Following fish: travels around the Indian coast

Description

"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.