Blame it on the rise of modernization that the city has been subjected to, but a significant change has been observed in the lifestyle of Udaipurites with their consistent social activities witnessing a steady reformation. Be it fashion, entertainment or food, Udaipur is making rapid strides on the path of absorbing the new cosmopolitan spirit.

The popular street food culture has not remained untouched with this twist of revolution either. The traditional roadside food joint installed on the wheel cart (thela) are now shifting on well equipped vans and mini-trucks.

Nearly half a dozen of mobile food joints have mushroomed in the past few months in the city, serving food, snacks and juices at different corners of the city.

Out of many of these adorned vehicles, one is Delhi Darbar, parked outside Lok Kala Mandal and serves Mughlai and Awadhi delicacies till late at night.

Nearly a month old, Delhi Darbar was started by Masroor Ahmed who had his hands full, managing several city restaurants and hotels before he finally landed on the idea of installing a matador into a takeaway cum eatery.

“I got the idea after taking a trip to Mexico where I saw many such joints were parked at the corners of the street and doing their business in the evening,” says Masroor, who invested nearly Rs.1 Lac to launch his bistro-on-wheel.

While Delhi Darbar is attracting many passersby during the evening, a lemonade (shikanji) seller can be found at the Ashwini Bazar area in a small but well equipped auto rickshaw. His chilled lemonade has been providing a much needed relief from the scorching afternoon.

Before initiating the concept of selling lemonade on a vehicle, Inderlal Bhoi was just another traditional shikanjiwala. But a few years back, after his last visit to Ahmadabad, he started selling lemonade on a second hand auto, which he modified accordingly.

“It is far better than the thela which I used before. I have now become more mobile and sophisticated; people also come to see my vehicle and end up enjoying the lemonade,” says Inderlal.

Both Masroor and Inderlal might have adopted the concept after visiting other places but the owner of Shiv Sagar Ice-cream, perhaps the oldest among all, started selling homemade ice creams on his auto rickshaw 3 years ago. Recently, he had upgraded his business to a big size matador parked outside Bank Tiraha (Bapu Bazaar).

Nathulal Jat, owner of Shiv Sagar, believes he was the first one in town to introduce the food-on-wheel idea which is now followed by many others.

Like Delhi Darbar at Lok Kala Mandal, a similar van is parked in the evening time near Sanjay Park; the vicinity is always calm because of low traffic, greenery and lake. A dinner under the open sky and upon the lake shore makes the experience even more pleasant. Zafar Khan, the owner, is quite satisfied with business and planning to set another van soon.

Change has always been anticipated with both negative and positive facets. These moving vehicles might have their own advantages but as the city of Udaipur is already struggling with the parking problems, how these food joints on wheel will fit into our lifestyle is something that time will decide.