Food! The basic need of our life and is even for animals. We have our own ways of preparing and eating food. When we look back at the history of evolution, we will find that we were also like other animals eating raw meat. The discovery of fire gave us a new way of food. The cooked food was better and even much delicious than it was before. Over the years, we have learned expertise in every field of life. Why food is to leave behind? We prepare the food, we serve it, we eat it and we share it. The art of sharing food is something that everyone enjoys. The art of sharing food is seen everywhere. In the school, offices, buses, parks, restaurants, while walking, while talking, everywhere means everywhere. Sharing food repays pleasure which is something to be proud of. Sharing the food with your fellows creates a relationship of trust and responsibility. Here in this blog post, we will see a few wonderful moments and will travel through places to places, watching people enjoying the art of sharing. FoodRavel takes you through the ways to explore the Art of Sharing.
“Sharing is love. Sharing is trust. Sharing is respect. Sharing is all about being social. And when it comes to sharing food, it’s more than wonderful!”
What is the Art of Sharing Food?
We share so many things in our life. I spent a lot of time in the hostel. There we shared everything, from books to clothes, from money to room and from laughs to tears. Sharing has something very special place when it comes to living away from home. We share because we can. We share to show we care. We share to build trust. The art of sharing is a wonderful one. It makes us feel comfortable with each other. The art of sharing closes all the doors of doubts. It spreads the love. And when it is about sharing food, it the best thing to being shared. The art of sharing food comes from the spirit of sacrificing. I remember my hostel days when we used to share all. In college or school, we used to exchange and share our food. Those were really wonderful and memorable days. I rarely took tiffin to the college or high school. But I always used to eat my classmates’ tiffin. That was the art of sharing and tiffin was also shared by our teachers.
We are primates. We live in families and groups. Though the increasing trends have broken up the families, still art of sharing food is noticed in festivals and ceremonies. Ever since man has started to eat food, he has learned to share the food, especially with one whom he cared most and even with whom who were not able to manage their own food. Moreover, when man used to depend on animals for food, then to the art of sharing was practiced and everyone in the group was offered a share of food. Now that we have evolved over several thousands of years and have mastered all arts, the art of sharing food is struggling to find its existence the way it used to be years back.
Now, there are no more days left when the whole family used to sit down and used to have food. In this hectic life, people don’t have time to sit and eat with the family. I remember my childhood days; sometimes I have experienced this art of sharing at home when we all would sit and had our shared food. Mom used to cook and we all used to eat together. Now when I think of the past and the food which was served, those were just delicious moments. The taste has been lost in the fast-track life. Early morning jam and evening rush has consumed most of the time of people’s’ lives and sharing doesn’t find its space the way it should. Yet, there are ways of the art of sharing.
FoodRavel went to many places to find out how people share their plates and their best tastes with each other and how open are they towards this art of sharing. As it’s a fact that sharing brings people closer to each other, no matter if it is sharing the seat in the metro, or sharing the auto, sharing has always been a step towards a closer relation. The food packed in tiffin becomes more delicious when it is shared with your friends and co-workers. The food served in plates is more delicious where there are two spoons and is eaten. Art of sharing is a whole lot about how people share their food and sentiments with each other, how do they behave while sharing with each other, and what are the codes of conducts while sharing food?
Art of Sharing Food at Small Events
Have you ever seen people sharing their tiffin and plates in person? I bet you must have seen and even you must have done it a lot of times. Sharing is all about fun and memories when friends sit together. When it comes to old friends, who meet after long at the same old chai ki dukan or favorite Dhaba, the scene needs no explanation. It’s about the same old talks, mischief, and sharing the food on the same plate. That’s all brings tears to the eyes. Sharing pours out the love out on the table and the taste of love is more than anything else in the whole world. No matter if the food is tasty or not that much, no matter if the food is cooked with great expertise, but when it comes to compassionate sharing, it’s the most expensive as it is concerned with love and affection.
Offering food to the hungry on the streets is just another form of sharing. When you offer food to the needy and hungry when you give a hand of sharing, it makes them feel happy to the seventh sky and this happiness is easily visible in their eyes. No matter if you know him or not, no matter if you will see him again or not, but yes that single moment of sharing your food will be always remembered. The art of sharing food is a blessing too. While sharing the food at school recess is still one of the best moments of life, it is always memorable throughout life. I remember my school days. We all friends would sit in groups and would share our tiffin. Those were the days of the art of sharing tiffin. Now tiffin exists but the emotions don’t exist.
