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Glimpse of Culinary Culture of Gujarat Through Travelogues

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Glimpse of Culinary Culture of Gujarat Through Travelogues Vol. 5 No. 3 April 2021 E-ISSN: 2456-5571 Glimpse of Culinary Culture of Gujarat through Travelogues Ms. DARSHANA BUCH Assistant Professor, Department of Foundation Courses Smt. M. M. P. Shah Women’s College of Arts and Commerce (Autonomous), Matunga, Mumbai Dr. MOHSINA MUKADAM Associate Professor, Depatment of History Ramnarain Ruia Autonomous College, Matunga, Mumbai Abstract Food is very important marker of cultural heritage of a nation. Regional food reflects geographical, social identity and culture. Gujarat is home to an extremely diverse human population, the result of thousands of years of intercultural contact, conflict, and exchange. A travelogue or an itinerary is a travel writing of literary value. In olden times accounts of travellers throw valuable light, give us an account of the prevalent social milieu and a deep insight into their culture and habitation, trade and economy. This research paper therefore aims to give a glimpse of culinary practices of Gujarat region of India through the accounts of foreign travellers. Gujarat is home to an extremely diverse human population, the result of thousands of years of intercultural contact, conflict, and exchange Keywords: regional cuisine, travelogues, food, culture Introduction states that, the proximity to the sea front and accessibility "The world is a book, and those who don‟t travel read to inland routes served as a gateway from earliest times only one page." by way of commercial activities. This geographical setting - St. Augustine of Gujarat provided easy accessibility to travelers, Every region of India has its own unique identity ambassadors, merchants, envoys to enter India via the which is determined by various factors such as language, sea ports. Their impression of the land and people were architecture, costumes, dances, music etc. One such documented in their travelogues. Traveler‟s account of the factor is Food.However it is observed that not much agricultural products, trade activities, dietary practices and attention is paid to systematic documentation of Indian food taboos are of immense value to understand food food. Due to the paucity of sources for studying food culture of the region. In the absence of contemporary history, one needs to explore less conventional sources of cookbooks descriptions of cooked food given in history. In present paper an attempt is made to study food travelogues helps us to know the dietary habits of people practices of Gujarat region as mentioned in the travelers‟ of Gujarat. These travelers gives vivid description of food accounts. Travelogues are a part of unconventional yet an of royalty as well as commoners, of the festivities and important historical source which give us an account of fasts. The present research paper, thus, tries to catch a the prevalent social milieu and a deep insight into the glimpse of food practices of Gujarat through few culture and habitation of the places the travelers visited. travelogues. The geographical position of Gujarat along with its Alexander‟s invasion of India opened not only new easy accessibility from the north, north-west, west and roadways to India but it also generated the curiosity about south has been particularly responsible for its historic India. From 4th century B.C.E onwards many Greek past.1 Renowned archaeologist Dr. Hasmukh D Sankalia travelers visited India and recorded their impressions. Noteworthy among them was an unknown author of the End Notes Periplus of the Erythrean Sea. According to the author of the Periplus of the Erythrean sea Bhṛ gukaccha 1 Hasmukh Sankalia, „Prehistoric and Historical Archaeology of Gujarat’, Munshiram Manoharlal publishers, Mumbai,1987, pp (Bharuch) was the principal distributing centre of western 156-159 . India from where the merchandise brought from abroad Bodhi International Journal of Research in Humanities, Arts and Science 47 Vol. 5 No. 3 April 2021 E-ISSN: 2456-5571 was carried to the inland centers. First Chinese pilgrim to Cuisine of Gujarat visit Gujarat was Hiuen-Tsang (630-645 C.E.) His Talking about the food habits of Maitrakas during his visit detailed description of 110 kingdoms that he visited has to Saurashtra, Kachchh region, Hieun Tsang, the most earned the title as „Gazetteer of India‟. Some of these celebrated Chinese traveler specially observed the rich kingdoms were from the Gujarat region. He describes variety of rice. Among the varieties of rice, he mentions different articles of food and fruits found on Indian plains. that sali is considered the best to eat.4 According to him From the writings of Arab traders who came to India in the wheat was another important food crop abundantly 9th and the 10th centuries one gets the impression of produced in the regions of Kheta (Kheda) and Gujarat as fertile and prosperous state. Al-Beruni(973 - Anandapura (Vadnagar)5. He observes that the houses 1048 C.E) historian of Takrikh I Hind travelled through are filled with piles of charcoal, cotton, rice, fruits, trading centre of Asaval, on the AnhilvadaPatan route vegetables during the Maitrakarule. BothHieun Tsang and from Cambay2. Moroccan traveller Ibn Batuta (1332-1346 I-tsing mentioned about oil seeds being extensively used C.E.) in his „Rehla‟ described Cambay as the most for the preparation of different food items. 