Serving up memories

(From left) Savoury and sweet postcards. Pics courtesy/Shruti Taneja

This weekend, Shruti Taneja from Nivaala and Rohini Kejriwal from The Alipore Post filled postcards with recipes exchanged between families that they had mailed on Monday. Over 20 people wrote to them with family recipes and recipient details. "Everyone loves receiving something handwritten in the mail," shares Taneja. Since commencing the Ultimate Recipe Exchange last week, this exercise of facilitating recipes could look like a weekly ritual. The project, she says, takes its root in the idea of sharing food which is the ultimate TLC one can show a friend.

Shruti Taneja

With the pandemic hindering this act, recipes are the next best thing. In fact, it could be an even better thing. The Delhi-based brand strategist explains the importance of recording family recipes as heirlooms, "Every family has dishes passed through generations, like a seasonal speciality or comfort food. They become a part of the family's identity and should be recorded and inherited like we inherit saris or jewellery." On a mission to inspire people to record quintessential dishes unique to each family, and as an ode to her mother and grandmother, Taneja brought the idea to life in the form of an heirloom recipe journal called Nivaala, which means morsel in Hindi. Its second edition launched yesterday. The Ultimate Recipe Exchange, an offshoot project, has facilitated 25 postcards making their way across Indian cities. The limited-edition project will continue till postcards last or demand pushes for more.

Log on to: @nivaale.co on Instagram
Cost: Rs 99 for one postcard