Movie, momo & lots of fun

Gangtok, Feb. 15: People here are getting a taste of the good life with the town’s only five-star hotel hosting a momo festival and one of the biggest movie theatres in Gangtok installing Dolby digital sound system.

Vajra, located at Baluakhani here, has introduced the latest Dolby digital surround sound technology in the movie hall as part of the preparations for its 25th anniversary, to be held in August.

The proprietor of Vajra, Pema Ladakhi, said they have installed Dolby digital QSC power amplifiers, Dolby CP 650 D processors and the Dolby CAT 702 reader.

The new equipment, used by the likes of PVR and INOX, can produce 15,000 watts of digital surround sound through a six-channel digital system. The theatre has also added new sub-woofers, upholstery for the seats and new carpets.

The new-look hall will be unveiled with the first day first show of Ashutosh Gowariker’s Jodhaa Akbar, which has Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Hrithik Roshan in the lead.

“The theatre will complete 25 years on August 16,” Ladakhi added. The 1,016-seater theatre had opened in 1983 with Manoj Kumar’s Kranti.

After nearly a decade, the theatre has also hiked its rates by almost 15 per cent for the dress circle, upper stalls, balcony and the box.

For foodies, there is an opportunity to savour 12 varieties of momos (dumplings) and phaleys (a fried version of the momo, but bigger in size) at Gangtok’s only five-star hotel, Royal Plaza. Both momo and phaley are traditional Tibetan food, but are universally popular.

Royal Plaza, a unit of the Park Sarovar Plaza group, is located at Upper Shyari. The month-long momo festival started today.

According to the general manager of the Royal Plaza, Pankaj Saxena, Sikkim has its own unique delectable dietary culture, which is tuned to people’s cuisine and food habits, and the momo festival is an attempt to promote it. The prices have been kept as low as possible, with food connoisseurs having to pay only Rs 75 for a plate of their favourite momos or phaleys.

“Like anywhere else in the world, food habits in Sikkim evolved for generations as part of the traditional history. Now in most countries, traditional food items have entered commercial production. Momos and phaleys have become extremely popular among people from different countries and regions,” said Saxena, when asked why he chose those two items for the hotel’s first food festival.

The Royal Plaza will continue to host such food festivals throughout the year. “Join us and there will be more to come,” the general manager said.

Rakesh Kumar, the executive chef of Royal Plaza, said the fest has on offer 12 varieties of momos and phaleys.