Following Fish : Travels Around the Indian Coast

"In a coastline as long and diverse as India's, fish inhabit the heart of many worlds - food, of course, but also culture, commerce, sport, history and society. Journeying along the edges of the peninsula, Samanth Subramanian delivers a kaleidoscope of extraordinary stories, from the use of fish to treat asthmatics in Hyderabad, the preparation and the rituals of eating West Bengal's prized Hilsa in Calcutta; the ancient art of building fishing boats in Gujarat; the fiery cuisine and the singular spirit of Kerala's toddy shops; the food and the lives of Mumbai's first peoples; the history of an old Catholic fishing community in Tamil Nadu; and the hunt for the world's fastest fish near Goa. Pulsating with pleasure, adventure and discovery, and tempered by nostalgia and loss, Following Fish reveals a series of unknown Indias in a book profoundly revealing of the contradictions of the subcontinent"--Publisher's description.;1.On hunting the hilsa and mastering its bones -- 2.On swallowing a live fish -- 3.On the ear lobe that changed history -- 4.On an odyssey through toddy shops -- 5.On searching for a once-lost love -- 6.On pursuing the fastest fish in the ocean -- 7.On grieving for bygone beaches and fish -- 8.On seeking to eat as a city once ate -- 9.On the crafting of a fishing boat. Shortlisted for the André Simon Food and Drink book awards In a coastline as long and diverse as India's, fish inhabit the heart of many worlds - food of course, but also culture, commerce, sport, history and society. Journeying along the edges of the peninsula, Samanth Subramanian delivers a kaleidoscope of extraordinary stories. Following Fish conducts rich journalistic investigations of, among others, the use of fish to treat asthmatics in Hyderabad; of the preparation and the process of eating West Bengal's prized hilsa; of the ancient art of building fishing boats in Gujarat; of the fiery cuisine and the singular spirit of Kerala's toddy shops; of the food and the lives of Mumbai's first peoples; of the history of an old Catholic fishing community in Tamil Nadu; and of the hunt for the world's fastest fish near Goa. Pulsating with pleasure, adventure and discovery, and tempered by nostalgia and loss, Following Fish reveals a series of unknown Indias in a book as revealing of the subcontinent as any three times its length. "In India's long and diverse coastline, fish inhabit the heart of many aspects of life: food of course, and also culture, commerce, sports, history, and society. Journeying along the edges of the peninsula, Samanth Subramanian delivers a kaleidoscope of extraordinary stories. Following Fish conducts rich, journalistic investigations of the use of fish to treat asthmatics in Hyderabad; of the preparation and the process of eating West Bengal's prized hilsa; of the ancient art of building fishing boats in Gujarat; of the fiery cuisine and the singular spirit of Kerala's toddy shops; of the food and the lives of Mumbai's first peoples; of the history of an old Catholic fishing community in Tamil Nadu; and of the hunt for the world's fastest fish near Goa; and of many others. Pulsating with pleasure, adventure, and discovery, Following Fish reveals a series of unknown Indias in a book as intriguing as the country itself." -- 'Witty, alert, and wonderfully idiosyncratic, Following Fish is quite simply the best travel book to come out of South Asia since Suketu Mehta's Maximum City. Samanth Subramanian looks set to be one of the new stars of Indian non-fiction.' William Dalrymple