© 2019 JETIR February 2019, Volume 6, Issue 2 www.jetir.org (ISSN-2349-5162) Hierarchisation of Culture: Experimenting Bourdieu’s Cultural Capital in Ustad Hotel. Abstract This paper analyses the Malayalam movie, Ustad Hotel, directed by Anwar Rasheed, using the conceptual frameworks of Pierre Bourdieu in its relation to Culture Studies. The film highlights the young protagonist’s bred-in-the-bone desire to become an established Chef against his father’s wishes. But his grandfather, who dwells in Calicut by running the “Ustad Hotel”, not only teaches him many practical lessons of cooking but also offers him an insight regarding the true purpose behind this profession. A romantic comedy, the movie has been noted for the special attention it gives to food cuisine and its nuances peculiar in the land of Calicut. But this paper considers the film as privileging with Bourdieu’s concept of cultural capital, analysing those cultural productions that give us social mobility. The three different forms of the cultural capital – institutionalised, objectified and embodied – are also identified in relation with the different characters and events in the film. Thus he makes a bridge between culture and society which renders the theoretical relevance of the concepts in culture studies. Finally, with Bourdieu’s concept of “habitus” this paper studies the deep-seated skills, experiences and personality of the hero as well as his grandfather and the ending episodes of the film which reflects the complete transformation of the hero. Keywords: Pierre Bourdieu, Culture Capital, Habitus, Social Mobility, Food, Calicut. Paper Elegantly written by Anjali Menon and dexterously directed by Anwar Rasheed, the film Ustad Hotel stars Dulquer Salman, Thilakan and Nithya Menon in lead roles with a stellar side cast including veterans like Siddique, Mamukkoya,etc. The story revolves around the deep-seated aspirations of Faizi(played by Dulquer) to become a chef against the stiff opposition from his ambitious father Abdu(played by Siddique) who yearns to erase his identity of being the son of a cook himself. As the father-son relationship strains, Faizi retreats to his ancestral town in Kozhikode (Calicut) to help his grandfather Karimkka(played by Thilakan) run his antique restaurant “Ustad Hotel”. What starts out as a way to kill time soon turns into a passion for Faizi. A healthy bond is weaved in between the grandfather, a Sufi Muslim, and his educated grandson. The former not only succeeds in teaching his grandson many unique cooking tips but also effectively inculcate the qualities of love and servitude associated with this profession. Food and its nuances that uphold the culture and bonding of every society act as a central catalyst of personal transformation for Faizi. The film won three National awards and also several other accolades. The film throws unwavering light on the land of Calicut, beginning with a beatific remark, “If there is heaven on earth, then it is here” (Ustad Hotel). The panoramic view of Calicut is presented through the visualisation of the routine cultural lives of the natives. An abode of good taste and quality is near the Calicut beach and it appeals the localites and the foreigners equally. The special Malabar Biriyani served in this abode or Ustad Hotel attaches a unique cultural identity to it. Two of the most often cited and sophisticated theorists of Sociology and Culture, Pierre Bourdieu and Jean-Claude Passeron, in the essay “Cultural Reproduction and Social Reproduction” describes the concept of “cultural capital” that takes its root from the Marxist concept of economic capital. Highly influenced by Marxist ideas, Bourdieu claimed that the capital formed the foundation of social life and it determines one’s position within the social order. Both theorists, Marx and Bourdieu, believed that, the more capital one has, the more powerful a position one occupies in social life. However, Bourdieu extended Marx’s idea of capital beyond the economic domain and penetrates into the more symbolic realm of culture. Bourdieu’s concept of cultural capital refers to the collection of symbolic elements such as knowledge, education, skills, tastes, posture, mannerisms, life experiences, clothing, material belonging, etc that one acquires through being part of a social class. Sharing similar forms of cultural capital with others JETIR1902B37 Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (JETIR) www.jetir.org 274 © 2019 JETIR February 2019, Volume 6, Issue 2 www.jetir.org (ISSN-2349-5162) creates a sense of collective identity and group position. Cultural capital is pertinent because it gives us power, helps us achieve our goals and thereby paves the way to climb up the social ladder without any financial capital. In other words, cultural capital is having assets that give us social mobility. In Bourdieu’s seminal book entitled Distinction: A Social Critique of the Judgement of Taste, he also posits that though our taste preferences influence our external social structures as well