Bad Table Manners

What if a simple loaf of bread could tell the story of an entire place, its resilience, its politics and poetry? In this episode of Whetstone Audio Dispatch, host Meher Varma takes us deep into the heart of Srinagar, Kashmir, where the unmistakable aroma of freshly baked tchot leads her to the neighborhood kandur, a traditional bakery that’s far more than just a place to buy bread.Through conversations with bakers, poets, and everyday customers, we uncover how these bakeries, modest structures built of brick and smoke, have become cornerstones of community life, sacred tradition, and resistance. We meet legendary Zareef Ahmed Zareef, who traces the 4,000-year-old roots of Kashmiri baking, and listen to local myths where mystics emerge from tandoors bejeweled and unburned.Whether it’s feeding a neighborhood during a curfew, sharing unspoken trust through pay-later systems, or trading morning news, bread becomes a portal into an unseen Kashmir, one where bread is more than sustenance; it is survival, spirit, and social glue.This episode was made possible by the support of @heirloomcities

In September 2020, the government of India approved a series of agricultural acts, often referred to as the “Farm Bills.” What was proposed threatened to change the state of agriculture in India forever, and thus, inspired a long farmers' protest that is only just coming to a conclusion (thanks to a recent announcement that confirms the laws have been repealed). This episode tracks my journey to Tikri border — located on the capital’s suburbs — where thousands of farmers lived as they protested the effects of neoliberalism on Indigenous agricultural systems. Cooking with the community and feeding everyone who came to the site (including the police!) was one crucial way in which solidarity was cemented. My guide, and the guest of this show, is the inspirational activist Navkrian Natt, who along with thousands of farmers, resisted injustice with all her heart. Learn more about this episode of Bad Table Manners at www.whetstoneradio.com, on IG and Twitter at @whetstoneradio, and YouTube at WhetstoneRadio.

Beginning with a brief history of Tibetans in exile, this episode explores how food can create imaginary homelands, even if it means that authenticity itself needs to be invented and reinvented. Three Tibetans in the diaspora, Jamyang Phuntsok, Tencho Gyatso, and Nima Dorjee, are the guests on this episode. Through conversations that range from personal histories to current food interests, we will talk about gastronomy and memory, tsampa as a potential political tool, and what role food can play for a community in exile. Topics covered in this episode: Min 0:00: The idea of home as connected to food Min 1:42: Meet Jamyang Phuntsok Min 1:58: Meet Tencho Gyatso Min 2:40: Meet Nima Dorjee Min 4:34: An overview of Tibetan food in India Min 6:30: The popularization and adaptation of momos Min 10:09: Politics of tsampa Min 16:32: On authenticity in the context of exile Min 21:05: Chinese influence in Tibetan food Min 23:01: Food and solidarity Learn more about this episode of Bad Table Manners at www.whetstoneradio.com, on IG and Twitter at @whetstoneradio, and YouTube at WhetstoneRadio. Guests: Jamyang Phuntsok (@jongtrukh), Tencho Gyatso (@simplytibetan), Nima Dorjee Ethereal Relaxation by Kevin MacLeod Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/8719-ethereal-relaxation License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

The Mid-Day Meal feeds millions of schoolgoing Indian children daily, and has widely been considered one of India’s most successful welfare programs. Two economists who have been instrumental in its success, Jean Drèze and Reetika Khera, will uncover the history of this program, but also remind us that because what's on plates is always political, the future of welfare too, is uncertain. A focused discussion on the contentious introduction of the egg in the meal will, in particular, reveal how sometimes, unfortunately, political interests can trump the basic human right to food and nutrition. Topics covered in this episode: Min 0:00: What is the Mid-Day Meal? Min 1:50: Meet Jean Drèze Min 2:14: Benefits of the Mid-Day Meal Min 6:04: Criticisms of the program Min 7:00: Meet Reetika Khera Min 10:31: A strong case for the inclusion of eggs Min 12:51: The politics behind the egg Min 17:52: Why eggs over other sources of protein Min 24:11: Lobbying attempts by the biscuit industry Min 26:48: What Mid-Day Meal looks like today Learn more about this episode of Bad Table Manners at www.whetstoneradio.com, on IG and Twitter at @whetstoneradio, and YouTube at WhetstoneRadio. Guests: Jean Drèze, Reetika Khera

This episode presents a micro-history of contemporary Indian kitchen design, as told by Manju Sara Rajan, the editor of a prominent design magazine, and Madhav Raman, an award-winning architect in New Delhi. We look at what lies behind the urban, aspirational dream of two kitchens — one visible and one concealed — which has roots in a historical wet and dry kitchen binary. We also look at what interventions open and modular kitchens have made in this history, and what it means for gender and caste politics that still lie at the heart of Indian kitchen design. How do urban Indians negotiate the waves of aromas and the inevitability of oil splatters that come with making Indian food with their desire to showcase their Scandinavian-inspired kitchens in India all at once? We talk about how in urban India, the aspiration is really to have it all. Topics covered in this episode: Min 1:25: Meet Manju Sara Rajan Min 1:58: Concept of the wet and dry kitchen Min 4:30: Meet Madhav Raman Min 4:57: Economic liberalization in India Min 9:50: How the new apartment kitchen transformed the way people cooked Min 13:53: The front-of-house and back-of-house split Min 17:25: The fridge’s place in the Indian kitchen Min 23:06: Vastu-compliance Min 25:04: Future of Indian kitchen design Min 26:01: Gendered labor divide Min 30:07: How COVID affected Indian kitchens Learn more about this episode of Bad Table Manners at www.whetstoneradio.com, on IG and Twitter at @whetstoneradio, and YouTube at WhetstoneRadio. Guests: Manju Sara Rajan (@manjusararajan), Madhav Raman (@anagramarchitects)

To speak about Indian mangoes may be cliché, but because Indians never seem to tire of the subject, there’s always some juice. London-based writer, Nikesh Shukla, will humorously tell us how to devour one correctly – a skill most South Asians seem to inherently possess – while halfway justifying why our obsession for the fruit can and should live on. A conversation with food historian Vikram Doctor follows as he talks about the colonial legacy that underpins this obsession, and the parochialism that most Indians adopt as they cultivate their specific mango fetishes. I conclude in a kitchen with a Delhi-based pastry chef, Ruchi Vaish, who turns herself in as a Mango Obsessive. For her, mango season is the very best. Topics covered in this episode: Min 00:31: Meet Nikesh Shukla Min 3:27: How to eat a mango properly Min 4:30: Mango in literature Min 7:55: Meet Ruchi Vaish Min 8:02: Ways to cook and bake with mango Min 9:01: Meet Vikram Doctor Min 10:30: Alphonso mango, the “king of kings” Min 12:49: Is mango parochialism political? Min 17:37: The British love for mango pickles Min 21:08: Income hanging from a tree Min 30:20: A mango that’s “good for diabetics” Min 31:55: Making mango cheesecake with Ruchi Learn more about this episode of Bad Table Manners at www.whetstoneradio.com, on IG and Twitter at @whetstoneradio, and YouTube at WhetstoneRadio. Guests: Nikesh Shukla (@nikeshshuklawriter), Vikram Doctor (@vikram.doctor), Ruchi Vaish (@intheknowkitchen)

Here’s a peek at what’s coming up in the first season of #BadTableManners, launching this Wed, Dec 15!