Resource Person Avantika Roohi
Morung Express News
Dimapur | September 18
Food writer and digital chronicler of traditional weaves, Avantika Roohi, spoke on the importance of documenting indigenous food, textiles and community practices at the ‘PA Sangma Dialogues,’ held on Friday at the College Auditorium of Dimapur Government College (DGC).
Roohi, who made a name for herself through her love for food and textiles, recalled how her journey began with a simple tomato chutney.
Organised by the departments of Political Science and History, DGC, in collaboration with the PA Sangma Foundation, Roohi spoke on, ‘The Kitchen and the Loom: Food, Culture and the Politics of Diversity.’
Four years ago, she posted a video of the chutney on Instagram without any particular strategy, only to find that it reached a large audience. This encouraged her to document more of the food she had grown up eating.
Her food journey eventually led her to MasterChef India, despite being an untrained cook. “There is beauty in the ordinary things,” she said, recalling how simple everyday dishes led her to explore and document more about Dimasa food and culture.
Roohi who has more than 250k followers on her Instagram handle ‘roohi_haflongbar,’ said her digital work has helped more people recognise who the Dimasa people are and know about Haflong and its food traditions.
While she also receives negative comments about eating boiled leaves and greens, she said she now takes them as a compliment because people are beginning to recognise what Northeastern food looks like.
She noted a growing interest among young people in documenting local food, villages and festivals. “The change is happening slowly,” she said, pointing to the increasing number of young Dimasa creators working on food and culture.
Describing handloom as her “first love,” Roohi spoke about her work with Dimasa weavers and her effort to revive old Rigu designs. She said Dimasa handloom has more than 120 designs, each with its own name and connection to nature and oral traditions. Her initiative has also created a market for weavers.
Roohi and her husband also organises the Big Bang! Festival of Love, which brings about 500 visitors into villages to experience local food, weaving, Judima and jhum cultivation. At a recent edition in Nanadisa village, the programme involved villagers in cooking, weaving demonstrations and other local experiences. The initiative seeks to ensure that the economic benefits reach the villagers, weavers and farmers.
On modernisation and the growing emphasis on aesthetic appeal, Roohi emphasised conscious and sustainable choices. Her message to young people was, “You don’t need to be the greatest chef or the greatest designer. You just do it.” She said she does not try to be someone else and believes in collaboration, consistency and action.
“The power is in you,” she said, urging the youth to document and practise their culture through their everyday choices.
