Good food must be democratised

Why is Chetan Bhagat popular with a certain demographic, compared to say, Kafka? It is less because he is relatable, and more because of the free market economy? This seems to work for food as well.

No matter what you cook, integrity is key. Spaces that cater to a wide demographic are crucial, and food should be more about integrity and less about showmanship. There seems to be a very large push towards mediocrity — the dumbing down of flavours and industrialising of production seems to be working, and with good reason.

There is no rule that says that the sense of higher purpose should be reserved to academics alone, and this should be applicable to gastronomy as well.

I believe that good food should not exist in the realm of luxury and should be available to all. A farm-to-fork movement will only be possible if seasonal produce is made available to people and they are more in tune with what they are consuming.

So, good food needs to be democratised and brands that process the food need to include this narrative into their repertoire. Farmers need to drop the quinoa and focus on the millet instead. I am, and always will be, for making as many options when it comes to food available, and individuals shouldn't stop trying different kinds of food. We don't have to worry about Indian food going obsolete. The most successful restaurants will always cater to desi cravings.

We need to keep evolving with the market. Indian food never went out of style, but restaurants resting on their past glories have.

Lots of indigenous food is becoming obsolete. In India we have a many mouths to feed, so in the name of sustainability we overlook these things to ensure that more people get to eat. Current agrarian policy are very counterproductive to biodiversity. The food industry is huge, and there is an explosion of crops that are sustained at the cost of staples which the land was used to. That is when you lose out on the functional part.

We are the country that reinvent cuisines by Indianising them. This mindset won't change for a while. No matter what we eat during the day, we will always come back to our biryanis and butter chickens that hit the spot.

Comfort food will never go away. We need to be more open minded about cuisines in our country and keep in mind that traditions change over time while maintaining their roots. This links back to my argument about biodiversity — if we want to preserve our food traditions we have to let the crops grow the way they always have. Instead, cereals have been hijacked by the processing industry.

So bottom line, no, we aren't losing our culture, but we are losing the integrity with which the food is made.

Manu Chandra is Executive Chef of Olive Beach, Bangalore and owner, Monkey Bar, Taste & Tonic, & Fatty Bao.