Congress MP Shashi Tharoor responded in his usual manner when one of the user in X rejected idli as boiled disappointment. His poetic response, coupled with a picture made by artificial intelligence of making idlis himself, quickly turned out to be the subject of conversation on the web.
It happened when the user expressed his dissatisfaction with the breakfast in Kerala writing, Why it has to be always Idli and Dosa man. Vere breakfast onnu ee naatill ille (Very little breakfast menu).
Some other user intruded to give a more piercing perspective: Dosa? No words, just respect. It is idli like it has been steamed in regret.
Dosa? No words, just respect. 🙏
It’s idli that tastes like steamed regret 😭— Molutty (@Molutty_writes) September 26, 2025
That comment made Tharoor give a poetic defence of the South Indian staple. There has never been a good one with poor soul. A really good idli was a cloud, a breath, a dream dream of the perfectibility of human civilisation, he said.
Shashi Tharoor continued: It is a sublime confection, a light, airy bite of rice and lentil, that is steamed to a wonderful fluff that will melt in your mouth. When served with the right accompaniments it is the food of a symphony composed by Beethoven, a sangeet conducted by Tagore, a painting by Husain, a century by Tendulkar. To refer to such an object as regrettable is to possess a soul, a palate, no taste in the loftiest attainments of South Indian culture. I can only feel pity for you.”
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… https://t.co/J4NE2ddgua
— Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) September 27, 2025
The poetic reply posted by Tharoor and attached to the consumers who had criticised idlis attracted both attention and disposition towards its humour as well as its substance.
