Cold comfort

Publisher Priyanka Malhotra stirs up a watermelon cold soup, apt indeed for the season.

At the London Book Fair last month, Priyanka Malhotra, representing her family publishing house, Full Circle, was keen to bring home translated works. “There is an increasing demand for titles in other languages, especially from the Scandinavian countries. But authors were naturally keen to sell world rights to multinational publishers,” sighs the petite, soft-spoken Malhotra.

She is the third generation continuing the family business, which expanded from publishing under Hind Pocket Books and Full Circle, to retail, under Full Circle bookshops, and finally, Cafe Turtle, which is possibly the first bookshop-cum-cafe of its kind in Delhi. At its Khan Market branch — which remains Full Circle’s signature outlet — Malhotra is making us the perfect summer lunch. A cold soup and a light, yet sumptuous, cous cous salad. Cold soups are turning out to be a fairly popular addition to menus this season at most diners in the city, and Malhotra picks out the watermelon one for us. These are recipes she has tried at home with her mother before they made their way to Cafe Turtle. “We started with a small home kitchen at the bookstore more than a decade ago. I remember, my mother used to make cold coffee at home and bring it in jugs to serve customers at the store. Gradually, we added some bakes and finally started this small cafe.”

Rewinding further, Malhotra, once a piano enthusiast, has an interesting story to tell. Her musician father had urged her to pursue the piano instead of joining the family company.

“My father wanted me to study at the Viennna School of Music but I was pretty sure I wanted to study publishing. And I did not want to jump into the family business right away, I wanted to go through the academic and theoretical grind,” she shrugs. While she hasn’t followed up seriously with the piano since then, she enjoys listening to jazz, often organising live gigs at Cafe Turtle outlets with interesting artistes.

Even as big publishing houses with an increasing presence in the Indian market corner smaller ones like Full Circle, the satisfying mix of publishing, retail and food business keeps Malhotra light on her feet.

“Dealing in retail has helped immensely in understanding demand on a regular basis. And there’s nothing better than giving someone a comfortable space to enjoy a cup of coffee with a book or otherwise. It’s a nice balance to have,” says Malhotra.

Full Circle is opening next in Chennai as a franchise with the city’s popular boutique-cum-cafe Amethyst. Meanwhile, she would like to continue aligning her publishing house with genres like international fiction and spirituality, keeping it niche and taking small steps forward.

FAVOURITE RECIPES

WATERMELON GAZPACHO
3 cups of watermelon, chopped
1 cucumber, diced
1 bell pepper, diced
1 small onion, chopped
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp olive oil
1 jalapeno (or to taste)
2 tbsp fresh chopped parsley
Salt and pepper to taste

In a blender, place half of the watermelon, cucumber, pepper, and onion and all of the jalapeno. Add olive oil and lemon juice and puree until smooth. Combine the remaining ingredients in a large bowl and mix well. Add to pureed ingredients and stir to combine. Add salt and pepper to taste. Chill for at least one hour, stir well and serve.

MEDITERRANEAN COUS COUS SALAD
125 gm cous cous
1 red onion
1 small chilli
1 tomato
A few drops of lime juice
150 ml cold water
1 tsp vinegar
A handful of parsley
A drop of olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Mix cous cous, olive oil and lime juice in a bowl. Add water, stir, and leave for 15 minutes. Mix pepper and finely chopped onion, garlic, chilli, tomato, and parsley in a bowl with the vinegar. Drizzle with olive oil, season, and stir and serve.