According to Ayurveda, there are six tastes known as the ‘rasas’. Each rasa plays its own role in boosting health and influencing the taster’s mood. Thus, the perfect meal has to contain all six rasas: salty, sweet, pungent, sour, bitter, and astringent.
Salt, the first of these, has always been valuable in our country. The Tamil word ‘sambalam’, meaning wages, comes from samba (paddy) and alam (salt pans), as workers were paid in rice and salt. Salt is also a gauge of honour—derived from Urdu, the phrase ‘namak-haram’ refers to a traitor as someone who betrays the hand that has fed them.
Kala Namak in the style of Thangka painting—practised in Buddhist communities in andaround the Himalayas
Illustration: Anjali Narendra
Kala Namak
After the Dandi March, white salt conjures up the sounds of marching feet and the scent of sea breeze. But buried in the salt lakes of Rajasthan and the foothills of the Himalayas, lies a more colourful history. Kala Namak, a reddish-black rock salt, has been around for thousands of years. When finely powdered, it looks pink. Legend has it that Maharshi Charaka, the father of Ayurvedic medicine, documented its medicinal properties. According to him, Kala Namak is filled with minerals that aid digestion and enrich the body.
Did you know?
A sprinkle of Kala Namak is what gives chaat masala that distinct flavour. Its sulfuric smell, often likened to eggs, is also used to perk up vegan recipes.
Bhanumati Rajopadhye (now Athaiya), was born in Kolhapur in the year 1929. She was one of the seven children of self-taught artist and photographer, Annasaheb Rajopadhye. As Bhanu watched her father work alongside different directors and filmmakers, it opened her eyes to the world of art and film. Bhanu was a driven young woman, who was lucky to have parents whose beliefs aligned with hers. Her mother, Shantabai, as Bhanu has said, gave her the “freedom to move to a big city in pursuit of my studies at a time when women did not have such opportunities”. Her father, despite his passing away when she was just 10 years old, was her biggest pillar of inspiration, as she called him “her guiding light” throughout her entire life and professional career.
Around the age of 17, Bhanu moved to Mumbai to study painting at the JJ School of Art, but wound up being a little late for the admissions and was unable to attend that year. But, as fate intended, she decided to enroll at a private school, which led her to working at the magazine Fashion and Beauty as an illustrator, and then at Eve’s Weekly, which shifted her focus to fashion. Still managing to complete her initial goal, Bhanu graduated from the JJ School of Art in 1952, and became a part of the newly formed Progressive Artists’ Group. In 1953, she contributed three artworks to the PAG show in Mumbai, being the only woman who held this honour. Soon, Bhanu realised her talents aligned more with fashion design, completely changing her line of work.
Illustration: Prakash Sivan
Bhanu began designing clothes in a boutique, for a dazzling clientele of movie stars and socialites. In 1953, she began creating designs for films and her career skyrocketed when she was introduced to Indian actor and director, Raj Kapoor. This sparked a long-lasting partnership between the two, leading to memorable films with iconic costumes, such as MeraNaam Joker (1970), Satyam Shivam Sundaram (1978) and more. After the success of her initial projects, Bhanu became a sought-after designer. By the time colour entered the screens of India, she was ready to use her knowledge and take on the challenge of designing the now colour-enhanced costumes.
Bhanu had a meticulous approach towards her designs. She handpicked every aspect of the costume she was designing, in order to stay true to the setting. For the movie Reshma Aur Shera (1971), Bhanu travelled to the location of the plot — Pochina, Rajasthan — and “collected detailed information on every aspect of life in that village in order to conceive the look of the costumes”. Bhanu always considered herself a “director’s designer”, who did not work for fame, but for the director’s vision and betterment of the film. She knew the difference between costume design and fashion design, when she stated, “Any costume designer needs to remember that they are not creating clothes for the market, but for the character.”
