Lassi

Lassi is a popular, traditional, yogurt-based drink from Bangladesh, India and Pakistan. Lassi is a blend of yogurt, water, spices and sometimes, fruit. Traditional lassi (a.k.a., "salted lassi", or simply, "lassi") is a savoury drink, sometimes flavoured with ground and roasted cumin. Sweet lassi, however, contains sugar or fruits, instead of spices.

In Dharmic religions, yogurt sweetened with honey is used while performing religious rituals. Less common is lassi served with milk and topped with a thin layer of clotted cream. Lassis are enjoyed chilled as a hot-weather refreshment, mostly taken with lunch. With a little turmeric powder mixed in, it is also used as a folk remedy for gastroenteritis.

Traditional mild sweet (or salty) lassi
This form of lassi is more common in the villages of Punjab and north India. It is prepared by blending yogurt with water and adding sugar and other spices to taste. Salt can be substituted in place of sugar. The resulting beverage is known as salted lassi. This is similar to ayran or doogh.

Sweet lassi
Sweet lassi is a form of lassi flavoured with sugar, rosewater and/or lemon, strawberry or other fruit juices. Saffron lassis, which are particularly rich, are a specialty of Sindh in Pakistan, and Jodhpur and Rajasthan in India. Makkhaniya lassi is simply lassi with lumps of butter in it (makkhan is the Gujarati, Hindi and Punjabi word for butter). It is usually creamy like a milkshake.

Mango lassi
Mango lassi is gaining popularity worldwide. It is made from yogurt, water and mango pulp. It may be made with or without additional sugar. It is widely available in UK, Malaysia and Singapore, and in many other parts of the world. In various parts of Canada, mango lassi is a cold drink consisting of sweetened kesar mango pulp mixed with yogurt, cream, or ice cream. It is served in a tall glass with a straw, often with ground pistachio nuts sprinkled on top.

Bhang lassi
Bhang (or bhung) lassi is a special lassi that contains bhang, a liquid derivative of cannabis, which has effects similar to other eaten forms of cannabis. It is legal in many parts of India and mainly sold during Holi, when pakoras containing bhang are also sometimes eaten. Uttar Pradesh is known to have licensed bhang shops, and in many places one can buy bhang products and drink bhang lassis.

Chaas
Chaas or chaach is a salted drink like lassi; however, chaas contains more water than lassi and has the butterfat removed, so its consistency is not as thick as lassi. Salt and Jeera (cumin seeds) are normally added for taste and sometimes even fresh coriander. Fresh ground ginger & green chillies may also be added as seasoning. Chaas is popular in the Indian states Gujarat and Rajasthan, where it is drunk with the main meal, and was known to aid digestion and is an excellent coolant in the Indian and Pakistani summers. It is called 'majjige' in Kannada, 'taak' in Marathi, 'majjiga' in Telugu, 'moru' in Tamil and Malayalam, Mahi in Madheshi languages, and 'ghol' in Bengali.

Cultural references
A 2008 print and television ad campaign for HSBC, written by Jeffree Benet of JWT Hong Kong, tells a tale of a Polish washing machine manufacturer's representative sent to India to discover why their sales are so high there. On arriving, the representative investigates a lassi parlor, where he is warmly welcomed, and finds several washing machines being used to mix it. The owner tells him he is able to "make ten times as much lassi as I used to!"

On his No Reservations television program, celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain visited a "Government Authorised" Bhang Shop in Jaisalmer Fort, Rajasthan. The proprietor offered him three varieties of bhang lassi: "normally strong, super duper strong, and full power 24 hour, no toilet, no shower."

In 2013, Kshitij, the annual techno-management fest of IIT Kharagpur, has launched a campaign to name next version of Android, Lassi.