Pakistani people gather to drink tandoori tea in clay pots at a market in Islamabad. It's a cuppa like no other. Every evening in Islamabad a crowd arrives at Sanaullah's street stall to taste his "tandoori chai" - milk tea served in terracotta mugs, still hot from his traditional oven. The old-fashioned cups are placed directly inside the tandoor, where they are baked at high temperatures. Photo: AFP / Farooq Naeem
Pakistani people gather to drink tandoori tea in clay pots at a market in Islamabad. It's a cuppa like no other. Every evening in Islamabad a crowd arrives at Sanaullah's street stall to taste his "tandoori chai" - milk tea served in terracotta mugs, still hot from his traditional oven. The old-fashioned cups are placed directly inside the tandoor, where they are baked at high temperatures. Photo: AFP / Farooq Naeem
Pakistani people gather to drink tandoori tea in clay pots at a market in Islamabad. It's a cuppa like no other. Every evening in Islamabad a crowd arrives at Sanaullah's street stall to taste his "tandoori chai" - milk tea served in terracotta mugs, still hot from his traditional oven. The old-fashioned cups are placed directly inside the tandoor, where they are baked at high temperatures. Photo: AFP
Pakistani people gather to drink tandoori tea in clay pots at a market in Islamabad. It's a cuppa like no other. Every evening in Islamabad a crowd arrives at Sanaullah's street stall to taste his "tandoori chai" - milk tea served in terracotta mugs, still hot from his traditional oven. The old-fashioned cups are placed directly inside the tandoor, where they are baked at high temperatures. Photo: AFP
Pakistani people gather to drink tandoori tea in clay pots at a market in Islamabad. It's a cuppa like no other. Every evening in Islamabad a crowd arrives at Sanaullah's street stall to taste his "tandoori chai" - milk tea served in terracotta mugs, still hot from his traditional oven. The old-fashioned cups are placed directly inside the tandoor, where they are baked at high temperatures. Photo: AFP
Pakistani people gather to drink tandoori tea in clay pots at a market in Islamabad. It's a cuppa like no other. Every evening in Islamabad a crowd arrives at Sanaullah's street stall to taste his "tandoori chai" - milk tea served in terracotta mugs, still hot from his traditional oven. The old-fashioned cups are placed directly inside the tandoor, where they are baked at high temperatures. Photo: AFP
Pakistani people gather to drink tandoori tea in clay pots at a market in Islamabad. It's a cuppa like no other. Every evening in Islamabad a crowd arrives at Sanaullah's street stall to taste his "tandoori chai" - milk tea served in terracotta mugs, still hot from his traditional oven. The old-fashioned cups are placed directly inside the tandoor, where they are baked at high temperatures. Photo: AFP
Pakistani people gather to drink tandoori tea in clay pots at a market in Islamabad. It's a cuppa like no other. Every evening in Islamabad a crowd arrives at Sanaullah's street stall to taste his "tandoori chai" - milk tea served in terracotta mugs, still hot from his traditional oven. The old-fashioned cups are placed directly inside the tandoor, where they are baked at high temperatures. Photo: AFP
Pakistani people gather to drink tandoori tea in clay pots at a market in Islamabad. It's a cuppa like no other. Every evening in Islamabad a crowd arrives at Sanaullah's street stall to taste his "tandoori chai" - milk tea served in terracotta mugs, still hot from his traditional oven. The old-fashioned cups are placed directly inside the tandoor, where they are baked at high temperatures. Photo: AFP
Pakistani people gather to drink tandoori tea in clay pots at a market in Islamabad. It's a cuppa like no other. Every evening in Islamabad a crowd arrives at Sanaullah's street stall to taste his "tandoori chai" - milk tea served in terracotta mugs, still hot from his traditional oven. The old-fashioned cups are placed directly inside the tandoor, where they are baked at high temperatures. Photo: AFP
Pakistani people gather to drink tandoori tea in clay pots at a market in Islamabad. It's a cuppa like no other. Every evening in Islamabad a crowd arrives at Sanaullah's street stall to taste his "tandoori chai" - milk tea served in terracotta mugs, still hot from his traditional oven. The old-fashioned cups are placed directly inside the tandoor, where they are baked at high temperatures. Photo: AFP
Pakistani people gather to drink tandoori tea in clay pots at a market in Islamabad. It's a cuppa like no other. Every evening in Islamabad a crowd arrives at Sanaullah's street stall to taste his "tandoori chai" - milk tea served in terracotta mugs, still hot from his traditional oven. The old-fashioned cups are placed directly inside the tandoor, where they are baked at high temperatures. Photo: AFP
Pakistani people gather to drink tandoori tea in clay pots at a market in Islamabad. It's a cuppa like no other. Every evening in Islamabad a crowd arrives at Sanaullah's street stall to taste his "tandoori chai" - milk tea served in terracotta mugs, still hot from his traditional oven. The old-fashioned cups are placed directly inside the tandoor, where they are baked at high temperatures. Photo: AFP
Pakistani people gather to drink tandoori tea in clay pots at a market in Islamabad. It's a cuppa like no other. Every evening in Islamabad a crowd arrives at Sanaullah's street stall to taste his "tandoori chai" - milk tea served in terracotta mugs, still hot from his traditional oven. The old-fashioned cups are placed directly inside the tandoor, where they are baked at high temperatures. Photo: AFP
Pakistani people gather to drink tandoori tea in clay pots at a market in Islamabad. It's a cuppa like no other. Every evening in Islamabad a crowd arrives at Sanaullah's street stall to taste his "tandoori chai" - milk tea served in terracotta mugs, still hot from his traditional oven. The old-fashioned cups are placed directly inside the tandoor, where they are baked at high temperatures. Photo: AFP
Pakistani people gather to drink tandoori tea in clay pots at a market in Islamabad. It's a cuppa like no other. Every evening in Islamabad a crowd arrives at Sanaullah's street stall to taste his "tandoori chai" - milk tea served in terracotta mugs, still hot from his traditional oven. The old-fashioned cups are placed directly inside the tandoor, where they are baked at high temperatures. Photo: AFP
Pakistani people gather to drink tandoori tea in clay pots at a market in Islamabad. It's a cuppa like no other. Every evening in Islamabad a crowd arrives at Sanaullah's street stall to taste his "tandoori chai" - milk tea served in terracotta mugs, still hot from his traditional oven. The old-fashioned cups are placed directly inside the tandoor, where they are baked at high temperatures. Photo: AFP
Pakistani people gather to drink tandoori tea in clay pots at a market in Islamabad. It's a cuppa like no other. Every evening in Islamabad a crowd arrives at Sanaullah's street stall to taste his "tandoori chai" - milk tea served in terracotta mugs, still hot from his traditional oven. The old-fashioned cups are placed directly inside the tandoor, where they are baked at high temperatures. Photo: AFP