Her big break arrived with the film Gandhi(1982). Richard Attenborough, the director of this film, said it took him seventeen years to set up the making of Gandhi, but only fifteen minutes to decide that Bhanu Athaiya would be the right designer for it. After analysing all the available photographs and hunting for every detail possible, Bhanu produced costumes that displayed the struggle and culture of life of the times. Everything was so perfectly depicted, that it won her an Oscar! Her win was not supported by everyone. Some people complained that the actors were dressed in extremely simple costumes, making them look ordinary and sometimes even shabby. But others knew that the film was not meant to be a fashion show, but rather, the reality of the common man living through that dark stage in Indian history — Bhanu had nailed the brief.
Even though this was the highest achievement of her career, Bhanu did not slow down. She continued to create beautiful costumes for some of India’s most respected films, such as Lagaan (2001), Lekin (1990) and others. In 2012, when she was informed that she had a brain tumour, Bhanu decided to send her Oscar back to Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in Los Angeles, for preservation. In 2020, Bhanu Athaiya passed away at the age of 91, leaving the world of cinema and costume forever changed. She is still remembered as the first Indian to win an Oscar, and a woman of incredible artistic vision.
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Pepper is a flowering vine that is grown for its peppercorns. Native to the Malabar Coast in India, Pepper is the most commonly traded spice in the world and is ubiquitous in cuisines all over the world. Apart from its unique spicy flavour, pepper also has multiple other uses. Some of them are:
As part of our ongoing series, read about some more Nobel Laureates with Indian origins, whose Indian roots, education or heritage have helped them earn international acclaim.
Har Gobind Khorana
Illustration: Prakash Sivan
Born in 1922, in Raipur village in Multan, Punjab (present-day Pakistan), Har Gobind Khorana was the youngest among his four siblings. His father, who was a village agricultural taxation clerk in the British government, was dedicated to educating all his children from an early age. The Khorana family was the only literate family in the village at that time, inhabited by about a hundred people. Khorana advanced his later education through scholarships, and he obtained his bachelor’s and master’s degree at the Punjab University, Lahore, in 1943 and 1945, respectively. He lived in British India till 1945 and then moved to England, where he got an opportunity to study organic chemistry at the University of Liverpool. Khorana moved to the United States in 1960, when he received an opportunity to join as a co-director of the Institute for Enzyme research at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. During his tenure at the university, he began his work on the genetic code, which led to his sharing the Nobel Prize in Medicine with his colleagues, Robert W. Holley and Marshall W. Nirenberg, in 1968. Khorana was granted American citizenship in 1966. He was awarded the Nobel Prize with Holley and Nirenberg, two years later for ‘their interpretation of the genetic code and its function in protein synthesis’. He also got recognition for his work in the construction of the first artificial gene in 1972. Khorana breathed his last on 9 November 2011, at the age of 89, in Concord, Massachusetts, United States.
Venkatraman Ramakrishnan
Illustration: Prakash Sivan
Born on 1 April 1952, Venkatraman Ramakrishnan is an Indian-born American structural biologist, who was awarded the Nobel Prize in chemistry with Israeli protein crystallographer, Ada Yonath and American biochemist, Thomas. A. Steitz, for their research into the structure and function of the cellular particles called ‘Ribosome’. Ramakrishnan was born in Chidambaram, Tamil Nadu, to a scientist couple, C.V. Ramakrishnan and Rajalakshmi Ramakrishnan. He completed his undergraduate degree in Physics, at Baroda University, Gujarat, in 1971 and moved to the United States where he obtained his Ph.D. degree from Ohio University, in 1976. After 1976, Ramakrishnan shifted his focus toward molecular biology. He began his work on the ribosome during his post-doctoral research in the laboratory of American molecular biophysicist and biochemist, Peter Moore, at Yale University, from 1978 to 1982. In 1999, Ramakrishnan accepted a position in the Medical Research Council Laboratory of Molecular Biology at the University of Cambridge, England and was made a fellow of the Royal Society of London in 2003. He became the first Indian-born president of the Royal Society in 2015. Ramakrishnan holds dual citizenship in the United Kingdom and the United States. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in 2009 and received the Padma Vibhushan, India’s second-highest civilian honour, in 2010.
