Recipes of the River: Unveiling Goan River-Fishing Traditions and Ancient Wisdom

Speedy Summary

• Documenting Customary Knowledge: Fashion photographer Assavri Kulkarni’s project, Recipes of the River, documents the fishing communities’ traditional knowledge near rivers. It compiles facts about lasting practices, seasonal consumption patterns, and cultural rituals tied to fishing.

• Cultural connection: Kulkarni’s work is inspired by her own community’s oral traditions. She highlights that fish consumption is resolute by factors like moon cycles and breeding seasons for sustainability. Such as, crabs are avoided during full moons due to moulting.

• Environmental Concerns: Pollution and climate change threaten aquatic ecosystems. Kulkarni’s father warns of declining oyster and clam populations due to waste covering seabeds.

• Heritage Practices & Remedies: The project shares age-old remedies using fish products for health issues such as eye infections or sprains. An emphasis is placed on river fish health benefits.

• Awareness Efforts through Art Festivals: At the Serendipity Arts Festival 2024 in Goa, kulkarni led workshops illustrating local seasonal produce and served traditional Goan dishes while discussing preservation strategies.

Indian Opinion Analysis

Assavri Kulkarni’s recipes of the River sheds light on an often-overlooked aspect of India’s rich biodiversity-traditional ecological knowledge within riverine communities. Her focus comes at a critical time when unsustainable fishing practices threaten marine life, as highlighted by warnings regarding oysters and clams disappearing soon due to pollution-induced seabed damage. efforts like hers strengthen cultural pride in heritage foods while offering a practical blueprint for marrying conservation with tradition.The meticulously documented knowledge about moon cycles guiding fishing practices or abstention from harvesting certain species during breeding seasons reflects sustainable science grounded in experience rather than formal education-a valuable outlook India must preserve amid rapid environmental changes.This project also intersects environmental awareness with artistic engagement through platforms like the Serendipity Arts Festival 2024, emphasizing that conversation around preserving biodiversity must go beyond academic research into accessible public discourse and action.

For more details on this thought-provoking initiative, read more here.