“What’s in a name?” Shakespeare asked this very eloquently in his 1597 epic – “Romeo and Juliet”. Little did he know that 7,000 miles East of London, in Calcutta, the “Bangalees” were scripting their own epic with the same theme; not in Literature, but in food. The same extends to Bengali food. “Chorchori”, “Ghonto”, …
The varied “Mangal Kabya” were introduced into the ancient literature of Bengal during 14th n15th centuries. The Welfare Verses sang the well-being n happiness, festivities n sufferings in the folk -life of contemporary Bengal. The verses were inspired by changing seasons, bounty of nature, rain-fall n harvest ,crops in the fields and rivers, grace of …
Dhoka – the name is steeped in history, irony, and despite its humble origins – is a pillar of Bengali “Niramish” food. The diamond shaped, crunchy on the outside yet fluffy on the inside fritters of chana dal and “motor” dal in a tomato, ginger and green chilly based gravy inspire sighs of happiness when you dig into it with your …
Picture this – it’s a cloudy afternoon, lightning and thunder accompany an intermittent rain – which at times, lashes, and at others, heavily drizzles. The wind sways the raindrops – angling toward you and away sometimes. The fragrance of petrichor engulfs your senses, as you suddenly feel a gentle rumble in your belly. What food …
There is an urban legend among a lot of Bengali families that in the early 1500s, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu came across a rather stubborn fisherman who wouldn’t budge an inch from his staunch non-vegetarian stance. It was his adamancy that forced Mahaprabhu to denounce Bengal and move to Puri (in present day Odisha). More than 500 …
