What is Punjab

The chapter attempts to look at food and its representation in media with a special focus on Punjab and its cuisine. The work locates important symbols pertaining to the food culture of Punjab in sites such as cookbooks and cinema, which interestingly mix traditional with contemporary representations of material life. The first section looks at the cultural expressions of Punjabi cuisine in cookbooks against the backdrop of the history of Punjab, its ancient ties, and cultural affiliations of the past. Questions of caste, gastro-ethnicity, and stereotyping are also examined. The second section attempts to review select Bollywood films in order to cast light onto the contemporary socio-cultural conceptions of Punjabi culture. The study concludes by observing the ways in which food emerges as a commodity spectacle through stories and ideas on the food of Punjab. The work is carried out in order to exemplify the role of food in the creation of a cultural imaginary and explore the subtle connection that food and food culture share with the multiple intersections of an individual's identity.