Shashi Tharoor’s Ode To Idli: Not ‘Steamed Regret’, But ‘A Cloud, A Tagore Sangeet, A Tendulkar Century’

Last Updated:September 28, 2025, 11:58 IST

It seems Congress MP Shashi Tharoor’s love for the English language encompasses his admiration for the idli – the classic south Indian breakfast/tiffin favourite

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor posted what looked like an AI-generated image of himself preparing idlis in a kitchen setup, wearing traditional attire. (Image: @ShashiTharoor/X/Shutterstock)

If Congress leader Shashi Tharoor has his way, you would be gobbling up some rather “poetic” idlis if he plays host for breakfast.

It seems Tharoor’s love for the English language encompasses his admiration for the idli – the classic south Indian breakfast/tiffin favourite, now faithfully adopted by most parts of India, if not all. And he expressed it in a heartfelt ode to the “delicate, weightless morsel of rice and lentil”. 

If Jane Austen’s Mr Darcy considered “poetry as the food of love”, it looks like our dictionary-wielding MP from Kerala considers a “truly great idli” akin to poetry. Hence, he wasted no time in schooling an internet user, who called his beloved idli a “steamed regret”.

Calling the internet user a “poor soul”, Tharoor he lamented that he must never have had a “good one” so as to display such an aversion to idli, which he described as one of the “finest achievements of South Indian culture”.  

He said the idli “a cloud, a whisper, a perfect dream”, and this “sublime creation” is the culinary equivalent to “a Beethoven symphony, a Tagore, a Husain painting, a Tendulkar century” – when eaten with all the “right accompaniments”.  

“Poor soul has clearly never had a good one. A truly great idli is a cloud, a whisper, a perfect dream of the perfectibility of human civilisation. It’s a sublime creation, a delicate, weightless morsel of rice and lentil, steamed to an ethereal fluffiness that melts on the tongue. With the right accompaniments, it is the culinary equivalent of a Beethoven symphony, a Tagore sangeet, a Husain painting, a Tendulkar century. To call such a thing “regret” is to have no soul, no palate, no appreciation for the finest achievements of South Indian culture. I can only feel pity for…” Tharoor wrote in a post on X, replying to a conversation between two internet users on the merits of idli-dosa breakfasts.

The Congress leader even posted what looked like an AI-generated image of himself preparing idlis in a kitchen setup, wearing traditional attire. So, it is now safe to assume that Tharoor’s love for the idli transcends the daily trappings of a mundane breakfast item to where it can be considered high art.

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Oindrila Mukherjee

Oindrila Mukherjee is a senior sub-editor who works for the rewrite and breaking news desks. Her nine years of experience in print and digital journalism range from editing and reporting to writing impactful st…Read More

Oindrila Mukherjee is a senior sub-editor who works for the rewrite and breaking news desks. Her nine years of experience in print and digital journalism range from editing and reporting to writing impactful st… Read More

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