dinners. It’s quite filling. Par ghar wale wadon mein woh bahar wala swad kahan hota hai,” she shares, adding that during monsoon, she often stops by a wada pav stall and teams it with a cutting chai.

'Enjoying Wada Pav on the sets of Rangeela'
Urmila signs off sharing a wada pav memory from a film set, saying, "I remember we were shooting for Rangeela in Navi Mumbai and the shoot was getting delayed. That’s when someone called for wada pavs on the set, and the entire team got busy enjoying them."