I I Farm to FJ�gers· The·Culture and· Politics of Food in Contemporary. India

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Editedby KiranmayiBhushi

gCAMBRIDGE � UNrv:ERSITY PRESS CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITYPRESS

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. Contents

List ofFigures and Tables ix Preface xi 1. Introduction 1 Kiranmayi Bhushi 2. The Makingof'Edible Animal Source Foods' and its 37 ContemporaryReality in Delhi Estelle Fourat

3. Appropriatingthe Cow: Beef and IdentityPolitics in 58 ContemporaryIndia JamesStaples 4. Eating Akhuni in India 80 DollyKikon 5. Health,Standardization and 'Bengali'Sweets 103 IshitaDey 6. Treating Children,Feeding Junk Food: An Inquiryinto 128 a Middle Class Project AnjaliBhatia 7. Diaspora Dish: Cooking,Writing, and CreatingIdentities 157 in Food-biogs SucharitaSarkar

8. MeasuringHunger: Debates on an 'Adequate'Diet in 184 ColonialNorth India Sanjay Sharma viii &,, Contents

9. Managing Food: India'sExperience with the Public 215 Distribution System DeepankarBasu and Debarshi bas

10. Food Sovereignty:The Future of Food 236 RadhaGopalan Contributors List of Figuresand Tables 269 Index 273

FIGURES 4.1 A basket of fermented soya beans 83 4.2 AnoliSumi makingakhuni cakes 87

TABLES 4.1 Names offermented soyabeans in Nagaland 89 5.1 Relatively sweet -sweeteners -and their corresponding sweetness factor and calorie count 108 5.2 High-intensity sweeteners and their corresponding sweetness 109 8.1 Number oflabouting poor employedby the charity of govetnment at thesudder station of Agra 188 9;1 Average MonthlyPDS Consumption ofFoodgrains (Rice + Wheat) across States, kgs/person 228 9.2 Average MonthlyPDS ConsumptiongfFoodgrains (Rice + Wheat) acrossDeciles ofMPCE; kgs/person 231 10.1 Dominant model versus foodsovereignty model (Adaptedfrom Rosset, 2003) 241

j '·j·l I I EatingAkhuni in India b 81 I wayto understand.this dominantversion of Indian -modernityis to note how a particular version oflncµan historyand p�er networks plays a significant role,·in dictatingthe. dietary practices of dominant groupsas -nationalcuisine, while other food habits ·are·erased from the social memory an� the dining . tables ofthe nation. 1 . Ea.tingAkhuniinlndia In the_last decade, wehave witnessed theemergence of ethnic cuisines from Northeast India.inmetropOlitan· cities across the-country. Followingthe food map and emerging literatureon Northeastern. cuisine,it appearsas thoughthe DollyKikon region'seclectic flavoursand its food cultureshave·caught the imagination of foodenthusiasts and writers from"New Delhi,Mumbai, Bengaluru,and other metropolitan cities. At the same time,_such musings and·write-ups about consumption and food cultures of societies· from·Northeast India also reveal . Weare.not exoticbut ordinary the pressing·· and: distl.J.rbin15.imaginati _o_n;:,·of.the ·:nation, its·citizens, and the . (Latour 1993: 127) incommensurable divide_be twee_� ;civilip-tioriand''Primitivism. () _ l: Notice,the·cpl niali_st",and:EUfo�entric.views_about Naga people and their Introduction dietary habits· that appeared in the·. travel section of the Daily Telegraph, a nationaldaily from theUllited:Kirigdom; Traveler Stephen McClerence wrote I received -a:·t�·xt·message oii a September evening·in -2014.:Phrynium about his trip to Nagal:,ndiiriderthe heading 'No silkworm curry today, sir'. I _ _ _ . placentari_Um::fdniilyMaraniaceaeappC?ared-on·my screen. Earlier thaemoming, His xenophobic tone about the food,people, and the place are inseparable as a co1;1,versa�()Il about fe.i:ment�d_·:�oya· beans, _popul�ly· kri.bWfl··as. akhuni in he penS -his vieWS ofNaga ··so-d.ety._For instance, he d�scribes the food in the _ Naga!and,ahruJ)tly �amet� a halt.My dkb�,iiinterlocutors,an elderly woman followingmann,er: and. a young worn�b�th ..Prais.ed_\n.·tji�._p.eigh���Q9d � exCellen(._akhuni m�rs, app��d embatr_¥ise_d.They weI'e,u_n3:blc;:J_O. pin.poi_nt !4e prqper name, 'Delicacies includeroast dog, make kebabs, silkworm curry,p ig skin (variousrecipes), it, and steamedhOrnet and snail stew . or· as theyput the 'English.. _scientific·[l:irne.': of theJeaves :with,which Jhey ..A friend wh� -spent-six years there recalls one wrappedthe akhunicakes. The youngwoman expectantlyturned towards the challengingfeastth(!t climaxed with bison cooked in dog'sblood. We've even heard,_we elderlywomari·t o·salvage·-thecoriversation.:"l-will callmy cousin brother who tell-_ay oung Woman -'U)hohas dropped iiz for t e__qt4:h�t·the Nagas-enjoyeating whole, 0 no, notfrogs�·she' rotests. I think." The seven North works in the horticulture departinent·aildtext it to you,"·the elderly-woman frogs. ·"No, p ·"Tadpol�.011!y, Eastern.S!ates are y and accurately, describedas remote. 2 said. The_ discussionq�ckly resumed. 'l!!ua.ll , ' ·The. anxiety·-· that ·surfaCed-' during our--cortversati.On as a consequence of The;:__ desg;iption of_Naga food is uncanny. It is taken out of context, out the .Plll'Suitf�r a .. scientificn� _e _of �e _leaf reflects,_in S_aurabh Dube's words, - of _season, and .outside the realm_of_taboo_s, rituals, and feastings.Instead, it is ' ... (the) acute retlectiojls of the hierarchies of modernity'(2002: 731). Such moments of insecurities and the qiiest·for scientific n�es are premised on constructedwith dispositions denselypacked with collapsing the place and its inhabitants._The ignorance based o_n_the conversationwith a young woman from creating _ruptureswith particularvisions of thepast. In the-Naga people's case, Northeast India, on the one hand, andthe immaculately global and cosmopolitan it .is the dominant image of primitivism,savagery, and their knowledge systems being relegated as a 'tribal'practice that is simple and elementary.If one roughly travelergifted with powerful reasoningskills and knowledge on th�other. maps thetrajectory of modernity on the register of food and dietary habits, Thesimplicity ofMcClerence's logic is clear. It r.eiterates the modern versus including thepromotion of a nationalcuisine in India via cookbooks, television the primitive�the civilized versus the savage, thecentre/modem versus the exotic shows, political manifestos,and popular magazines,it appears that there is a oppositions.It is easy_to reject such representationsof.Naga food;however, it reiteration of a singular version oflndian modernity(Appadurai 1988). One would also makeus accomplices in shj,ing away from-engaging and recognizing 82 ;,,. Dolly Kilwn EatingAkhuni in India &,, 83

