“What’s the best way to eat a dosa?” was the question before Alex Ellis, the British High Commissioner to India, who was on a two-day trip to Karnataka. On the first day of his trip, Ellis had shared a picture of him eating a Mysore masala dosa, but he used a fork and a knife to eat it. “Delicious #MysuruMasalaDosa!!” tweeted Ellis. “A great way to begin my first visit to #Bengaluru.” He even tweeted in Kannada, calling the masala dosa “superb.” Reacting to his photo, many Twitter users suggested that he try eating the dosa with his hands in order to better enjoy it.
He decided to throw open the question to social media. "So South India; how do I eat tomorrow's dosa?" asked Ellis, adding a poll. Needless to say, a whopping 92% voted for 'hands' while eight opted for the 'knife and fork' option.
Delicious #MysuruMasalaDosa!!
— Alex Ellis (@AlexWEllis) August 4, 2021
A great way to begin my first visit to #Bengaluru.
ಸಾಕ್ಕ್ಕತ್ ಆಗಿದೆ | बहुत स्वादिष्ट हैं pic.twitter.com/LDa2ZZ0Fua
On Thursday, the British envoy obliged. He tweeted a video in which he first picks up a fork and a knife to eat the masala dosa, pauses, picks up his phone indicating that he is acknowledging the results of the Twitter poll, and then digs into the dosa with his hands. He broke apart a small piece of the dosa, dipped it into sambar, and then ended the video with a chef’s kiss.
“92% of Twitter is correct! It tastes better with the hand!” Ellis captioned the video, adding that he found the experience ‘super bro.’
Watch the video here:
92% of Twitter is correct! It tastes better with the hand. ✋
— Alex Ellis (@AlexWEllis) August 5, 2021
ಮಸಾಲೆ ದೋಸೆ | ಬೊಂಬಾಟ್ ಗುರು | एकदम मस्त https://t.co/fQJZ3bKfgW pic.twitter.com/xoBM2VEqxD
During his two-day visit to Karnataka, Ellis peppered his tweets with Kannada, using superlative slang words like ‘Sakattagide’, ‘Bomabat Guru,’ which are common slang words used by Bengaluru residents to say “simply superb.”
For instance, in one of his tweets, he tagged Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, and said, “Namasakara Mukhyamatri Avare (Salutations to the CM).” At the end of his visit, Ellis thanked the Chief Minister for hosting him with a “Dhanyavadgalu Mukhya Mantriyavare (Thanks Mr CM for your time).”
The British High Commissioner said that he and the Chief Minister spoke on a variety of issues during his visit, including education, research, investment, sustainability, infrastructure, and mobility.