Mumbai is where so many communities have come together to cook their foods, to share their foods, and to document their foods. The city’s life in food is documented in recipes, published in newspapers and magazines, in pamphlets and research reports and cookbooks, both formally and informally. Its recipes have also appeared in TV shows and films and ads, and now on digital channels like YouTube. These recipes show an extended conversation about food, and all that it reveals about who makes it and when and how, taking place over the life of the city. At our Online Talk #CityCookbook, writer Vikram Doctor taps into this conversation with 10 recipes taken out over time to see what they say about Mumbai.

About the speaker

Vikram Doctor is a journalist who has worked for many years in Mumbai. He has written on how food, life and material culture intersect in India. He now lives in Goa.