as our subjective positions as individuals, it is also a major source of social inequality as it divides the modern society into hierarchised communities. Cultural capital is understood as the “symbolically valued cultural accoutrements and attitudes” (Grenfell and Hardy, 30). In the essay “The Forms of Capital”, Bourdieu makes three classifications of cultural capital - institutionalised, objectified and embodied - enhance the application of it into our own lives. In its institutionalised form, cultural capital refers to credentials and qualifications such as degree or titles that symbolise cultural competence and authority. A collection of material objects such as a luxury car is an example of cultural capital in its objectified state. One’s socialisation, personality and education determine his embodied cultural capital. Ustad Hotel supplies ample episodes to analyse it in the light of cultural capital. Cultural Capital in an Institutionalised State Different institutions furnish multiple influences on our cultural dispositions. Institutionalised cultural capital is the way in which the society measures, certifies and ranks our social capital. Academic qualifications and degrees are prime examples while job titles, religious titles and political offices also become part of this category. A Doctorate has more capital than Masters, which has more capital than Graduation. Faizi with his hereditary orientation to cooking believes that his luck lies in the profession of Chef. He immensely values it and even achieves his Masters in Chefdom from Lausanne, Switzerland. His quality of being foreign educated and his father’s monetary back up renders him the capital to be chosen for a rich man’s daughter, Shahana. Also Shahana presents herself to be educated and adept in interior designing who aspires to extend her institutionalised capital by being a part of Faizi’s father’s dream project, a five star hotel in Calicut. Bourdieu emphasized that cultural capital exists in a system of exchange with economic and social capital. Economic capital refers to money and wealth while social capital refers to the collection of social relations one has at one’s disposal. The three can and often are exchanged for one another. The more capital you accumulate the more rewards you earn. Not only because of Karimkka’s recommendation but also Faizi’s scholastic achievements added to his fast recruitment in the expensive Beach Pay International Hotel. He proves his acumen during the Fusion Food Festival held in this hotel specially intended for the foreigners. For this event, the team led by Faizi made combinations of Kerala cuisines with European oat dishes. One of his experiments was an entree of Kerala porotta with a portion of Spanish omelette. So with his father Abdu’s economic capital Faizi receives cultural capital as well as social capital. Later on this acquired knowledge, values, skills, experience and behaviour help him garner the post of Executive Chef in a hotel in Paris offered by Chef Philip whom Faizi met during the Fusion cuisine. Cultural Capital in an Objectified State In an objectified state, cultural capital refers to the material objects we own such as any work of art or books, durable items like furniture, accessories, the food we prefer, etc, which can be related to our conditions of living. The sartorial competence of a person represents the cultural resource of the owner. Our material possessions also signify our economic class bringing in the notion of social hierarchy. Ustad Hotel portrays a clear cut demarcation of social status based on the objects owned by the characters. When Abdu travels in luxurious cars in Dubai, Karimkka’s movement is through an old van running in its dilapidated state. Abdu’s flamboyant and extravagant ‘Razak Mansil’ (residence) and Shahana’s iconic bungalow with unique architectural schemes in Dubai are brutally contrasted with the poor living conditions of Karimkka and his associates in Calicut. When the five starred Beach Pay Hotel decides to expand its properties, they conspire plans to defame and demolish the nearby hotel of Karimkka. He laments that his entire world (Ustad Hotel) has been shrunken to the mere corner of Beach Pay’s plans. The central cuisine of Beach Pay, the special Malabar Biriyani of three-fifty rupees has the borrowed recipe from Karimkka’s hotel where the same is sold at thirty-five rupees. JETIR1902B37 Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (JETIR) www.jetir.org 275 © 2019 JETIR February 2019, Volume 6, Issue 2 www.jetir.org (ISSN-2349-5162) Cultural Capital in its Embodied State Bourdieu observes that the cultural capital exists “in the embodied state, i.e. in the form of long- lasting dispositions of the mind and the body” (17). The embodied state holds the view that the knowledge we acquire through socialisation and education stays with us and influence our personality and demeanor. Karimkka, the veteran cook, does not run the hotel for profit but sees it as a means to impart love and service to others.