Ilish for us, bengalis, is not a fish. It is an emotion, and beyond. Last Saturday I fought my way through all the puddles, muck and splashes of the typical rainy day, to reach the Aaheli, Axis Mall for their Eilshe Guri Festival, on an invitation to KFB.

What I have always loved about Aaheli is their copper plates, bowls and glasses. And imagine all those beautiful utensils being filled with ilish in every possible form – ah, what a sight it is!

Their menu has everything from the simple bhaja to not just jhol, jhaal, tok but also doodh ilish, narkol ilish and the likes. 

I had their Eelish Thalir Sanjog. The fish was definitely the hero of the afternoon, and the quality as well as the size of the fishwere in themselves noteworthy. The standout dish for me was the Ilish Patishaapta, and what looked like the homely, bengali winter dessert, turned out to be an outstanding savoury nibble.

The festival is on till 30th August, so drop by and have a royal feast at the Aaheli, Axis Mall.