how food and consumption play a significant role in normalizing everyday politicaland powercultures: In Northeast India, such projects and imaginations expressionsofrepulsions and enchantments.In.addition, the.celebration of food are·Iinkedwith power, develOpment; and-progress._ and attentionto dietarycnstoms and practices also underlines the role offood in There'aremany-ways to·be-modem, and one is·the refinementof the palate producing social meanings andmemories. Therefore, McClerence's reactionsto and theprocess of acquµ"ing a gastronomicalknowled ge.Akhunior fermented Naga foodporttaythe inextricably entwined and complexrelationship between soya beans simultaneously invokesa multitude of experiences for its consumers food,race, and history. and those in itsvicinity.Among all the food items thatNaga people relish,akhuni Ii In thatcontext, the emergence ofNortheastcuisin.es, cookbooks,and popular occupies a distinctplace in the realm of flavours and taste. What is the smell write-\J.ps·are important.developm,_ents.Among other things,they are useful andtaste of akhunt? A small metabolic process that transforms the chemical indicators:to understand_ the politics ofcategorizing food as ethnic cuisiqe in balanceof soyabeans, its texture,taste and smell, and also alters the relationship co_ntemppraryIndia: _However,the focus of th.is chapter lies�sewhere. It is not of the food with its consumers forever. Some become lifelong connoisseurs, about ethniccuisine. Instead, it examines how everydayprocesses of acquiring, while others develop a longclastingrepulsion, and detest it. rejecting,or negotiatingtastes and dietarysensibilities captures the contextual . ; ' ·" . ,.-_., .., . ,(�t: !! andpolitical parameterso_f tradition,articulatjons ofcontf:sted belongings, and differentexperiences of citizenship in_ contemporaryl�dia. j: This chapter see� to explore two points. First,_ the project of placing i1 akhuni on -the _n_ation's table in Jndia focuses .on capturing_the sensory and Ii emotive conditions_ ,of tri�_ al_ modernity. Secondly, it outlines my. concept of akhunisentimeµts_ by _:Which I mean _the perpetual_ anxieties and emotions Of eatingsmelli foo_d and_being I!lOdern.The.embarras sment_ that surfaced in the cofl�satiofl with_.th�_ akh1J,ni�akei:s, an ane_cdo�e I _shared in the beginning of this chapte�;-ca.Ptures how fOod practices�be it preparation,..consumption, or discussions, draw our attentiontowards the transformativepower Of dietary cultures and_ how foo�_i_ntiinatelysh_apes .eve_cy�y,,engagemen�, imaginations, and proj�cts of mo<;l.ernity. In order. to eJq>lQre these questions,.! present an ethnographic account and .r�flect on the. de.tailed moments that Michael de Certeau calls "the practice of everyday life'' (de Certeau 1984). l critically examine how fermented. food like- izkhuni shapes -everyday practices and imaginationsabout citizenship, spaces-of-transgressions,and social meanings FIGURE4.1 A basketof fermentedsoya beans3 in contemporaryIndia. Dwelling on themoment of anxietiesand cont estationsover dietary practices Anthropological literature informs us how dietary habits and taste are like eatln� akhuni, also means presenting·how food and cons1:1111ption are never neutral grounds (Mintz 1996; Mintz and Du Bois 2002; Durham entangled withthe social history of belonging and the divergent experiences 2011; Rouse and Hoskins 2004; Kabn 1986; Farb and Armelagos 1980). of citizenship and modernity in India. The efforts•of the akhuni makers to Moralities,transgressions, and boundaries can be traced to everyday practicesof akhuni locate the scientificname of theleaf theywrapped the in capture the consumption acros�-_human societies. Unlikecategories of foodthat fall in the apprehensions of being a modern tribal. The conversation challenges the dominant classificatory listof cleanand unclean food, fermented foodor smelly dominant· ·notions of remoteness and centre that is often applied to measure food.is-something- else. While smell is local, it is ·also invisible. Smell crosses the Northeast region as backward and underdeveloped where, in contrast to borders. Thereis somethingunnerving and subversiveabout theway it manages the rest of India, these are drasticallydifferent eating cultures.It underlines to pollute and infringethe most intimateand sacred spaces. It enters thenostrils . how projects and imaginations about modernityare constructedon particular and sticks on the membranes of the throat and tongue sending signals to the 84 .,,. DollyKikon EatingAkhuni in India ;:.,,, 85 brain..and :produces .fe�lli;igs. of repulsio�.··For, t>thers;. thesame . smell invokes Akbuni khalkhai.Sema- manu-khai -Sernapeople eat.akhuni o .o o s feelings of comf rt r mem rie _ of:home. To-invoke and remember·home is Bastangti'khafkha'iLotha man'U k.hai Lotha people eat bamboo shoot to start by exploringth,e ways in which relationships, obligations,and ways of 4 belonging are established. Anishekhai' khtliAo ·manu k.hai Ao people eat �nishe -- What - iS significant about ..the rhyme· is. its irn.provizational feature. It· is The home an open-ended ode that .allows children to add names of different tribes and food items. on the.list. This· quality of being open-ended was central to the Ak.hunicontact: No,_ it is not done _in this manner. personality. of akhuni,a s well fr brought neighbours together to contribute DK:What do you suggest? theirtime, resources;·and -la�our in making,this;iteffi, which was then divided among friends and families. Akhuni to contact: The process has startat least four to fivedays ahead of time. When I arrived at my akhuni contact's ho.!Ile;s he told me thather father­ take But I cannot guaranteeanything. If it rains, then it will longer. in-law had been umvell.Since she had to takecare of him,her friendfrom .the DK:Can we talk aboutit? neighbourhoodstepped in to help out .byJ:ioilpig ·the soya beans and starting akhuni Akhuni contact: The process has tO �start-before ·we cfill di cuss ·about.it. thefermentation process/The· �9ntact.showedme a thickbush growing � beside her kitchenand said that her friendhad:plucked .some leaves from here e· _ · DK:Y ou start th · pro��ss, -��-d_,I/Will_�oine-�ver. earlier that morning,to.· wp.p:-the;qk.h_UnJCa.kes_:The-Ph· rynium placentarium was Akhunicontact: Alright:I"'iUorganize the seeds; See you soon. growing·:beside.her kitche_n -next:to ,:the:water pump- where an electrical wire ran above,theleaves and.across_·,a · pµe:,"ofunwashed -dishes lyingon theconcrete · · This phone co�_�ifo�'w,is� �:�t s1;t:pin doi �g·_ _a;va�willi-mis_conceptions o and the ailingfather­ h open-airwashing area.Lunch wasover in thish usehold, akhuni. a, . about l. i::�_�_Ct_edit?_ s-�i-: _.conv�a�c;n1 and recqrd �e _process of in-law playedwith the dog in thefront porch as theakhuni informant tncked r :: _ _ for o . p eparing and· f��i�-�i::t:11�- s � �i �:�i,.' owever,: _ �y; iel inf rmant, - o s -' � ( . -I:I · / � a pinch of tobacco on .her gums�: 'Eiihhh.Leave · your_ plate. D n'twa h it, we _ : ason e u u e , and ar th akh ni contac;::if':_ ��-;-_P�ttTipl�-/����PJ�_ Cl!{tjm ;·1se; . . y _ , have to go,' she fondly·reproache_d- me. I .wondered what was extraordin being present at _th�,·s����o;Wi}�_�§�i��::¥fA��-��., \Ve :�;ktCgf-afto . the· _story.The and secretive about-inaking·akhuni.. The·mundaneness of thisfood bordered o element funcert,tlptyi�poµi_.��i�:;��i):1��}i1{��g in_.?:�e_:i� raine.�_was real. on a monotonous routine like .thecars passing·by_thehou se and thelazy dogs A continuous and cop.�is't��t}i:eJ11:e���e"-_w

