For some, a samosa is simply a snack. For a true samosa lover, it is an emotion, a ritual and a celebration.On World Samosa Day, meet Chandigarh actor Kanwalpreet Singh, whose relationship with the humble triangular pastry (as the West would call it) goes far beyond evening chai. A hardcore samosa lover, Kanwalpreet doesn’t order his samosas one at a time. He goes five at a go—finishes them and then orders the next five. On a usual day, eight to 10 isn’t unusual. And if it’s the smaller PVR samosa, he orders two plates, with four in each.If you happen to accompany him, you can be rest assured, you’ll get your own. Kanwalpreet simply doesn’t share his samosas. “Samosayan di gall hi hor hai,” he says.Ask him where to find the best samosa in town and he doesn’t hesitate: Gopal, Sector 8. His cousins, visiting India from abroad, gave him an eye-opening samosa experience. He discovered that the humble snack goes far beyond the familiar aloo filling. There are gobhi, paneer and other varieties. “And not just a piece of paneer but an entire filling,” he says. “There are varieties for every preference too—thin-layered, double-layered and even four-layered samosas. As he describes them, one almost starts salivating.So, what makes the samosa worthy of its own day celebrated around the world? “The beauty of samosa is that it’s always served fresh. Nobody can serve you a stale samosa, for you will know.” From the crispness of the layer to the quality of the filling, one can tell with the very first bite.“Probably that makes it popular. Add to it the two chutneys – green and red – flaky layer falling all over as you dip it in chutney… aha ha ha ha,” he paints the complete picture.For an actor who has to stay fit, however, there are times when the samosa has to take a back seat. Sometimes, Kanwalpreet stays away from samosas for months altogether. Currently, he is off sugar too—but World Samosa Day is clearly an exception worth making. He is ready to tuck into 10–12 samosas, just like that. “I’ll balance it out by cycling as many kilometres,” he says. “That’s in one’s hands.”Patiala de samoseSinger Ravneet Rabab loved samosas growing up and fondly remembers Maholtra Sweets, Patiala, where she grew up. “It’s like the OG, nostalgic place. I have relatives who would specially take their imli wali chutney to go with their classic aloo filling samosas!”Like mother, like son: The ultimate samosa connoisseursI am a samosa lover. I think we all are. I mean samosa, it’s like a warm hug in food form. And in every house, if a guest comes, it’s samosa; it’s raining, so samosa. There’s nothing to eat, so samosa. And even the leftover samosa, I think the next day, I love eating cold samosa with tea. So, I think samosa is just love. I mean nothing can beat samosa at all.And, my core memory with samosa is that when we used to visit our grandmother in Himachal, she used to treat us kids to samosas and jalebis. You’re never tired of eating samosa every day.When we used to celebrate birthdays in the 90s, samosa was a must. So, samosa is a beautiful, beautiful feeling. And my son Saibhang has inherited my love for samosas.I usually prefer samosas from Gopal’s, and Sindhi (Sweets). Then there is Amrit Sweets in Mohali. Wherever we find good samosas, we have a samosa party.” — Surilie Gautam, actor, producer, entrepreneurSamosa, chai and laddoo“During my growing-up days, I used to love samosas at University Sweets at Panjab University! I had a pattern—samosa plus chai followed with one besan ka laddoo! Uff yaar, kya yaad dila diya. I will have to now come back to Chandigarh only for this!” — Aparshakti KhuranaAloo samosas to chocolate twistsFor actor Davy Grewal, the samosa is as much a childhood memory as it is a snack. Growing up, samosas were the family’s go-to evening treat. In Ludhiana, Sharma Halwai was a familiar favourite, while in Chandigarh, the Sector 14 market at Panjab University continues to stand out for its simple, crisp, not-too-oily samosas—best enjoyed with jalebi.His samosa memories stretch to his university days in Patiala, too. While studying law at Punjabi University, Grewal remembers a canteen run by Bhagwan Das, whose samosas came packed with paneer and peas filling.Grewal has also seen the humble samosa take some decidedly modern turns. One that stayed with him was the Chocolate Samosa from Samosa Junction. “Shaped like a traditional samosa, it swapped the savoury filling for something closer to a gujiya, with coconut and chocolate tucked inside. They also had different varieties, including non-vegetarian options. I found the whole concept quite interesting because it took the traditional samosa and gave it a completely different twist.”A bite of historySamosa Day is celebrated on September 5 since 2013, giving the beloved snack its own moment on the calendar. But the samosa’s story goes back centuries. Thought to have originated in the Middle-East and Iranian plateau, the snack travelled Eastwards and is believed to have reached India around the 13th–14th centuries, brought by traders and travellers.Over time, India made the samosa its own, transforming it with the familiar spiced potato filling and turning it into one of the country’s most iconic street foods.