Abhijit Banerjee
Illustration: Prakash Sivan
Born on 21 February 1961, in Mumbai, Maharashtra, Abhijit Banerjee, is an Indian-born American economist. He received his B.Sc. (Honours) degree in Economics from the University of Calcutta in 1981. Later, he completed his M.A. in Economics at the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), Delhi, in 1983 and earned his Ph.D. at Harvard University in 1998. He taught students for some time at Harvard University and Princeton University and is currently a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). In 2004, Banerjee was elected as a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Together with his wife Esther Duflo and fellow researcher Michael Kremer, he started working on a new methodology for the reduction of global poverty. In 2019, Banerjee shared the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences with Esther Duflo and Michael Kremer, ‘for their experimental approach to alleviating global poverty’. With this win, Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo, became the sixth married couple to jointly win a Nobel Prize.
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Indian thinkers, artists and academics have been making the country proud on a global level throughout contemporary times. In the second part of our series on Nobel Laureates with Indian origins, read about some more famous figures whose origins, experience, and education in India contributed to their journey in achieving the Nobel Prize.
Joseph Rudyard Kipling
Illustration: Prakash Sivan
Joseph Rudyard Kipling was born on 30 December, 1865, in Malabar Hill, Bombay Presidency, British India. At the age of six, Kipling was taken to the United Kingdom in 1871. Kipling obtained his education from the United Services College, England. In 1882, he returned to India and worked for Anglo-Indian newspapers such as the Civil and Military Gazette in Lahore and The Pioneer in Allahabad from 1883 to 1889. In 1894, Kipling published his most well-known book, The Jungle Book, which became a children’s classic across the globe. His other works include The Second Jungle Book (1895), The Seven Seas (1896), Stalky and Co. (1899), Puck of Pook’s Hill (1906), and Debits and Credits (1926). Kipling was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1907. He is the youngest recipient to date and became the first English novelist to receive the prize at the age of 41. His works and stories were heavily influenced by his life and experiences in India, and depict Indian characters and culture colourfully. Kipling breathed his last on 18 January 1936, at the age of 70, in Fitzrovia, London, England. He is remembered fondly for his stories and poems on British India and his stories for children.
Ronald Ross
Illustration: Prakash Sivan
Sir Ronald Ross was born on 13 May 1857, in Almora (in present-day Uttarakhand), British India, to Sir Campbell Claye Grant Ross, a general in the British Indian Army, and Matilda Charlotte Elderton. At the age of eight, Ross was sent to England to live with his uncle and aunt. Ross was appointed as a surgeon in the Indian Medical Service in 1881, after a four-month training at the Army Medical School. He was assigned to the Madras Presidency and returned to India in September 1881. During his stay in India, Ross met Sir Patrick Manson, a Scottish physician, who became his mentor. In 1894, Ross was determined to work on the hypothesis of Manson and Charles Louis Alphonse Laveran, a French physician, that mosquitos are connected with the spread of malaria. His discovery proved that malaria was transmitted by mosquitoes and his research was published in the Indian Medical Gazette on 27 August 1897 and in the December issue of the British Medical Journal in the same year. Ross worked on the concept of malarial transmission not in humans, but in birds. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1902, for his discovery of the life cycle of malarial parasites in birds.
Subramanyam Chandrasekar
Illustration: Prakash Sivan
Subramanyam Chandrasekar was born on 19 October 1910, in Lahore, Punjab (present-day Pakistan), British India. He was the nephew of Indian physicist and fellow Nobel laureate, Sir C.V. Raman. He was home-schooled by his parents and by a private tutor till the age of 12 after which his family moved to Madras (present-day Chennai), where his father was transferred. He attended Hindu High School and obtained his bachelor’s degree from Presidency College, Madras, in June 1930. In the same year, Chandrasekar received a Government of India scholarship to complete his graduate studies in Cambridge, England, where he also received his Ph.D. degree in 1933. He joined as a faculty at the University of Chicago in January 1937, where he worked till his death in 1995. Chandrasekar became a US citizen in 1953. During his time at Cambridge in 1930, Chandrasekar calculated the astrophysical limit, which gives the maximum mass of a white dwarf star. Soon, it was named after him as the ‘Chandrasekar limit’. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), named one of its observatories as ‘Chandra X-Ray Observatory’, in 1979 after the physicist. In 1983, Chandrasekar was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics, with William A. Fowler, for key discoveries that led to the currently accepted theory on the later evolutionary stages of massive stars and black holes.