Akhuniengageff!�n ts Phom ashe, habandi yonggihao .. ,, ,,_, Ao Trueto its perso�41:���i:i{ o�- �i#::��--di�g{�g.;,��tufe(from a bean, to o,_ .:� , - Chonglidialect azungkenshi azungken a seed, a. cooked it��t�a{��ni�>r0:t�:;·���Iq:�f��f�t�dda rklycoloured an relish), the reacti?_�-�?��;,ihe·,_di�-ai_;;:i\tics_' -:?.f)��\;?:�.s�_�ers also beg to alizungken }f os ere of dismay. MOngsen dialect surface.There�.�i k·Qfeiq,.f!S�:1ri�:'.�d.·.����i��:·�� p_h chamili and boredom as. �·i� q h\ :�t .�khU 'i ·. ():,.���,) te sted to -talkabout �� }J_� i; � : Wii_ ;� fe Chang motong anizungkung fermentedfood in the'- aj qst of'a,JJ O);tical� f�l1llationin Naga society? 70 have e Yimchunger modang years of conflict�;.0c!1Jcle29year;sif rl;ie lndo-N:igafeasefire, prnduc d e Khiamungan. chiuthih a generation of arti�\ J;l�gaac .�y:ists.and sd1

of people across thehills of Northeast India.mergedwith theHim'!iayas, the household in Bagdogra, a smalltown not faraway fromth< Himalayas in North layered articulations.abput taste, communities,and,sensOry. maps-also-.beganto Bengal. The mother immediately corrected me and saj.d, 'It -is scented, not unraveLThis required acknowledginghow everyday associations with fermented �n;iell}'',to describe.the: character.of kinemala,khuni. She used the term scent, a food and moments of amusements·dwing-akhwziconversations.in N aga-kitchens general phrase to refetto ·perfumes and_other pleasant aromatic fragrances,to wereimportant. It forcesus to interrogatedominant concepti.Onsabout regions emphasize that the.smell offermentedsoya,b

