Reader\'s Digest IN 02.2020

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A

s a child, I first noticed complete

strangers forming friendships

on train journeys—inevitably

they were over food! A Gujarati aunty

lovingly offering her farsan; idli–vada,

wrapped in banana leaves, being

passed around by a Tamilian family;

sandwiches and chips shared on the

way to Darjeeling by an Anglo-Indian

granny—this warm rapport transcen-

ded language, caste or religion.

Making lasting connections on the

journey was just a big bonus.

The lunch room in our cosmo-

politan convent school was also a

microcosm of India, where the

aroma of Parsi, Anglo-Indian,

Chinese, Bohri, Bengali or Pun-

jabi khana drew us together in

a close bond.

Indian food has won over

the world. But given that we

are such a vast nation, with

culinary tastes changing

within the same district, it is

impossible for each of us

to be acquainted with

the food from every

state, leave alone

taste them. We, at

RD, decided

Sanghamitra Chakraborty

editor

to explore and celebrate our rich

gastronomic diversity and heritage in

this anniversary issue.

We started with a well-researched

longlist that was vetted by an eminent

jury panel (p 56). The critics’ choice is

the basis of ‘India on a Platter: Every

State’s Best Food’ (p 57). The short-

listed food choices, from each state,

were put out for an open survey to

determine the popular choices.

Our sincere thanks to all our jury

members, especially celebrated food

expert Pushpesh Pant (read him on

p 54), for making this report possible.

If there are any shortcomings, the

responsibility is entirely ours.

We hope you will enjoy the

delightful stories of how some of

these delicacies were born, and

also be inspired to try out

some of them.

Bon appétit!

DEAR READER

Bonding Over Food

10 february 2020

Reader’s Digest