Partition Tales: The story of Faridabad's famous Dosa Chole originates in a refugee camp

By Saurabh Duggal 

When India gained independence at the stroke of midnight, the celebration was bittersweet, offering freedom but also causing immense sorrow as millions were displaced by the Redcliffe Line's partition, forcing them to seek refuge in camps.

One such story is that of Surender Kumar Adhlakaha, who was born in a refugee camp in Kurukshetra. 

His parents had left their hometown of Bannu, then part of the North West Frontier Province in undivided India (now Pakistan), and took shelter in the refugee camp before eventually settling in Faridabad.

Surender's father, Hemchand, worked hard to support his family of five children. He held a daytime job as an accountant in the canteen of the Hindustan Factory and sold aloo tikki in the evenings.

By helping his father in the evenings, Surender contributed to the creation of a locally unique dish called 'bread dosa' — fried bread with mashed potatoes on both sides, cooked in mustard oil.

Before long, bread dosa served with chole became a popular dish in Faridabad, especially in the New Industrial Township (NIT), which was built to rehabilitate refugees.

"In 1961, we started with selling aloo tikki, and by the mid-60s, bread dosa and dosa chole had become our unique identity," said Surender, the inventor of the Dosa Chole dish.

"Due to the family's financial constraints, I could not continue my studies beyond the fifth grade and instead took over my father's food cart full-time. In 1975, we purchased a shop in NH-2 (Neighborhood Area 2)."

In the 60s, a bread dosa cost 75 paise, and a plate of dosa chole was priced at 1 rupee. Today, the prices have increased to 30 rupees for a bread dosa and 35 rupees for dosa chole.

"Many people ask how the name 'dosa' came about for this dish, as it bears no resemblance to the South Indian dish of the same name. I was simply trying something new with bread, similar to tikki, and a customer gave it the name 'dosa.' Since then, it has been popular by that name," said Surender.