. to neighbours· inNagaland sharing akhuni cooking techniques,the love for Nepali'kinema curry'· fermented.foodis indisputable. Kinema. 250g ·A recipe bookpublishedfrom Gangtok describes· howcer tain Sikkimese 1 chopped foods- are.·pringent.;due'-to·· :the:.fermelltation-process.: The writer :notes that QIµon Tomato 1 sliced fermenteditem.slike ..kinema .becaniea staple dietduring- periods-offood scarcity, but have gradually·became arrintegral partofBikkimesefood cultrrre today.' Green chilies 3 pieces Turmetjc powder \4Tablespoon Drawing_a-globalconnection,she notes-thatitis familiarthe to Japanese-Korean natto that is·available indepartmental stores· across theglobe. Similar to the Salt 1 Teaspoon storyof adoptirig-R.inemaas· a.food: item among Sikkimesesociety in times Of scarcity,Ladhaki ·States •that kinemalnatto/akhuni continues to be popularly Method knownas the 'poorman's meat in SouthEastAsia (Ladhaki2009: 66�67). She Heat oil and add chdpped onions and fry ittill becomes tender, add tomatoes otfers a Sikkimese.·kinemd curry recipe as follows: · and turmeric powder-and:fry·for · two· minutes arid then once kinema is fried, add !,alt,Silc�d-· green:.chilieS· ind fry:f6r._three to" fiVe_ minutes. A litdewater is Sikkimesekinema curry orired·'to a curry . p _n:take' thi�k'curry,� -�;Co�k'f6£·°£iVeto-seven minutes. Kinema . Kinema 250grams is readJ to·servewith cooked· ricC. ·sWl:..driCdkinema is sometimes mixed with 9 Chopped onions 1 medium size leafyvegetable to mak�mixed curry as ;ide-dish. Sliced tomatoes -1 medium size -:As not�cl,:hoth �he recipes .presented_ above are almost identical and Turmericpowder l4tablespoon pe!haps do_ no_t_ c9�e across. as_ c9µiplex_or savvy_m�als. Yet .the specificities Oil 1 tablespoon and the naming. of the recipes .:,1;s.- be.longiq.g to-.particular. societies only Chilies 3, optional reinforces the point .I have made• about the. gastronomical geography of the Salt to taste Himalayan .societies.. Instead of Situating these recipesas claims for a uniform and homogenous regional food map, I argue that these local cookbooks Method and. food blogs are expressions of cosmopolitanism and self-determination kinenf!µafdiuni simultane9usly.. The_vjsible pr.est:nce of is� political project to Heat oil andfry onion till light brown forge a new. regional �ulinary culture. by drawing on the sensory systems to Add tomato, turmericp owder,.chilies, and salt document.and connect the experiential gastronomical and food cultures of the Add kinema�-Jew minutes . past and th� pre��nt in the Himalayan region. Let it.cook for fiveminutes Servehot withrice PaLhos andfood · The acknowledgment of kinemalakbuni as a delicacy·among Himalayan ki'nema ak.huni societiesin the Indi'an subcontinent sometimes throws up -a curious range of The stories of theHimalayas draw me towards my own story _ _ akhuni �imilaritiesan � mixtrires.Ill the corifinesof the kitchen, does anyone careif an in Nagaland. My memory of has nothing to do with its taste, but is extra chili should be added or a tomato mixedwith the kinemalakhuni curry? linked with my g;mdmother. My grandmother Oreno grew up during the What kindof gastronomicalappreciation and formof pleasure motivatesakhuni period of theRhetso, a Lotharefel'ence to the Second WorldWar. She told me consumers? TheSikkimese recipe and the Nepali dish below are similar and many storiesabout her experierices ofthe war that �ept across the Naga Hills, are adopted as a local food that is integral to Nepali and Sikkimesesocieties. in India's Northeast frontiers, but her memory of the Japanese Soldiers who A Nepalifood bloggeroffers a kinema recipeas follows: arrivedthere is a peculiarone. According to her, when the soldiers cameto her villagein search of food and found the packets of fermented· soya beans, they Ii'i 111

