A meal to kill for

Sir — One reason to put up with the chaos of the big fat Indian wedding is the delicious meal that comes with it. It is no wonder then that a man in Uttar Pradesh, who was not served a second helping of paneer at a wedding, decided to crash his car into the mandap, injuring six people. Not being served enough food is not the only gastronomic crime at a wedding. Take, for instance, the trend at Bengali weddings to have live pasta and momo counters instead of serving piping hot fish fingers as starters. The horrors do not end. Kashmiri aloo dum has replaced the much-loved chholar daal, katla kalia made with a fatty piece of carp has fallen out of favour and people now have chowmein instead of basanti pulao. All this is enough to drive a person into murderous rage.

Abhijit Pal Chowdhury,
Calcutta

Way ahead

Sir — The rejection of John Maynard Keynes’s proposal of setting up an International Clearing Union, a global accountant that would issue a supranational currency that would nudge debtors and creditors to keep their books in order, has led to a system that enables persistent imbalances and geopolitical friction (“Prescient vision”, April 29). Instead of erecting protectionist barriers and engaging in strategic decoupling, nations should recommit to multilateral cooperation. The invisible hand of the market, when supported by transparent and equitable institutions, has historically delivered prosperity on a global scale. Fragmentation will only diminish economic dynamism and consumer welfare. India’s market size and democratic values make it uniquely poised to advocate for a rules-based order that restores trust and balance in global trade. The moment calls for more integration, not less — and certainly not a retreat into economic nationalism.

Shyamal Thakur,
East Burdwan

Sir — The increasing politicisation of trade undermines the benefits of open markets. Without mechanisms to address imbalances, economic instability becomes inevitable. John Maynad Keynes’s emphasis on shared responsibility remains relevant as Rudra Chatterjee pointed out in his piece, “Prescient vision”. Emerging economies like India must seize this moment to advocate reforms that favour cooperation over confrontation.

R.K. Jain,
Barwani, Madhya Pradesh

Sir — While John Maynard Keynes’s ideas about global balance were visionary, they risked ceding too much control to supranational authorities. Today’s geopolitical realignments demonstrate that sovereign nations must protect their strategic interests, especially in critical sectors such as energy, defence, and technology. India should approach any new global trade framework with caution. History shows that multilateral institutions often serve the interests of dominant powers. Rather than relying on mechanisms that presume a shared commitment to fairness, India must prioritise resilience and self-reliance. Trade should serve national goals — ensuring domestic industry, employment, and security — before appeasing international expectations. A pragmatic, interest-driven policy is the best path forward in a fracturing global economy.

Mihir Kanungo,
Calcutta

The centre shifts

Sir — Sumana Roy astutely traces the cultural shift from the centre to the periphery in Indian storytelling in her article, “Bareilly’s revenge” (April 27). For too long, provincial India was portrayed through the lens of metropolitan nostalgia or exoticism. By positioning provincial characters not as comic relief but as credible protagonists, recent cinema reclaims narrative agency for the small-town Indian. This is not merely aesthetic correction but literary justice — overdue and necessary.

Pratima Manimala,
Howrah

Sir — The centre no longer holds. From Aranyer Din Ratri to Gangs of Wasseypur, Indian storytelling has become centrifugal — a modest but meaningful decentralisation of cultural capital. These films map a quiet political shift wherein the mofussil demands to be seen not as hinterland but as heartland.

T. Ramadas,
Visakhapatnam

Sir — The article, “Bareilly’s revenge”, rightly points to an irony: provincial India has arrived in film and fiction, and yet remains absent in our academic syllabi. How many English departments read Butter Chicken in Ludhiana with the same seriousness as A Passage to India? The syllabus must be reimagined to make it less colonial in scope and more vernacular in texture.

M. Jeyaram,
Sholavandan, Tamil Nadu

Sir — For decades, the provinces served as backdrop — the jungle to Calcutta’s intellect, the idyllic gaon to Mumbai’s urban angst. But now the props speak. From Palamau to McCluskieganj, the small town has taken the lead, narrating itself without apology or embellishment. What was once quaint is now canonical. The real surprise is not that these places had stories but that it took so long for us to listen.

Avinash Godboley,
Dewas, Madhya Pradesh

Hidden cost

Sir — Lopa Ghosh rightly points out that food reforms, while necessary, risk deepening the unpaid burden on women (“Lighter weight”, April 28). Healthier food should not come at the cost of women’s time and labour. Structural reforms, not moral expectations, must accompany dietary change.

Kakoli Das,
Calcutta

Sir — Globally, women perform 2.8 times more unpaid care work than men. In India, this gap is starker. The Time Use Survey of 2024 shows that women across class and caste groups continue to perform the overwhelming majority of food-related domestic tasks irrespective of whether they also participate in the formal workforce. This invisible labour powers homes and economies but rarely enters public discourse or policy design.

Gregory Fernandes,
Mumbai