Languages

INDIAN LANGUAGES India is 418 and out of this 11 have become extinct and there are 407 living languages of India, and 22 languages officially recognized by the Constitution of India. Out of these languages Hindi is spoken by majority of North Indians. When India got independence it was thought that Hindi will be made the National language of the nation but this thought did not materialize, as large population in Southern India did not understand Hindi. During British rule English was the official language and language of communication. So it was learned by elites of India too. After independence English was made the associative official language to help in communication but it was thought that after a decade it will be withdrawn but it did not happen due to the protest by the southern states. Slowly English got embedded in Indian culture and is now one of the widely spoken languages of India. From kindergarten to the government offices it has became the medium of communication.

The Indian languages belong to four language families namely IndoEuropean, Dravidian, Austroasiatic (Austric) and Sino-Tibetan. Majority of India's population are using Indo-European and Dravidian languages. The former are spoken mainly in northern and central regions and the latter in southern India. Some ethnic groups in Assam and other parts of eastern India speak Austric languages. People in the northern Himalayan region and near the Burmese border speak Sino-Tibetan languages.
The written forms of language or scripts come from an ancient Indian script called Brahmi. India has 22 officially recognised languages. But around 33 different languages and 2000 dialects have been identified in India. Hindi, in the Devanagari script is the official language of the Federal government of India. English is an associate official language. Sanskrit, the classical language of India, represents the highest achievement of the Indo-Aryan Languages. The beginning of Sanskrit literature may be traced back to Rig Vedic period. It is the oldest literary language of India, which is more than 5,000 years old and the basis of many modern Indian languages including Hindi and Urdu. Its earliest dialect form, Vedic was spoken by the Aryans. All the classical literature and the Indian epics have been written in Sanskrit.

Languages Of India
Assamese : A language of Assam that's spoken by nearly 60 percent of the
State's population.

Bengali : An official language of West Bengal, now spoken by nearly 200 million
people in West Bengal and in Bangladesh.

Dogri : Jammu and Kashmir Gujarati : It is the official language of Gujarat. 70 percent of the State's population
speak Gujrathi but it the most spread language not only in India but also abroad.

Hindi : The official language of India, accent and dialect differs with different regions
but almost every Indian has a working knowledge of Hindi. It is written in a Devanagiri script.

Kannada : A language of Karnataka and is spoken by 65 percent of the state's

population. It belongs to the Dravidian family.

Kashmiri : Though the language is mistaken as a state language of Kashmir

only 55 per cent of the state's population speak Kashmiri.

Konkani : Goa, Karnataka, Maharashtra Maithili : Bihar Malayalam : The state language of Kerala. It is the youngest of all developed
languages in the Dravidian family.

Manipuri/Meitei : Manipur Marathi : An official language of Maharashtra. It has a fully developed literature of the modern type

Nepali : Sikkim, West Bengal Oriya : A branch of the Indo-Aryan family, is the official language of the State of Orissa. Punjabi : The official language of the State of Punjab. It is written in Gurmukhi script, created by the Sikh
Guru, Angad.

Sanskrit : The classical language of India that has lost it's value in the modern world. It is also one of
the oldest languages in the world- perhaps the oldest to be recorded. All the ancient scripts are found to be written in the same language.

Sandal : Santhal tribals of the Chota Nagpur Plateau (comprising the states of Bihar, Chattisgarh,
Jharkhand, Orissa)

Sindhi : Is spoken by a great number of people in the Northwest frontier of the Indian sub-continent
comprising parts of India and Pakistan

Tamil : The State language of Tamil Nadu. Tamil literature goes back to Centuries before the Christian era
and is spoken by more than 73 million people. It belongs to the Dravidian language family.

Telugu : A language of Andhra Pradesh. It is numerically the biggest linguistic unit in India. Urdu : The state language of Jammu and Kashmir and is spoken by more than 28 million people in India.
Urdu and Hindi have proceeded from the same source. Urdu is written in the Persio - Arabic script and contains many words from the Persian language.

Cuisine
Cuisines of India
Diverse Cuisine
Summer Season The duration of summer in India is from March to June. It is mildly pleasant in March, a bit uncomfortable in April, hot in May and scorching in June. The temperature in the plains of northern India can go upto 45o Celsius. The southern region is equally hot. This is the time when people pack their bags and head off to the hills and valleys where it is relatively cooler.

Cuisine Adopted By Different Religion

What has helped along this diversity is the amazing number of religions and the sects and sub-sects within them; each of them often have strict dietary codes. For example, Hindu Brahmins may not eat onions, ginger and garlic, meat which meant that a special cuisine came up around that bias and so on. Whereas Christians and Muslims favors meat eating. The most striking contrast in eating habits shows up between the meat-and-bread eating northern regions and the pulse-and-rice southern regions

Indian

Food

The major culinary influences on Indian cuisine resulted from significant historical invasions, including the Greeks, Mughal Portuguese and British. Today, Rich and diverse Indian cuisine, coupled with the celebrated hospitality of the people is the crowning glory of the opulent Indian culture. Simply irresistible and sumptuous, Indian dishes are any gourmet's delight. Various permutations and combinations of various ingredients and the innumerable aromatic spices create magical, mouth watering variety of the same dish, which may be very often different in taste, colour, texture and also appearance, taking into account the regional variations. The skill lies in the subtle blending of a variety of spices to enhance rather than overwhelm the basic flavor of a particular dish.