94 &. DollyKikon Eating Akhuniin India r.J'> 95

II1, wept before falling on theirknees and devouring it. The WWILdrama in the to communicate with:hermother who·was-now a deer, the dauihterwarnedher Naga Hills-was:a consequence of themultiple, intersections, negotiations,and to flee.The father;a skilfulhunter managed to-hunt down·-the mother. Later stagingof power and order globally, but among all thestories I inherited from that e�ening, the'.deerwas slaughtered and cookedfor the household members. my grandmother, there is something a'.bout '\Yeeping Japanese soldiers eating Whenthe daughter refusedto eat -thedeer-meat, the father summoned her. fermentedfood that has stayed with me. Father:Here, take_a piece'of the heart. Stories about food are diverse and discussed' in all human societies across the world: every time a food writer in' Sikkim offers a kinema recipe; every Daughter: No. It is my mother's heart. With this heart she loved me, so I will time a Nepali food blogger describes the local food; every time a researcher not eat this piece. flips through the pages of The History ofNatto and its Relatives, the · most Father: Here, take a piece of thethigh.· comprehensive book on fermented soya beans; and every time I remember Daughter: No. It is mymother's thigh.I sat on thethigh and she sang forme, my g�dmother's_ ak.huni_s_tories.. 1'.here.fore, food c?-ptures. the_ pathos and so I Willriot eat this piece. connections :of human_ .rdationships such as loss, trage4y, 3.nd suffering. r Father: H_ere, take a piece of thefeet. Particularly,_ ,Naga ac_counts about the _relationship between human societies I and food� Similar to_ several indigenous _cultures a,round�e world, dwells on I Daughter: No.I.t is my mother's feet.She carried me on her back and walked the ever-chafigingtransformation and connections· of human, plant, and animal I me: to places, so I. willnot eat rl).e feet. cosmology. A Lotha Naga legend ApfaLe Le Le Le powerfully captures the Father:-Here,take� ·piece of-the eyes. dilemmasabout the distinctionan d naturalization of food,eating, and taboos. Daughter: .No. It' is my mother's eyes. With these eyes she lovinglylooked at According to legend, in a village· one day, the wife of a fierce warrior · me and loved me. discovered a strange lump on her head. When she asked her daughter to check Eventually the father forced the daughter to pick a piece of meat. But she the growth,they discovered it was a smallpair of antlers.In thoseda ys, it was not 10 unusualfor humans to tum-intoanimals� However, after such transformations, hid it in her mekha/a and threw it beside a river. The following morning when hunters and warriors killed the animal. Thlls,months went by and the mother thedaughter went down to thefiver to fetch water, the meat had transformed and daughter hid the news fromthe father.Around this time, the womangave into a vegetable plant. The mother had become a beautiful gourd and started birth to a baby boy. During the period of nursing, her body began to undergo connecting with thedaughter. Delighted that her mother had come back, the daughter carriedher baby brotherto the gourd plant and fedhim special nectar I a transformation.Knowing thatthe end was near, she took her.daughter and secreted fromthe plant. When the fatherc\i.scovered that the meat had turned I the babyto thejhum (swidden) field.Once theywere there, she markedcertain into a plant,he chopped it offand burnt it. Heartbroken, the daughter w nt areas that were densely covered withwild plants and rice plants, and told the : ii1 11 down to theriver to look at the remains,but discovered that a tall healthymaize ,,, daughter thatshe willleave milkfor the baby in cups made ofleaves. plant stood at thesite. The mother �ad transformed into a ripened maize and The daughter returned to .the village withthe baby brother but themother ll startedto ·c6m_municate wjth the daughter. ,11 stayed behind. She beganto eat thewild plants, fruits,and sleep under the trees. )! While the l�gend. c;,fApfo Le Le Le__ Le, like many indigenous accounts, ,, The daughtervisited the marked spots in thejhum fieldand collected the milk 111,pturesnotions that.the �eahn of ration�:t:Ysolely belongs to human society ' for her baby brother.One day thefather became suspicious and followedthe or the nature/ culturedistinctions, this story in thecont� of akhuni serves two daughter and the baby to thefield. Soon thefather realized that his wife had purposes. It umjerlineshow foodand eating areentangled withmemori s ofloss, turned into a deer. When the daughter noticed thatthe fatherwas hunting for � moral dilemmas,and socialmeanings. Secondly,it highlights how stones about the deer,she.carried her brother on h�r back and ran up to the upper elevations food and e;ting are not solely about sharing and feasting.Accounts of eating "ApfaLe Le of thefield. Standing on a treehouse, she waved her scarfshouting, �nd foodare also fundamentallytied to the pathos of human relationships and LeLe."InLothaApfameansmotherandLeLeLeLeis an expression to callthe social practicesto reinforce hierarchies or order,a point that is oftenoverlooked. cattleand guide them to the barn at sunset. Using this phrase ApfaLe LeLe Le Therefore,this story presentshow rituals of eatingor refrainingfrom consuming Eati.ngAkhuni in India &,.; 97 9.6 "" DollyKiko•, certain kinds.of food play an instrumental role in estahlishing social relations These.foods from,the.eastern Himalayasffllvelledwith professionals and or.creating.copflicts. students ;_who ---arrjved_,:in metJ.:opolitan-.Cities . for._.work. and .education in th� In order .to�derstand·the,_contentious.politic� that su.rro:unddietary.practices 1970s and1980s,thus connectingfermented food, mobility and being modern. and·.foo�l. �tures-in·contemporary.Jndia, we must-turnour-gaze_towards.