Date of Award
Spring 6-4-2022
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts (MA)
Program
Nature-Culture-Sustainability Studies
First Advisor
Namita Dharia
Second Advisor
Avishek Ganguly
Third Advisor
Harini Nagendra
Abstract
Commensality is more than just eating together at a shared table. "Who can eat with whom and what" is a divisive issue in India, where food and eating serve as functions of inclusion and exclusion. In this paper, I examine street food stalls in Jaipur as sites of eating together with strangers and ask, What forms of commensality do street food stalls enable? Can eating together on the street expand ideas about eating together in public? As part of my fieldwork in Jaipur, I observe the surroundings of street food stalls, participate in heritage food walks with guides, and document oral histories of street food vendors to demonstrate how accidental commensality emerges around these stalls. Using this research, I argue that the features of accessibility, belonging, and cultural memory, coupled with the affective dimensions of street food stalls, create intimacy and a feeling of mazaa that compels us to imagine an unexpected form of commensality through food.
Recommended Citation
Singhi, Rini, "Accidental Commensality Eating, Belonging, and Mazaa on the Streets of Jaipur" (2022). Masters Theses. 986.
https://digitalcommons.risd.edu/masterstheses/986
Creative Commons License
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