Dum Dum-a-Dum Biryani

Jul 9, 2026

Dum Dum-a-Dum Biryani follows Basha and his sister Sainabi in Hyderabad, where Basha loves cooking and helps Ammi every day in the kitchen. After Ammi falls ill with a high fever, Saira aunty calls to invite a large group of guests—24 people, including 4 vegetarian—passing by later that day. Basha seizes the opportunity to cook Vegetable Dum Biryani for them, facing the challenge of scaling his familiar recipe for many more servings.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryStory & Novel

FormatPDF

Pages41

Reading Time1 h 3 min

AccessFree to download

Story Setup

Basha’s Love for Cooking

The Dinner Challenge

Ammi’s Illness and the Call

Preparing for 24 Guests

Dum Dum-a-Dum Biryani! Gayathri Tirthapura Kabini Amin Dum Dum-a-Dum Biryani! Author: Gayathri Tirthapura Illustrator: Kabini Amin Basha and his sister Sainabi live in Hyderabad with their parents. Basha loves food. What he loves more is to cook food. He helps his Ammi in the kitchen everyday. He likes to watch her hands as they chop the brightly-coloured vegetables—plump red tomatoes, crisp green capsicums, firm orange carrots, fleshy pink onions...”Mmmm!” Basha loves the tempting aromas that swirl around Ammi’s kitchen as the dhals, rice, vegetables, meat, and spices change colour on the stove . He hopes that Ammi will give him a chance to cook a dish on his own someday. One day, Basha and Sainabi come back from school to find Ammi asleep with high fever . Baba is not yet back from his office. Ammi’s mobile rings. Basha sees that Ammi’s best friend Saira aunty is calling and answers it quickly. He does not want to wake Ammi up.”I’m on my way back home from a wedding with lots of friends,” Saira aunty explains. She sounds exhausted.”We will be passing by your home in about two hours’ time. Do you think we can have dinner at your place? There are 24 of us-and 4 are vegetarian.” Basha knows that Ammi would love to see them. He and Sainabi are very fond of Saira aunty too. ”You are most welcome,” Basha says. He feels excited as he hangs up the phone. This is his chance to cook a dish on his own! But will he be able to do it? He feels nervous . He opens the fridge and sees many of his favourite vegetables-cauliflower, peas, beans. He can also see a bunch of fresh mint leaves peeking out from under the carrots. ”Yes!” he thinks to himself. ”I have everything I need for a yummy Vegetable Dum Biryani!” Basha has watched Ammi cook Vegetable Dum Biryani many times for their family of 4. But he now has to cook for 24 people! That is six times* the number of people Ammi usually cooks it for! *(4+ 4+ 4+ 4+ 4+ 4 = 24 .Or, 4x 6 = 24 )”That means,” thinks Basha to himself, feeling a little nervous,”I have to cook the biryani six times!”Would he have enough time to do that?

FAQs

Where do Basha and Sainabi live, and what does Basha love most?

Basha and Sainabi live in Hyderabad with their parents. Basha loves food and especially likes cooking and helping Ammi in the kitchen.

Why does Basha get the chance to cook a dish on his own?

Ammi falls asleep with a high fever, and with Baba still away, Saira aunty invites the family’s group for dinner later. Basha sees it as his opportunity to cook Vegetable Dum Biryani by himself.

What makes the cooking challenge difficult for Basha?

Basha has cooked Vegetable Dum Biryani for their usual family of 4, but this time he must cook for 24 people—six times as many servings—so he worries about time and whether he can manage it.

Jul 9, 2026

Uploaded by Ava Thompson