-the Today,migrantsfro�Northeast India are,one.ot.the most visiblefaces of the akhuni heartland oflndia. Once has crossed the Bralunaputra valley, hopped hospitality,sector and in Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) units.In. his a, work-on· Northeast migrants to New Delhi, Duncan,McDuie-Ra emphasizes out ofWest,Bengal,cruised over Bihar,and arrivesi n theheartland oflndi this trend, stating: how do.es it ,enter: the _list of.hol'!'ible food? ·.Why.does· akhuniit cause enormous smelly conflictsand nose burns? Whatare the anxietiesof eaters in the nation'sCapital, and how do they negotiateto tame.their-taste buds? Dwelling Contemporary Inth�:'term ,bothas mobilityand �v:en gs Northe�tregion,This .ls signififan., �a,tp1igra�on involv:es engagement mobilization.She des.cribeshow both meanin alludeto � change and �nable withthe people _and pla s-ofthe_ Indi an he;;� d, �hichclashes with the anti­ y, �� _ . at} us to think about local and global scales.Most importantl theyallow us to India �detpinnings or'socialand :politicallife in .the_ Northeast. recognize fo� of activismand the transformatiO�of the collSciouslle�s. Tsing (McDuieaRa 2012: 13) notes,-.'Travel.chaDges theway we ·imagine our home places. We suddenly seC them as fragile, strange, and worth savoringin new ways' (Tsing 2005: 213). akhuni Northeast resiclents of.New-Delhi.are students,workers and professionals, Buildingon themoment of motion and mobilitythat Tsing propagates, and the majorityof themlive in extremelymodest places, given that New Delhi can be regarded bothas a transnationaland a nationalfood, and its consumers is an expensivecity. Wh_at is significantis themanner in which theseeveryday as mobileakhuni, and modern.However,given the resentmenttowards fermented food eating cultures have produced distinctiveforms of socialityand solidarity,but like one is forced to ask whyis it that an item whose scaleof circulation also hostility, in theseneighbourhoods. McDuie-Ra's ethnography describes and consumptionstarts from Gangtok in the EasternHimalayas to a pacificcity how migrants from Northeast India move within their neighbourhoods in likeOakland in Californiastruggles to find a spot in thegastronomical glossary New Delhi: inakhuni contemporary India. What does suchopposition towards fermentedfood like tell us about.conteffiporaryIndia? Thefollowing section elaborates how Flats are smalland many arewindowless, so the space betweenflats, landings the small cakes of fermented soyabeans havedeveloped a powerfulpersonal ity and stairwells,and thestreets and alleywaysof the neighbourhoods become the beyond its region. space of encounter; especiallyin thevery dense aµeywaysofHumayanpur and Munirka... in Humayanpur, migrantsmove between eachother's flats without AkhuniConflicts in New Delhi knocking and manyleave their doors unlocked when theyare inside. It is just like home. akhuni In New Delhi� asserts· a di·stinctiVe space with its special aroma. (ibid: 151) Fermented food routinely creates cOllflict in '.cafeterias arid dining halls in colleges, universities and· neighbourhoods across metropolitan cities. Such So howare we.to understand the dietarypractices and smells thatseep into reactions forced .thepolice in New··Delhi to issue a directive; in 2007,.. they these neighbourhoods in urban spaces? In conversation with McDuie-Ra's brought out a guideline for people from NortheastIndia titled'Security. Tips description of the spaces and neighbourhoods Northeastakhuni migrants inhabit, I turnto theeveryd ay.dietarypractices �d thecirculation of stews, curries forNortheast StudentsNisitors in Delhi'.Two food iternsakhuni. that appeared on akhuni the list as likelyto cause conflict were bamboo shoots and The Delhi and chutneys in,New Delhi. By presentingakhuni the perspectives of eaters in the city,I highlight the emergenceof affects,hY which I mean (a) how Policepamphlet akhuniadvised NortheastIndian residents in the nation'scapital that akhuni 'bamboo shoot, and other smelly dishes should be prepared without consumers identifytheir sense ofbeing modem and negotiateeveryday creating ruckusin neighbourhood' (Dholabhai 2007: 1).23 obstacles; and (b) the relationship between consumption, modernityand the EatingAkhuni in India r.,, 99 98 ,.,. DollyKikon -different:So-when it comes to ak.huni;it does not smelllike chicken or pig shit reasoning_that certain foodand smells,ought to be eliminated fromthe public or human shit.It has its own smell; it is the akhuni'smell... every being shits space by-claims offunctional necessity.:There is no dispute that smellyfood and emit; differentsmellso .. human body smells differ_entfrom that ofa goat or literally createsa stinkin therelationship between the migranttribal population p�g, and� callit a hu!J)._an.smell:_Using_tha�same logic we callthe fermented from the.