Plik Noi Noi

This “Bhalobasha, Bhalobasha” song reminds me of an incidence in Thailand.

We were taken aback by the amount of “Chilli” in Thai food. So, one of the first Thai words that I learnt was “Plik” (meaning “chilli“) and “Nik Noi” (meaning “little”). On visiting a restaurant, I told the waiter “Khao Pat Kai” (meaning “Chicken Fried Rice”) and then added “Plik Nik Noi, Plik Nik Noi” (I used to repeat words as part of my habit like “aaste aaste” i.e. slowly in Bengali). Now, the Thai cook made the fried rice and then added little chilli (Plik nik noi) and then again added little chilli (Plik Nik Noi). Imagine the result!!!

However, I did not give up and learnt another Thai word – “Noi Noi” (meaning “none”). Now, I would say “Plik Noi Noi”. So, there was no chance of a mistake no matter how many times I repeated it.

Now, Thai language is somewhat like Bengali. You all may know that Bengalis speak in reverse gear. We say “aasche” (meaning “coming”) when we are ready to GO somewhere. Similarly, “Khao” in Thai means “Rice”, “Pat” means “Fried” and “Kai” means “Chicken”. So, “Khao Pat Kai” is “Chicken Fried Rice”, “Khao Pat Kung” is “Prawn Fried Rice”, and so on.

English: “Khao Phat Kung” (fried rice with shrimps) in a container – main dish of the Thai cuisine in a polystyrene food container. ไทย: ข้าวผัดกุ้ง Deutsch: “Khao pat gung” (gebratener Reis mit Eiern und Krabben) im Stypoporbehälter – Thailand. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)