January 13, 2025: Apeejay Kolkata Literary Festival hosted an intriguing and heartwarming final session titled Table Talk, where celebrated panelists Sunita Kohli, Usha Uthup, and Shaun Kenworthy took the stage with moderator Oindrilla Dutt to discuss food, culture, and the essence of culinary traditions. The occasion marked the unveiling of the book The India Cookbook – From the Tables of My Friends. All panelists officially unveiled the book at the Apeejay Kolkata Literary Festival. This cookbook is an account of how culture most intimately expresses itself—there are dishes for all occasions and for all seasons. There are recipes that can be used for dinner parties with friends as well as ones for relaxed family meals. It features familiar comfort foods like Pakora Karhi, Pongal, Butter Chicken, Dhansak, Vangi Bhaat, and others as well as unusual, special dishes such as Sat Saag, Nimona, Santula, Mutton ki Karhi, Fesenjan, Mohan Maas, Baked Crabs, Yakhni, and more.
Sunita Kohli, the author in discussion, shared an inspiring story of how the project was never part of her original plans. Initially, it was her mother’s idea—a cookbook that lay dormant until a publisher showed interest, provided Kohli co-authored it. The success of the first book naturally led to the second. Kohli remarked on the widespread nature of Indian food by saying, “Food is an intangible part of the heritage… India’s partition might have divided its people, but food, like art & ideas will travel across political boundaries.This book also captures how food travelled along the spice routes…” She highlighted how dishes such as Lucknow’s Shorba trace their origins to Turkish cuisine, traveling to India along the historic Spice Routes.
Legendary singer and cultural icon Usha Uthup added warmth to the discussion with her anecdotes about food. Despite being a vegetarian, Uthup is renowned for her non-vegetarian cooking, a skill she attributes to her husband’s aunt and the cherished cookbook gifted to her. Reflecting on her time living across India and experiencing diverse cultures, she said, “Food is all about love …Cooking connects me to the many people. I bake 106 cakes every year on Christmas” This is her way of sharing her love. Her insights highlighted the evolving yet deeply rooted culinary traditions of the country.
Celebrated chef Shaun Kenworthy provided a global perspective on Indian cuisine and its evolving identity. Dispelling the concept of fusion cuisine, Kenworthy remarked, “There’s no such thing as fusion food. It doesn’t exist in the world and never has existed. It’s just the natural progression of ingredients over time.” He cited the example of the potato, a foreign crop that seamlessly integrated into Bengali cuisine, particularly in the iconic Kolkata biryani. This prompted moderator Oindrilla Dutta to touch upon the legacy of Wajid Ali Shah, who added potatoes to biryani not out of frugality, as popular lore suggests. Instead, it was an exotic item from Portugal and prized ingredient at the time. “When I go back to the UK… I spend 10 days cooking biryani on request…Kolkata style biryani with the aloo and egg…Food is the most spoken language in the world. It shows how food transcends geography and becomes a universal language,” Kenworthy added, emphasizing the role of food in bridging cultures and fostering connections. Moderator Oindrilla Dutt connected the lines of how food brings out memories and connections.
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