-Noitheastern region and.dominant social gioups in -New Delhi. By _Soya be_ans theakhun_i smell. How else to. definesmell? Therefore, whe� some dominant social ·groups, I refer-tO those sections of societythat;frameindian people likeit and o#iers,don't, it comes downto one's taste. culinarytradition based -on ideas of race and caste and notions of purityand pollution.In that context,Arjun Appadurai notes that foodand consumption 'Whatkind of food do Northeast people eat? Is this curry made of shit?' among Hindu societies in ·SouthAsia, more than in any other culturearound Anita, a student frOin_Nagal �d,__ quoted her neighbo�.w�-? made thiscomment the world,'are imbuedwith strong moral and cosmological meaning (Appadurai about akhu;,,i.Arut"a ·also _lived in Hu�ayanp�, w4ere windows opened onto 1981). It is widelyaccepted that foodpreferences significantly connect social thick wallsand into the, neighbours'bedroomsand kitchens.Anita emphasized groups. So strongare· these associations that an entire social wo_rld of control, that thelonger one cooked thefermented food, the tastierit became. Cooking a desire, taboo and transgression areproduced around them (Mintz1986; Douglas cakeof akhuni;Sheadded water to bring out the textureand consistency of the 1966; Janer, 2008; Farb and Armelagos 1980; Bhatracharya 2008;Jha 2009). smell willbe all over our locality. One day when I akhuni dish and said:'By now the Describing her dilemma in decidingwhether to eat every day, Lucy, was cooking this dish, a boywho cameup to deliversome package commented ve a professionalfrom Manipur who calls the cityher home, said: 'I cannot li "What a terriblesmell!Even if someone givesme $1,000 I willnot eat it!" But withakhuni, neither can I live withoutakhuni". While this food createdtension whatever people say,once people get the taste and likeit, they cannot leav� i\. in her neighbourhood,an upscale localityin New Delhi,she also spoke about Despite such rude comments, Anitasaid, 41 will eat this food as long as I live. a conflict thatoccurred betweenher cousin, a tenant in Humayanpur,and the Yet,she appeared anxiousabout theimplications of the smell on her body and building owner over the cooking of'smelly'food. Requesting her cousin to be noted: 'If we cook inthe gas stove, the smellis allover our body. So wehave to sensitive,Lucy told him to refrainfrom cooking akhunievery day. Wehave to wash up nicely and change our clothes to get rid of thesmell'. It is important admit it reallysmells', she said, and shared methodsto enjoy the dish discreetly. moments 1 to recognize thesesigns of apprehension and anxietybecause such 1 do_ not boil it. I Pour hot W"aterand coverit. After it has cooled down, I add expose the instability and prejudices about how one eats certain food and garlic, chilli,salt, and onions. It stilltastes good', she said. whereit is eaten. Eating fermented foodin thenation's capital, then, captured The pleasures of eating akhuniwere obvious.I was barely able to keep up theprejudice that is inherent in everyday social interactions in urban India. with the number of recipes that my informa:rits shared with me. But I was Therefore ' Anita's assertionsthat she wouldeat ·· akhunias long as she livedwas also unable to ignore how, irrespectiveof the wondei-fulnotes of praise, allof e not simply due to the flavourof thefood, but ·could be seen as her opp sition themunderlined that the food possessed a specialscent/smell/aroma. During � . to the hostility thisfood atrracted, and a declarationof self-respect and d1grnty. a conversation with Bokato in N agaland, I asked him about the smell of Describing Huma�puras a cosmopolitanplace, Anitasaid: 4People come akhuni.He linked the process of makingit withits taste, a methodI described here from differentcultures and states. Some of themdo not like thesmell. They earlier in this chapter. Then, he described how smell played a significant role say that they willcomplain to the landlord, but we tellthem that everyone has i1,1 generating the contours and knowledge of particular social �paces and their own curry, so this is our curry.We are not cookingit everyday because geographies. Elaborating,he stated: even we know that it smells'. Such negotiationswere routine in the locality. James, Anita'sneighbour from Manipur,described how he accommodated this Yes, akhunihas a peculiarsmell. Some people willget headachebecause of that. 'It You cannot blocksmell; it will come and go.The smell of akhuniis limitless. food in his life. Hejoked and said: has a very nice smell!', but also quicldy It canbe compared to a personsmokin g; thesmell travels. But those who are expressed that he feltvulnerable. 'We love thisitem but it createsproblems. I addicted to it, theylike the smell. am worried about thelandlord, so I am using an exhaustfan. If thelandlord akhuni, thatI amcooking he willbe veryangry. He might ask ... But there aredifferent kinds. of smell.For instance,the smell of rottingmeat comes to know to to cook thisitem. Suppose is differentfrom chicken shit. By thatlogic, pig shit and human shit also smell me vacate theroom. That is why lookI forchances l,, l11

