Today, I received a mail about a lecture on Cooking under the Raj, followed by a dinner. And, this was the menu.
M E N U
Soup
Mulligatawny Soup
Anglo Indian Pumpkin Soup
Non-Vegetarian
Captains Country Chicken
Anglo Indian Mutton Cutlets
Pork Vindaloo
Fish Cakes
Egg Curry
Vegetarian
Ladies-fingers Fugath
Country Captain of Vegetables
Brinjal Bharta
Spiced Fried Potatoes
Dal Khichuri
Rice & Roti
Chutneys/Pickles / Garnishes
Desserts
Bread and Butter Pudding
Banana Fritters
Ice Cream
(Rs. 450/- + 10% S.C. + 12.5% V.A.T.)
Apparently, after independence (shall we just say after a change in the management) in 1947, when the exploiting colonizers left this land under Brahminical fascists, feudal lords, and exploiters, besides the legacy of a more organized and a wide spread way of exploitation, the British had also left something else; something that deserves a lecture and even a dinner after 60 odds years. Yea, something called as the anglo-indian cuisine had evolved and the management that took over after them still preferred the ways of the British. What’s revealing about this is the fact that, nothing much has actually changed. What did the poor worker, dalit or farmer who fought to get the British out actually gain? Nothing! Nothing at all! This management has all along been doing just what the British did; these dinners and lectures are just repugnant and puss-filled reminders of the amount of struggle the poor workers, dalits, or farmers have to wage against the capitalists, the brahminical fascists, and the super powers of the world for realizing a world that’s truly humane and ‘fit’ for ‘humanity’!
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2 comments:
Well, it's possible that this is just a cultural foray? The Anglo Indian culture is a lacuna and curiosity that has been quite left out of the area of serious academic interest. The dinner could be a comment on the lecture, a matter of content meeting form. I understand that you have a problem with the way it's done, the pageantry of all cultural meets, the way it exposes the gaping gap between the moneyed and the moneyless. But if that is so, all book readings, book launches, lecture demos, plays etc that have associated dinner and cocktails and held under the auspices of councils and consulates of ex-empires or world powers should be suspect as well.
Moushumi
I feel this usage is redundant "poor workers, dalits, or farmers." What say, editor? Eh.
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