Little Bites of Culture!

My husband and I are foodies. We love eating, we love trying different kinds of cuisines. We have a special fondness for the comfort and rich variety of Indian food.  Both of us are from Bengalooru, where conversations and commemorations are woven around intricately designed menus - which cater to the savvy designer palate or the picky street food gourmand.

I have Chaat and Street Food parties at home. I try and recreate the beauty and simplicity of Bengalooru food in my kitchen. If you follow me on Facebook, you know what I am talking about. A sneak peek for you, of my Facebook album replete with the many authentic (and not so authentic) gastronomic delights I create in my Kitchen. 

This is the premise. We are raising our twin daughters in the USA. We are also raising them to be vegetarian and accepting of the best of what all cultures have to offer them. I make Akki Rotti (Rice Crepes) for them for school lunch some days. Some days I send them Chapatis or Parathas with  Chole or Rajma. Some days I make Quesadilla or a Guacamole sandwich. Fridays are for Lo Mein or Fried Rice.

So you see, my girls eat everything that is yummy, and healthy. Just like my husband and me. Case in point, see the collage below from a Street Food party I hosted this weekend at my home. 

So you see, I like having fun with food. Food is a huge part of who I am. So I refuse to send a PB&J as a school lunch. At least, not everyday.

So, imagine my chagrin, when my five year olds came home one day to tell me that their Indian lunches were being laughed at in school. Their curries were being made fun of. Their idlys and chapatis were being demeaned. My effort to make them a fresh, home cooked meal everyday was being undermined! 

"Eew. That looks gross", or "Yuck! That smells so bad!" were the common themes my girls were hearing from their friends.

Other Kindergartners, in all their unabashed innocence, were making our girls question why fun (and sugar saturated) store bought snacks like brownies, cupcakes or packaged yogurt was not being sent to school, along with the classic all American peanut butter and jelly sandwich. 

"Why do you always send us homemade food Mommy?" 

"Why do you send us Indian food Mommy?" became the favorite chants of my clueless little girls.

It was time for me to do something.

I explained to my girls that Kindergartners may not know about different kinds of food that are out there in this world - being enjoyed by people like our family. They might welcome the familiar, packaged and mass produced snacks, because that is what is advertised and force fed to them by everyone, including their well meaning parents, literally and figuratively. 

So I suggested my girls explain to their friends, firmly and politely not to comment on their food, and focus on enjoying their yummy food. Because, remember, Kindergartners do not know much.

That advise, for what it was worth, did not work. The "Eews" and "Yucks" continued. So did the tears and commiserations at home.  Peer pressure at a piddly age. Sigh..

So, I had a talk with the Teacher. I told her I wanted to share with the Kindergarten class a story about the beauty of food. And it's association with culture. And its importance to the rooting of individual identities. Of course, not in a pedantic and unpalatable way. After all, the kids were 6. And tough to convince. But I wanted to do something in a fun, lighthearted but memorable way. More power to me! Right?

The Teacher and I discussed that it may be a good idea for me to do Story Time at school this year (I read to my kids' class every year) with a book on cultural acceptance. 

So, my concept of "Yoko" story time was born. 

And boy, was that concept executed in giddy style! 

Replete with the book, coloring activities for the kids, and a visual aid (I was not allowed a taste and tell with the Kinders!), I had a blast retelling the story of Yoko at my kids' school, and how Yoko's sushi was made fun of during her class lunch break, and how Yoko's class room had a great food experience, thanks to the efforts of a sensible and adventurous teacher, who noticed how the kids were  making fun of something they did not know about!!

Rosemary Wells, award-winning author/illustrator of over 50 books for children, illustrates her story of learning tolerance for difference in her signature charming style with the book "Yoko". Here's a blurb of the story.

Yoko's mother, a full-grown cat, is shown executing the different steps of the sushi-making process, and bright, stylized versions of different animals represent a variety of races and ethnicities.

Timothy has peanut butter and jelly for lunch. Valerie has a cream cheese and jelly sandwich. Fritz unwraps a meatball grinder. The Frank twins share franks and beans. And Yoko? Yoko has brought sushi for lunch. Sushi?! The other children at school find her lunch horrifying: "Yuckorama!" Worse, everyone laughs, and Yoko goes through her day listless and sad. Mrs. Jenkins, her concerned teacher, tries to orchestrate Yoko through her difficult day, but nothing works.