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Curry leaves, commonly known as kadipatta are native to India. These aromatic leaves are a staple in most Indian cuisines and are used extensively to flavour foods, especially in the form of a tadka. However, curry leaves are also used outside the kitchen. Here’s how:
During the summer season, when the craving for ice cream is higher than the temperature, some go for the classic Gadbad Ice Cream. Popularised in Mangalore, packaged versions of this ice cream can now be found in every store. But do you know how this iconic ice cream came to be?
Illustration: Anjali Narendra
It all started in 1962, when Mohandas Pai of Diana Hotel in Udupi, was visited by a group of customers who demanded different flavours of ice creams. But the hotel only had limited flavours. So Mr Pai, in a moment of genius, added all the flavours available in a glass and garnished it with nuts, syrup and jelly. The customers who tasted it, devoured it. When asked what the name of this dessert was, Mr. Pai said that it was to be called gadbad, the Kannada wordmeaning ‘in a hurry’.
Every year on 2 February, we celebrate World Wetlands Day, to bring attention to wetlands, which are crucial to our survival on Earth. But wait — what’s a wetland?
Illustration: Tithee Dixit
All about wetlands
Wetlands are areas of land, permanently or seasonally covered by water. They reduce flooding, trap carbon, and combat climate change. They also clean and filter water, earning the tag “Kidneys of the Earth”.
On 2 February, 1971, the Ramsar Convention, which pledges conservation and sustainable use of wetlands, was signed in Ramsar, Iran. India joined the treaty in 1982.
Fun facts!
Did you know that Sambhar Lake, in Rajasthan, is a wetland? Every monsoon, flamingos flock to the lake, in a vibrant display of migration.
Another such wetland is Chilika Lake in Odisha. It is home to rare aquatic animals, including the ever-smiling Irrawaddy dolphin.
Wetlands are just as rich in flora as they are in fauna. Pichavaram Village of Tamil Nadu has the world’s second-largest mangrove forest. (Psst…the first is also our very own Sunderbans!)
The threat to our wetlands
Due to pollution and exploitation, wetlands have become one of the world’s most endangered habitats. Over 70 Indian wetlands of significant value have been identified by the Ramsar Convention, but we are losing them at the rate of 2-3% every year!
It is time for us to speak up, take action, and protect Mother Nature’s invaluable gifts, for our own survival and the survival of all life on Earth. Make a resolution and be the change!
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Classical dancing is a joyful and celebratory act that represents an integral part of Indian culture. Many trained and professional classical dancers have brought creativity and innovation to this centuries-old art and that has resulted in international recognition. Read more to know about some of such talented and legendary dancers.
Uday Shankar
Illustration: Onkarnath Bhattacharya
Born on 9 December, 1900, in Mumbai, Maharashtra, Uday Shankar was known for a fusion style of Indian classical dance forms. He adapted European theatrical techniques to Indian dance forms, with elements of Indian folk, classical and tribal dance. Though Shankar did not have any formal training in any of the Indian classical forms, his dance showed creativity. He had been exposed to the techniques of Indian classical dance and folk dance as well as to ballet during his stay in London in 1920, when he joined the Royal Art College. Hence, Shankar decided to bring the elements of these styles together to create a new dance, named ‘Hi-dance’. He established the ‘Uday Shankar India Cultural Centre’ at Simtola, Uttarakhand, in 1938. Shankar was awarded the Sangeet Natak Akademi in 1962 and was honoured with the Padma Vibhushan, the nation’s second-highest civilian award by the Government of India in 1971. He died on 26 September, 1977, at the age of 76.
