introduction 23
the afternoon in Kerala is “Have you had your lunch?” Th e taste for seafood
and coconut may resemble Bengal, but Kerala cuisine is closer to that of
neighboring Tamil Nadu: rice-based meals with numerous vegetable dishes
fl avored with mustard seeds, coconut and curry leaves and dosas (which are
like sourdough crepes) along with other fried and steamed treats for breakfast
and snacks. Food is frequently a topic of conversation in Kerala, and mani-
festations of mental problems I observed among patients at healing centers
include refusing to eat, thinking food has been poisoned, and—as people pre-
fer to mix, knead and eat the food on their plates with their hands—kneading
food with one’s hands for a long time before eating.
Map 1. Map of Kerala showing key research locations with names in
Malayalam and English.
Map originally appeared in Richard W. Franke and Barbara Chasin Kerala: Radical Reform as
Development in an Indian State—Second Edition Oakland, CA: Food First Books (1994). Reprinted
by permission.