Then Mrs. Jenkins announces that there will be an International Food Day at school, and Yoko's mother promises to make sushi for the entire class. Yoko's classmates arrive with a colorful procession of dishes from all parts of the world, even the Caribbean coco crisps are devoured, but no one touches Yoko's sushi. Finally, Timothy, an intrepid raccoon, decides to try, and Yoko shows him how to use chopsticks. From then on, Timothy and Yoko push their desks together and share each other's food, opening up their own private "restaurant."

This picture speaks for itself. The Kinder story time on food and cultural acceptance was a mega success. Sure, we had philosophical discussions and posed for funny face selfies...but I also did my bit in sharing my love for food, and my natural acceptance for differences to these peppy little individuals in the classroom.

I left these kids with solemn nods, and thoughtful frowns as we discussed how Yoko would have felt when her sushi was made of. I left them jubilantly agreeing that tasting new foods is fun!

And I also left them with vows that they would try and learn about all the different kinds of food there is in this world. Because knowing stuff is cool!

I believe I did my bit in creating the next generation of foodies. How's that for self preservation combined with some cultural propagation!?

Some food for thought.

Love,

Supriya.

Spotlight on Madhubani

Good Morning Aalayam! I want to take a minute to welcome our new readers. Our tribe is slowly growing and we are humbled by the fact that so many of you choose to spend a few minutes of your downtime reading us. Supriya and I constantly struggle with the demands of work, family and the blog and have just not been able to find the bandwidth to take Aalayam to Facebook but we truly appreciate the comments and feedback we get via our posts. Thank you!

We are going to the next stop on India’s pluralistic folk art trail today. It has been amazing to look at our diverse cultural identity preserved through our folk arts and so far we’ve covered Warli, Tanjore paintings, Kalamkari, Terracotta and more in our incredible India series.

We love exploring and discovering India through her art forms. These indigenous art forms tell the story of people living in far-flung corners of India and their lives and their traditions. Folklore comes to life via vivid colors, patterns and the artist’s skill and the art instantly casts a spell on the viewer.

 Global demand has led to an art revolution of sorts and breathed new life into these art forms even if it means some of these are now mass produced thus compromising their intrinsic handicraft value. 

I am a huge believer of incorporating moderate doses of handicrafts and local art into my home décor perhaps because of their distinct immutable quality. I am no connoisseur but I do take pride in our rich cultural heritage and hope that via Aalayam I can induce an appetite for India’s folk arts (that have survived the ravages of time) among our readers.

Today, we take a look at a few kitschy corners of my home that house art work in the Madhubani style. I love the rustic simplicity of the Madhubani style of painting so much that I even tried making one. 

Several dots and details later, my Madhubani was done!  It seems perfect inspite of all it’s imperfections and that is the beauty of folk art !   Personally, I feel that navigating the world of folk art is less intimidating than sorting through  the sophisticated world of fine art  and over the years I have managed to compile  a collection of colorful and soulful folk art that is evocative. Of course, the collection is an evolving one as I keep adding to it. In recent years, I have picked up pieces of global folk art as well (talavera, Americana and so forth) and they now adorn quiet corners of our home.

The Madhubani or Mithila style of painting is from Nothern India and celebrates mythology, nature, and everyday rituals through the use of bright colors and geometric patterns.  You can read more about the evolution of this art form here.

Here is a well articulated excerpt (capturing the essence of the Madhubani painting) from an article by Nibedita Das titled Madhubani paintings: Its Existence and Possibility. Good read!

“Madhubani painting is an emblematic expression of day-to-day experiences and beliefs. As such, symbolism, simplicity and beauty hold them together in a single school of traditional art. The symbols that these Maithili painters use have their specific meanings as, for instance, fish symbolize fertility, procreation and good luck, peacocks are associated with romantic love and religion, and serpents are the divine protectors. Characterized by vibrant use of colour, underlying symbolism and traditional geometric patterns supporting the main theme, the Indian folk art form of Madhubani succeeded in creating a place for itself in the international house of fame and is now recognized worldwide.”