Rukmini Devi Arundale
Illustration: Onkarnath Bhattacharya
Born on 29 February, 1904, in Madurai, Tamil Nadu, Rukmini Devi Arundale was a Bharatanatyam dancer and choreographer. She was known for advocating the renaissance of the Bharatanatyam dance form and founding the Kalakshetra Foundation in Madras (present-day Chennai), in 1936. Arundale was also credited with modifying the Pandanallur style of Bharatanatyam and bringing the dance form to global attention. In April1952, Rukmini Devi was nominated as a member of the Rajya Sabha and became the first Indian woman to be nominated to the Rajya Sabha. Arundale was honoured with the Padma Bhushan, the third highest Indian civilian honour, in 1957 by the Government of India and awarded the Sangeet Natak AkademiFellowship in 1967. She breathed her last at the age of 81 on 24 February, 1986.
Mrinalini Sarabhai
Illustration: Onkarnath Bhattacharya
Mrinalini Sarabhai was born on 11 May, 1918,in Kerala. She trained in Bharatanatyamunder Meenakshi Sundaram Pillai, and in Kathakali under the legendary dancer, ThakazhiKunchuKurup. Mrinalini married Indian physicist Vikram Sarabhai in 1942. The couple had a son, Kartikeya, and a daughter, Mallika, who also became an Indian classical dancer. In 1948, Mrinalini founded Darpana, a school for performing arts, in Ahmedabad. With their international performances, Mrinalini and her troupe gave classical Indian dance forms a new level of recognition all over the world. She was awarded the Padma Shri in 1965, and the Padma Bhushan in 1992, for her contribution to the art. She was also the recipient of the prestigious NishagandhiPuraskaram, an annual award from the Government of Kerala. Sarabhai breathed her last at the age of 97, on 21 January,2016.
VempatiChinna Satyam – Kuchipudi
Illustration: Onkarnath Bhattacharya
A renowned Kuchipudi Guru, VempatiChinna Satyam was born on 15 October, 1929, in Kuchipudi village, Andhra Pradesh. He was trained in Kuchipudi initially by Vedantam Lakshmi Narayana Sastry and then refined his art by training under Sri TadepallyPerrayya Sastry. His elder brother, Sri VempatiPedda Satyam, also taught him. As he learned the nuances of Kuchipudi, he began to propagate the dance form all over the world. Chinna Satyam was credited for refining and introducing new elements in Kuchipudi. In 1963, he established the Kuchipudi Art Academy in Madras (present-day Chennai). He has choreographed more than 150 solo performances and 15 dance dramas for the academy and these performances have been staged not only in India but also in many countries abroad. He was awarded prestigious titles such as ‘Kalidas Puraskar’ by the Government of Madhya Pradesh and ‘Kalaimamani’ by the Government of Tamil Nadu. He was also honoured with the Padma Bhushan by the Government of India in 1998. Satyam died at the age of 83 on 29 July, 2012.
Pandit Birju Maharaj – Kathak
Illustration: Onkarnath Bhattacharya
Pandit Birju Maharaj was born on 4 February, 1938, in Handia, Allahabad, in British India. Birju Maharaj was trained in Kathak by his father, Jagannath Maharaj who was a Kathak exponent in Raigarh, and by his two uncles, Lachhu Maharaj and Shambhu Maharaj. After the death of his father, Maharaj started teaching the dance form at the age of thirteen, first at the Sangeet Bharti in New Delhi and then at the Bharatiya Kala Kendra, in Delhi. Birju Maharaj received the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award, at the age of 28 and became one of the youngest recipients. Over the years, Birju Maharaj came to be known for his perfect rhythm and abhinaya (gesture languages) and for innovatively using the dance form to highlight mythological stories and various social issues. He also helped to popularize dance-dramasand opened his dance school, named Kalashram in New Delhi. He was honoured with the Padma Vibhushan, in 1986, by the Government of India. Birju Maharaj died at the age of 83, on 16 January, 2022.