When we walked out on the road, we experienced people sharing food. Street foods are the best to be seen in Delhi when you walk out on the road and one of the most delicious appetizers to search for is found on the streets of the city. From Gol Gappey to south Indian street food, the streets of the city are painted in spice and sugar sweet. Most of the time, street food is available around the evening and till night. There sharing is seen at its best as street food is on the open streets with no or less sitting arrangements and you have to share from space to plates. Street food is best enjoyed on the streets only.
Sharing food in offices has a different aroma and fame. Corporate culture has changed the ways of food sharing. There, groups are seen in two or three depending on the number of employees. The canteen is the place of limited sharing and they perform their rituals of sharing food there. It is rare to find someone with the same basic instinct of sharing the food and most of the cases; it is just limited within the groups only. The food of corporate culture is different so is sharing food different.
Dabbas are Slightly Out of Fashion
Nowadays, technology has got its root in every sector of our life. It has been embedded so that we are totally dependent on it and find it really hard to manage a single day without it. Dabbas don’t exist anymore. The place has been dominated by designed lunch boxes. Several companies are now in markets that manufacture stylish cookware and food storage items. In this scenario, the old dabba has its lost its place. Now people prefer stylish and high designed food boxes. I remember in old movies, it is shown how the wife would cook the food and pack the dabba for her husband who would work in some mill or factory and someone would carry the dabba on a bicycle. The protagonist would open the dabba and would feel revitalized after eating. Those were the days of Dabbas. Now it’s all about fashion and if the things don’t fit the fashion, they are rejected. The online food business has also impacted the ways of sharing food. Now just sitting at a place, one gets food delivered at his doors. No need to go market to buy, no need to cook at home. You just need to call and tell your choice. The food will come to you. There, it is really hard to experience the art of sharing food.
People go to cafes, restaurants, and share their food. They share their time over coffee tables and share their “shares”. This means they enjoy the moments of life up to the fullest with no worries. You can experience the art of sharing at its best among the youngsters. The animals do have this sharing food instinct and we can see how the mother bird shares the food with its kids. All the mammals practice the art of sharing food and it proves the care and responsibilities towards others. Sharing food with each other, no matter if it is on tables, on-road or on the bus, has always been a wonderful experience.
Mass Sharing of Food – The Art of Sharing Food
We all share our food at home with our family members. We all share food with our friends in restaurants or schools. But what if there are many people involved in the act of sharing the food. In our country, we have mass feast ceremonies or marriage parties where we can experience hundreds of people eating together. In big restaurants, many people sit and enjoy their delicacies, though they may not share the food with each other. But yes the sitting system is great. It is found everywhere. People from all backgrounds come and sit in the same place to enjoy the food. The chair – table arrangements or floor sitting arrangements, both are good enough to experience. In my Nepal trip, I and my other friends including two from South Korea and the native people of Nepal, we used to share food with each other over the dining table and it was just amazing. And that’s how I got connected to their culture. This way, I was able to explore their traditions.
Walking through the streets of busy markets of Delhi NCR, you will find several types of street foods crowded with people sharing food. I everyday travel to the office for some ten to fifteen kilometers and pass through the Vyapar Kendra market, which is a famous shopping stop for the people of that area. There are several street food corners and people are seen standing out and enjoying the street food. Be it a restaurant, a cart of a kiosk, the place gets crowded as the sun starts to set down. This the open food place where people stand on the street and eat whatever they like, from Gol Gappey to Chinese foods, rolls, and much more there to explore. Especially when people come with their families, it becomes quite wonderful. The Gol Gappa is a very famous and one of the highly sought after street food in the Delhi NCR and you will find these food spots almost everywhere. In restaurants and the streets, people enjoy this crunchy, spicy street food with spicy cold water.
People from all across the world have this basic instinct. The art of sharing food is something that is connected with one’s ethics and traditions. We think the art of sharing should be followed; it must not be restricted within the walls of homes or high-class restaurants.
