A new book by a Sindhi food enthusiast looks at the region’s history and its influence on its food

I have been a foodie since childhood – though my parents will have you believe otherwise because I was such a picky eater. Peeved by this, my mother would take me to doctors for frequent consultations and examinations to understand why I was skinny, despite all the food I ate.

Through school, university, and work in Mumbai, all my friendships were based on what people ate and carried in their lunchboxes. This bonding over food has continued well into middle age. I blame this on the “foodie gene” that I probably inherited from my grandfather. My family tells me that despite being a humble academic, he spared no expense when it came to food. On the weekends, his mornings started with a platter of fried goat’s brains and stir-fried livers and kidneys; in the afternoons, he would eat seyal teevan (onion-braised meat), bhugal bhee (stir-fried lotus stem); and in the evenings, he had friends over for a round of rummy over whisky and kheeme ji tikki (mincemeat patties).

This gene would make its way through icebreaker questions I’d pose to new students joining our class in school: “What is your food like?” When their answer contained words like nahari (a Mughlai dish…

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