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Seldom do stories start with “Once upon a time there was a queen…” as kings seem to have taken precedence over the queens in history. However, this story about Maharani Sethu Lakshmi Bayi starts with the triumphant tune of “Once, there lived a queen…”
The Travancore Dynasty
The Travancore dynasty ruled from 1729, over most of the south of Kerala and the southernmost part of modern-day Tamil Nadu. The Travancore family was matrilineal, where succession passed through the female lines. This meant that the throne did not go from father to son but rather, to a sister’s son. Since at the time the royal family came to consist solely of Maharajah Moolam Thirunal, Senior Rani Lakshmi Bayi and her two nephews; the Senior Maharani decided to adopt the daughter of her nieces. As such, Pooradam Thirunal Sethu Lakshmi, the granddaughter of artist Raja Ravi Varma was adopted into the Kingdom of Travancore.
Since King Moolam Thirunal died and his heir to the throne was only 12 years old at the time, a regency became necessary until the minor King Chithira Thirunal came of age. So, in September 1924, Sethu Lakshmi Bayi became the Maharani of the Kingdom of Travancore. Though a regent, she ruled as a monarch due to the matrilineal system which gave women equal power and right to reign.
Putting an End to Archaic Traditions
During her rule, Sethu Lakshmi Bayi abolished the Devadasi system. This was a practice where women would dedicate themselves to the worship of a deity. This was harmful because the devadasis had no legal right to marry and were obligated to dedicate themselves to the deity for the rest of their lives. She also put a stop to the sacrifice of animals.
Sethu Lakshmi Bayi’s reign began with the Vaikom Satyagraha. At the time, people of lower castes were not allowed to enter the Vaikom Mahadeva Temple. Therefore, a satyagraha which was launched on 30 March, 1924, aimed at allowing temple entry for worship of god, irrespective of caste, creed or community. After her meeting with Mahatma Gandhi regarding the same, she opened the doors of the temple to all castes. Gandhi called this initiative by the queen a “bedrock of freedom” in a magazine.
Illustration: Prakash Sivan
Creating Educational Opportunities
In 1927, Sethu Lakshmi Bayi elevated the Trivandrum Women’s College, which offered non-professional, ‘ladylike’ courses, by offering courses in history, natural science, languages and mathematics. She did this by securing an affiliation with the University of Madras. Soon, over 9,500 women were enrolled in English-speaking schools in Travancore and 232 women were attending college.
The Maharani allowed female students to study law despite criticism imploring otherwise. Soon after, the state produced Miss Anna Chandy, who became the first woman judicial officer not only in Travancore but also of India.
Empowering Women in the Kingdom
The Maharani was devoted to the cause of women’s empowerment. While feminism would not have been a word relevant at the time, to call her a feminist icon would not be a mistake. She aimed to further women’s participation in the political sphere of the country.
In line with her aims, the Maharani promoted Dr Mary Poonen Lukose, the first woman to receive a medical degree from Travancore and a graduate of London University, from Surgeon-In-Charge of the Women and Children’s Hospital, to Head of the Medical Department of Travancore. Dr Mary was also the first woman to be elected to the Legislative Council after being nominated by the Maharani for the position. It was the first time a woman was named the head of a significant department in India, as well as the first time a “Lady Legislator” had been appointed from Travancore.
In 1928, the Maharani nominated another female legislator, Mrs Elizabeth Kuruvilla. Mrs Kuruvilla pushed for equal opportunity for men and women to hold public office. This allowed for many more women to follow their aspirations to pursue a career and seek independence.
Since this was a culture reset when many were used to women being those who toiled at home, the Maharani was subject to a lot of criticism. There was constant resistance to her progressive ideals.
By the end of 1931, the decision that Sree Chithira Thirunal would become king after his 19th birthday was made. As a result, after seven long years of rule, Sethu Lakshmi Bayi’s regency ended in November 1931.
A revolutionary in her own right, Sethu Lakshmi Bayi, was set in her ways, tirelessly aiming for her goals. Her success, often foreshadowed by her successor, must be brought to light. Therefore, to read about Maharani Sethu Lakshmi Bayi’s achievements becomes necessary to understand the powerful women in India’s history.
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