Mathris broke as soon as I added it into medium hot oil

You may have added too much oil. Reduce the amount of oil, or try adding butter instead. Butter usally tastes better and binds better too

Mathri dough should be made with proper proportions. In olden days Transfat was used but nowadays we make it with oil. The proper proportion is: 4:1 for refined flour to oil. For example:

1 Kg refined flour 250 mils of cooking oil eg; groundnut, canola etc. Do not use flavoured oils.

• First mix dry ingredients well and taste a bit for salt etc.
• Then sprinkle room temp water and try to bring the dough into lumps. Do not knead too much as we need to have short crust pastry like dough not like chaapati's or roti's. Just try to gather the dough together. It looks fairly scaly,crumbly and rough.
• Make small balls and either press by hand or use rolling pin. Or you can make a 2 inches wide diameter and about 10" long rope and cut slices and then flatten each slice.

These will make really flaky mathri's. If you like them a bit crisper and harder reduce the qty. of oil and very slightly increase the water. Besan is normally not used in traditional mathri's. Fry in medium hot oil and drain on paper towels. Save in an airtight box between layers of paper towels.