I,, als ,, 1 e lo r e ay 1, t)'\�,W,c\JRfil,i;Wllta� hplll;;tl;w�l c;oqk �t111,i.,�p :NF ru: , 9. qkingfo , th conteil'.lporary,India.Tli"'eye,,yd gaSt[q,pq)iticstliatencolllp"!ses the jars of. �� ffil','stf?;f?P!,.,�jw;,foqd', ,,,, , . ;, . , A spices. aiulcherbs in .onc;'s�tchen:,,tretching:from l:lagdograto Dimapw;to the I ��t(A'!gf\l\1�,Hyi'lg,jll;J:?�Jl1L,;hq9�e, W,,eyJSp9q, at:� .sniells;like; 'slut' o p l .o o i s t e ha en � m leX �y�� f-me.txi i � � p3:�q� ap.<.l_t.aqt�,a .Il�. ��-. yeryd1ay.en,� ptm �s is,,Wi�,eqgJ1i1,e 1\11�,IIlµ ltiJ?)e �oµditjo,ll'!.c '!ll4, h1"'\c:J:erisiiq cf mo, ,d"!nity.,in ai:iP. ...�nx ietj�s. 9f pcii:i.g · moc\�m;. d�ws. ow;:8.tt: e11:tion..'.towar.�s r_he;: mfil:ti°:1-de - a c�n;it�#B9!W,lB��;:_:;fi�.$ii·1?-9Wi;- _ �e:ry.x:cP,i�� ;-,d{e i: i�o,;,.�. anq.,.:�ad�tiP_ns. :pf. 3r st�. �4 pe_rfof9l�i;�s�l;t.at are_,.p_l yed. �u� .. 41:. sonre�p�ra,i:yln,c,ij_ .a. ,Ther.e is I sffl-�1 P.10:.��i;�ty _w;,l1cpn���y P1:�.rro�t�4:Rr, -�Jaµl�s ·.J;ergu�qn,pu�. it,. 110:��puti. :abpti�. W�:,P.1?ic:ejJ��ff:!����e:4. ·f?,9-4'..:li� ·_ak.qui,i_ o r .smelly,food on 11 . ·- '¥\',\IJ4P�dl'! qo\Y111,Sh,�ll,,a nd. �h�tt�refl'. {Fer!;l/so,n,i9.99:13); and S\';<;Ond, the natiOn's. :dirtl�g .. 1:ap1e:iit" 15 . �eaay_ p�seilt· ..an_d. pro�4ly s_takes its �pace, ,,I . . _ . ,, h9w,µief0�\i�µ,,ei,oferu;terq,Hu,i�yan socie*s,}elegated to tribal and de�pite a�emj,i:s to_ . dislodge it. Ther,C�o�,. y �C?ajliC:t ::i-�o:ut eliminating or ,, . . . � . !f eJ�en�ary.st.3:�s, i-4.ptµre_ ,thei;ic;:.�t bt;1nc;lle;.,of,IJilOd�rnicy. In�te�d.qf.restricting t retaining it fromthe tabl� :necessit�tes how, one·� ng,�ges_ with dietary practices ;> . I Of consumption andthe.i,r utlderstandiflg ab?ut veryc;iaypolitics� geographies, f�rm,��!t:i;\,fi 0:1;L,� o, a -�iPAA �tchen,.akhU?J-� e�ters ,in tji� n�t!ol1's:capitµ are ' ' ·e · prep�!=!4-ito--:eihlbiti_i� pi;es�nceµI·_ their. li� d�spi:t�-_tjie_ protest and col)filct f and people's histor��s. thi�,e.ngendti:s..,ro underline how she was willingto accommodate other food I h practices,Anita des cribed thethick airof masala and oilthat waftedi nto er I' Not10s. hedrqqm frpm, her North Indian neighbour's aparttnent. She said: 'It is like I' 1. A shorter.version .of this-chapter, titles 'FermentingModernity: Putting Akhuni on ii.f��alife�d�� '6tltures and ways of cooking..There are some people ,, thltTte�� .the Nation'sTable in India'., ha.clappeared in $outb,Asia.·Journa./.of SouthA.si�n Studies. . · c . r Who:Use·t00 much,niasala�We, an ·smellJtfrom niiles;away.Those smells also .Necessary·permissions for.th(:_preseµt- elaborat. iOn havebeen taken., aonoy,us,,(But),peopbshouldunderstaod one another,instead of complaining I 2. For the, comple.te· {)iece visit. -www.�elegra})h.'c"o.uk!t!avel/destinations/asia/ and,shouting/Fhis is how God created us aod we should be proud ·of the way I Uldia/74i091/No-silkworm-curry-tod8.y-sir.html'(.Accessed on 17 November2014); I 3. Source:Author · wC"live:-and,whatwe· eae,, I 4. Anishe is prepared,by smoking. and.-dryingthe yam leaf paste. t: 5. Source:Author Coiidus111n: 6. SOurce·: Shuji:Yoshida (1998) published in History ofNatto and itsRelatives (1405- ·::-:":;:!\,·· 2012). Compliedby William Shurtleffand. AkikoA� yagi, publishedby the Soya Indhµi,cµlinary'[n��onalis1p,e;xists.vs;thin a.tedious. 11",tionalfood fi:amework Info �enter. · · that is. pereftofan illlmensevariety. of f) avoursand herbs)n thischapter, J have ·7. To followthe history and Nepali recipes of fermentedsoya beans: http://localn epalifood. �ed)19w:this.is�ptQ!Ilatic;pfao noappetizing con ceptofcitizenshiprig hts, wordpress.com/1.ocal-nqlali-foo�kinema/(Accessed on 28 �overrj.ber2014)\ !;1/"f'Ilte�i,,and, 4•!!l?IT.'PY·.Ais, l, have delllqnsfrat9�i:;�gcizr J1?w .w��nitii�: f<:'U�n�ly�Q_apt �o .�ew,�d. ��'- tast�s, 11. lJ1e· Jndian,·. mecija,.and· .official; reports always· referred to. the· Naga nationalistsas in 1 and. �RQ�.eytj.�p.s1 JP, �i;ed, wa�. 7: :� p,ip_fh9f .. fermented soya beans,· a dash , �gtti.d� yputh:(who, . p(eS�ably,.n��cl�o . h�;hrought .back .to, the maiq.stre_am) and �os e� (Who �ed� to. ,b'e de�t , thsterply). , Of course, this cOvered almost of rurp:ier.�t;., ,pr:�)1��.9(��.b.09��- oo,��-!� i�. '1e�,. m,_thr_ .in�a�� sp_.1:c.�� _qf _ tjt Jl : _. ':".1 . · ,,, : ..... , ofNai,i.sodetyfro,lli'195ito1997.' -· the.kitqen, tlieblurred bonodaries �fa ge?graph\calreg!?n, .ari4tlie c=,ryday "all'· ,, , ''·:' ,,_. I ' • ;;1· neg_�tj3:� C?�S b(:�e��,.:11las�,. eater�._a�4 a�hu�/ _c�nsup:ier_s:i� New_ b,elhi, . : 'Y��-�eoft��.�Co_infort�bli_ye t_ i:C?µ_tipi,1ti�� . CV'�rr,d3:y,1:1otio_n�of 9�;;�_n,s1iip� b�?��g,·qemo�.a�C,.sp��e�,.3f����� t���& pf.S�cul�istp._. ar� C?fl:Stant:lr . - · Anderson,B; 1983.,Jmagined Communiii.eS:RejleCtion.son · the Originand Spread of Nationalism. challenged. . , ', )and - -' redefined' . · 'in powerful., ., . ways. I - ·. " .. ···· · ' , · ,. . , · ! - , _. - . : .... . London: Verso. One of the centtal argnments !havehighlighted in this chapter has been Appadurai,.A.. 1.9�1._'pastro-Politi�. iQ. :Hindu._�outhAsia.' American Ethnologist8 (3): thf:·presen�C or"fCr�ented, and smell)''rood In .the register5 of modf:rnity in 494--511. 102 ,.. DollyKikon

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Minerva Access is the Institutional Repository of The University of Melbourne

Author/s: Kikon, D

Title: Eating Akhuni in India

Date: 2018-02-28

Citation: Kikon, D. (2018). Eating Akhuni in India. Bhushi, Kiran, (Ed.). Farm to Fingers The Culture and Politics of Food in Contemporary India, (first), pp.80-102. Cambridge University Press.

Persistent Link: http://hdl.handle.net/11343/198140

File Description: Published version