Food

In pictures: the tradition of tandoor-baked chai in Pakistan

The milk tea is served in terracotta mugs, still hot from the traditional oven

AFP

July 29, 2019

  • English
  • Arabic

It's a cuppa like no other. Every evening in Islamabad a crowd arrives at Sanaullah's street stall to taste his "tandoori chai" - milk tea served in terracotta mugs, still hot from his traditional oven.

The old-fashioned cups are placed directly inside the tandoor, where they are baked at high temperatures.

The tea, prepared separately, is then poured in to the cups, where it starts to boil on hitting the hot clay.

Not only in Pakistan, but in the entire subcontinent, tea has been mixed in our blood

In Pakistan, where the classic milk tea – thick, strong, and generously sweet – dominates all strata of society, the particular alchemy of tandoori chai seduces patrons intrigued by its traditional roots and distinct earthy taste. The tandoor is ubiquitous in South Asia, most commonly used to bake bread.

But the concept of making tea this way, is the main draw for many, explains Sanaullah, the jovial owner of a trendy shop located in an upmarket area of the Pakistani capital.

"The process of making it is really very interesting, which makes people like it," he said, adding that the tea also has a smoky flavour which attracts many.

Sitting among the customers on a low rush stool, Muhammad Ishaq Khawar is a frequent customer.

"There is a different kind of atmosphere, especially the way in which we are served tea. It was a very old system which goes back to the old days when the terracotta pots were used," he explains.

It may seem like a niche product but the drink has become so popular the Tandoori Chai Company cafes, which recently launched in Lahore, has expanded to a second branch.

And while coffee culture has caught on in Pakistan's main cities with big name chains and local cafes a hit urban youths, tea, regardless of how it is prepared, is nonetheless an essential component of the daily menu.

The country is one of the top tea consumers globally according to research firm Euromonitor International, while a recent study by Gallup found 73 percent of Pakistani tea drinkers have at least two or more cups a day.

"Not only in Pakistan, but in the entire subcontinent, it has been mixed in our blood," says Mohammad Asim Khan, a customer at a small eatery in Islamabad.

He adds: "Your physical fatigue will go away by taking tea and you get fresh."

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Expert input

If you had all the money in the world, what’s the one sneaker you would buy or create?

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'Outclassed in Kuwait'
Taleb Alrefai, 
HBKU Press 

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Everton 1 (Lindelof 36' og)

The biog

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Hobby: Running and watching Welsh rugby

Travel destination: Cyprus in the summer

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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”

Match info:

Manchester City 2
Sterling (8'), Walker (52')

Newcastle United 1
Yedlin (30')

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While you're here
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WORLD RECORD FEES FOR GOALKEEPERS

1) Kepa Arrizabalaga, Athletic Bilbao to Chelsea (£72m)

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3) Ederson, Benfica to Manchester City (£35m)

4) Gianluigi Buffon, Parma to Juventus (£33m)

5) Angelo Peruzzi, Inter Milan to Lazio (£15.7m

Who's who in Yemen conflict

Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government

Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council

Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south

Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory

Guide to intelligent investing
Investing success often hinges on discipline and perspective. As markets fluctuate, remember these guiding principles:
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What can victims do?

Always use only regulated platforms

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Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence

The smuggler

Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple. 
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.

Khouli conviction

Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.

For sale

A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.

- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico

- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000

- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950