'The Fellowship of Food': Culinary Capers in India

<p>  </p> <p>‘The Fellowship of Food’ is a special issue of Comixense, a quarterly comic magazine which focuses on a theme in each issue. This issue contains five stories about diverse culinary experiences, especially the relationship between food and cultural traditions in India. The geographical diversity of India is reflected in the variety of its regional cuisines and food practices. The story ‘Eating Saraswati’s Bahon’ set in Assam, is about religious restrictions and the dietary dilemmas they cause. The story ‘Hunger’ portrays the harsh reality of poverty and lack of access to food, and how the custom of ‘langars’ provides solace to the hungry. The story ‘Ininitable Wazwaan’ is about the Kashmiri tradition of the Wazwaan – a multi-course feast prepared by Kashmiri chefs for special occasions. ‘The Tell-Tale Tails’ is about Sikkimese cuisine, and its emphasis on fermenting. The story ‘Ukai’ is set in Japan and is about a young boy’s encounter with traditional cormorant fishing practices. The stories portray a gamut of emotions that food (or its lack) can evoke - it can foster a sense of fellowship, guilt, wretchedness, or a sense of belonging. The comics depict the emotional, cultural and social dimensions of food. They  also highlight the politicization of food in India along religious and class lines, especially the conflict between vegetarianism and non-vegetarianism, the plight of the poor who often go hungry, and the farmers’ protests in India in 2021 and 2024. </p>