6Al Idrisi (1099- important port accessible for the oceanic trade. 1165 C.E) and Al Masudi (896-956 C.E), Arab Asia was perceived as a land of myths and fables by Geographers mention about Bhṛ gukaccha being the the western world. It was only when travelers, beginning principal flourishing centre and wheat being the main crop with Marco Polo (1292 C.E.) returned to Europe with their for the trade.7 while describing the food of the people of eye witness accounts that a new dimension and Naharwala they say that they live upon rice, peas, beans, perception of India was brought to light3. Duarte Barbosa, haricots, lentils, mash, fish and animals. (1500-1517) Portuguese traveller, visited Champaner and The use of rice was especially mentioned by almost gave eyewitness accounts about the food habits of that all Arab travelers. Ibn Masah mentions that rice and cow‟s region. By the 15th and 16th centuries, more European milk served as the main items in Gujarat. The Indians travelers began to arrive in India for trade as a result of believed that the diet consisting exclusively of rice and the facilitation of transport. During Mughal reign many cow‟s milk was beneficial for the maintenance of a sound European travelers like Edward Terry, Francisco Pelsaert, and prolonged life. It was also useful for good complexion. Niccolao Fray Sebastian Manrique Manucci, Albrecht de Testifying to the same views Marco Polo (1292 C.E) the Mandelslo, Jean Baptiste Tavemier, Francois Bemier, venetian merchant, documented in his famous book ‟The John Fryer visited Gujarat.We find the travelers Travels‟ that, the naked ascetics of Gujarat who ate discussing the agricultural produce, trade, and food habits nothing but a little rice and milk and live up to the age of of the people. Ludovico-di-Varthema (1502-1508C.E), 150 or 200 years. Duarte Barbosa, describes the diet of Italian traveler visited India and reported his travel banias-(merchant community in Gujarat) mainly narratives in „The king of Cambay‟(Khambhat). Besides composed of rice, milk, butter, sugar, fruits, vegetables these travelers, three Englishmen; Henry Lord, Sir and herbs8. He further mentions that, milk and butter Thomas Herbert, Peter Mundy representing East India played an important role in their lives. As they married at Company did also visit Gujarat in the reign of Shahjahan. a very early age, milk was given to girls to become mature The early Surat factory records gives glimpses of local culinary delights enjoyed by officers of East India 4 Thomas Watters, „On Yuan Chwang's travels in India, 629-645 Company. A.D.‟, Royal Asiatic Society, London, 1904, p. 168-172 5 Ibid., p.168 6 Ibid, p. 178 7 Adhya B. Saxena,’Urban Growth in South Gujarat: A Case Study 2 Elliot and Dowson, „The History of India as Told by Its Own Of Bharuch From Fourteenth To Mid-Eighteenth Century,‟ Historians’, Trübner& Co., London, 1867, p.87. Proceedings of the Indian History Congress, Vol. 62,2001, pp. 3 Manuel Kamroff, ’The Travels of Marco Polo’, The Modern Library, 227-238 New York,1931, pp106-07 8 Dr. Sadaf Fatma,‟Urban life in Mughal Gujarat‟ unpublished M. Phil dissertation,http://ir.amu.ac.in/8483/1/DS%204197.pdf Bodhi International Journal of Research in Humanities, Arts and Science 48 Vol. 5 No. 3 April 2021 E-ISSN: 2456-5571 and butter to the boys9.Ludovico-di-Varthema preparations is mentioned. Various types of dishes were observesthat Jains who are found in good number in the served to them, but mainly of non-vegetarian as Muslims kingdom of Cambay subsist on the diet of milk, butter, were very fond of it. Generally, the food was prepared sugar and rice and they also prepared number of dishes with meat, rice, butter oil (cinictissilvestris and sesamuni'), of fruits, vegetables and pot herbs. saffron, raisin, almond, salt, pepper, garlic, cloves, Rice probably was cooked in different ways but one Various types of dishes were served to these travelers. rice dish which these travelers find worth mentioning is The foremost dish according to John Ovington (1689- khichadi.Even today this dish is eaten by the people in 1693 C.E.) was pulao. In his travelogue „Voyage to Surat‟ Gujarat across all sections of society. Ibn Batuta he describes “palao that is rice boiled so artificially that describes „Kishri’ as -moong boiled with rice and eaten every grain lies singly without being clodded together with after adding ghee. He further mentions that this dish was spices intermixt and a boiled fowl in the middle, is the prepared and eaten by the commoners in Gujarat.
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