So, is folk art a genre of art work that interests you? Does the raw and rustic charm of products created by tribal artisans appeal to your décor sensibilities? If so, are there any particular ones that you are more drawn to and do you have a collection? Write to me or send me pictures.

Cheers!

~Deepa

P.S: All images used in this post are from my home and shot by my husband. Please do not use without permission.

From the rasoi - Memories woven around food!

I love food, plain and simple! Now, that qualifies me to pen down a post on food – don’t you think? 

This post is mostly about the wonderful memories woven around food and the many conversations that are spring boarded off the food on our rasoi table. It is also about  family, culture and traditions all preserved via food! Someday, I hope to look back at these pictures and tell stories of  festivities and celebrations, of holidays and Sunday mornings, of family gatherings and date nights and of new accomplishments added to my repertoire! In the meanwhile, I hope to indulge the inner foodie in you!

In this post, I present a series of images that are essentially snapshots from my life over the past couple of years captured via simple home made food!

My grandmother is an excellent cook! She has that magic touch and eating her food is an out-of-this world experience that will leave you licking your fingers long after the food is gone! I don’t know what it is that makes her cooking so exceptional – perhaps her astute sense for proportions! For me, she is the exemplar cook. 

My own tryst with cooking began as (failed) experiments on my newly married husband!  Dismayed by my lack of intuition and perplexed by the intricacies of cooking, I felt defeated. Even simple recipes challenged  me, cookbooks and internet recipes were of no help (‘coz I simply did not have what it took to put everything together) and cooking soon became a chore I dreaded.

 I think the turning point for me (and thank God for that!) came after the birth of my son when my mom stayed with us for a few months to help out. 

What I lacked in intellect and instinct I made up for via interest. I started paying attention and asking a lot of questions. I also learnt that cooking requires patience (tons of it) to create that harmonious and balanced blend of flavors. Slowly but surely, I blossomed, not into a gourmet cook but into an everyday cook. One that can now confidently whip up a decent meal for her family and enjoy the process too! I think I have redeemed myself and am at ease in the kitchen now!

These days I cook. Gleefully! Sometimes, a comfort food that I am craving for or a lunch box treat that my mom used to pack lovingly for my brother and me or a dish uniquely assigned to a festival (a family tradition), a new recipe or  a simple weekend request from the boys. I am cautiously venturing into new areas too! I learnt to bake and savored the joy of freshly baked  last year! 

This year, I want to cook my way through a North Karnataka (my husband’s cuisine) thali as a surprise for him (shshshsh- don’t tell him).

Inspite of the many imported preferences for other cuisines, as a family, we still find ourselves craving for the comfort of what is familiar food wise. Some days, all you want is rice and rasam  - nothing urbane, nothing fiddly! We maintain our cultural identity via food and I am sure that I thread strands of culture in to our life via our food customs.

O.K. I admit I cheated with this one - the sweet treats and the savory snacks were made by my mom :) but I will take credit for the decor!

 I secretly hope that these traditions will  become a fond part of my son’s childhood memories!

Over time I have come to appreciate and enjoy the art and science of cooking. It has taught me to live in the present and appreciate  the quotidian. 

As I savor the aroma and the flavors emanating from the simmering spices, I learn a little bit more about who I am and what I want to pass along. 

As I continue to explore the wonders of food and experiment with global cuisines too, I hope to bring my culinary snapshots to you all periodically. But first, tell me – how do you connect with food? Do you eat for sustenance or do you share a deeper and a more intimate connection with food? I would love to hear from you! We can perhaps have a tete-a-tete over a cup of adrak chai?

If you liked this post, then I recommend you go back and read Supriya's post on plated street food - the great Indian Chaat. You will love it (I love browsing through our archives and finding something fun to revisit) and make sure you scroll down all the way to the comments section of that post to read about her special connection to Gobi Manchurian! 
Supriya is up next. I hope you like the fact that we are constantly mixing things up. Decor, artist features, cuisine, culture, art, posts with a social message, home tours, travel - we are having a lot of fun with this, I hope you are too. Thank you for reading Aalayam.

Cheers!
Deepa

p.s: All the images in this post are from my home and taken by my husband. Please do not use without permission.