Indian Cuisine Recipe Bengali Cuisine

For the quintessential Bengali, food is one of the most important aspects of daily life. Fish, sweets, and other foods are discussed and debated about as passionately as Leftist ideologies and Tagore. The cooks and housewives spend an enormous amount of time in the kitchen and the rest is spent in chalking out menus, buying foodstuff or discussing and comparing recipes

State
The eastern state of west Bengal is considered to be the cultural capital of India. A land of aesthetes and political activists, Bengal is famous for its many eminent writers, poets, artists, spiritualists, social reformers, freedom fighters and revolutionaries.Bengal, the land of maachh and bhaat, of rasogolla and sondesh, lies on the monsoon-drenched east coast of India. The cuisine of West Bengal differs from that of Bangladesh in that the use of coconut in this cuisine is much lesser and mustard oil is cooking medium instead of coconut oil.

Specialities
Bengali cuisine does not start and end with fish, though it forms a large part of the Bengali's food habits. Among varieties of the fish, the specialty of Calcutta is the hilsa fish. 'Smoked hilsa' and machher jhol are quintessentially Calcutta. Bengalis also take pride in its luchi - a refined, sophisticated form of puri. The Bengalis are compulsive sweet lovers. Mention Bengal and one is immediately reminded of the delicious sweets of the state-gulab jamuns, rasogolla, sondesh, chum chum and many more. Made of milk and cottage cheese, these are light and delectable. No account of Bengali food is complete without a eulogy to its sweet dahi or mishti doi as it is more popularly called. Poyodi-a thick sweet curd that is colored a subtle pink and rich in texture is synonymous with the city of Calcutta. Potha Parban is a day given to feasting on homemade sweets, pancakes and puffed rice. Instead of the daily fare of rice and fish curry, the rice harvest is made festive with the addition of jaggery syrup, coconut candy and condiments, to create a variety of recipes for this day. Platefuls of specialties are exchanged between neighbors, relatives and sent as gift hampers to in-laws

Goan Cuisine
The Goan cuisine is an interesting mix of varied influences. Though the recipes and techniques of the two major communities there, Christians and Hindus are quite different, there are some points where they come together to produce culinary wonders. The ever-popular pork vindaloo is a result of this combination. Apart from these two, there is a telling influence of Portuguese cooking. Goan food is simple but one has to bear in mind that most, though not all, of it is chili hot, spicy, and pungent

State
A small state on the western coast of India, Goa was a Portuguese colony for a long time. The state has always been a popular destination for those wanting to enjoy the sun, sand, and sea though it offers much more than that. One of the best things about Goa are its people, known for their easy-going nature, civility and love for fun and food.

Specialities
Sweets : For those with a sweet tooth, Goan cuisine offers the famous bebinca. The extract of coconut milk is added to flour, sugar, and other delectable ingredients are used to make this delicacy. Each scrumptious layer has to be baked before the next one is added, though not many people nowadays have the time to make the traditional 16 layers.
Even so, a good bebinca is a mouth-melting dream. Other sweets include a soft jaggery flavored fudge called dodol made from finger-licking palmsap jaggery, rice flour and coconut; the crispy delicate rose-a-coque that are flower-like waffles and can be eaten alone or drenched with cream or honey; the curled and sugared kulkuls spiraled around the tines of forks and deep-fried as Christmas goodies and Easter eggs known as ovos da pascoa. Similarly, during the Hindu festival of Ganesh Chaturthi, coneshaped dumplings called modaks are a favourite fare.

Feni : An accompaniment to wash down all Goan food is the locally brewed feni. The Goans probably first distilled this from the fermented sap of the coconut flower-stalk, but later they also made it from the fruit of the cashew tree which the Portuguese had brought to the state with them. Though other forms of liquor are readily available across the state, the Goans are as emotional about their feni as they are about their food.

Gujarati Cuisine
Gujarati cuisine is a vegetarian gourmet's dreams come true. It is a vegetarian wonder with complete nutrition derived from leafy vegetables prepared in innumerable variations and subtly flavored with spices. Simple, practical, down-to-earth and wholesome, Gujarati cuisine truly reflects the heart of the state.

State
Situated on the western coast of India, the name of the state is derived from Gujjaratta, which means the land of Gurjars, who had migrated to India around the 5th century AD. The real cultural history of these people, however, is believed to have begun much earlier when Lord Krishna arrived here with the Yadavs, some 3,500 years ago. Gujarat has three distinct regions. One is Gujarat proper and the other two are Saurashtra and Kutch. Communities practicing religions like Jainism, Islam, Zoroastrianism etc. can be found in the state.

Specialities
A Kathiawari favorite is debra. Made with wheat flour mixed with spinach, green chilies, a dollop of yogurt and a pinch of salt and sugar, these are eaten with chudo-a thick sweet chutney made with raw man-goes, cardamoms, cloves, saffron and sugar. Yet another specialty is methia masala, a dry powder made from fenugreek seeds, chili powder and salt. This is sprinkled over raw vegetables and salads for a piquant flavor. A peanut fudge made from gur is another specialty, which is quite delicious
Using the same lentils and rice, Kutchi kitchens produce delectable items like the khaman dhokla, a salty steamed cake made from chickpea flour; doodha pak, sweet, thickened milk confectioned with nuts, and srikhand, a dessert made of yogurt, flavored with saffron, cardamom, nuts and candied fruit which is eaten with hot, fluffy pooris. These three delicacies have made their way into the favorites list of the rest of India too and can be found in restaurants all over the country.

Karnataka Cuisine
The culinary fare offered by Karnataka is quite varied with each region of the state having its own unique flavors. Many factors and influences have contributed to enrich this culinary heritage

State

Geographically, Karnataka is divided into three distinct regions. A narrow coastal strip along the Arabian Sea, the hills of the Western Ghats, and sprawling plains to the east. Karnataka is also known as the coffee-bowl of India. It is the spice country which produces the best cardamoms, fondly called the queen of spices and 'black gold' or black pepper.

Specialities

and

Sweets

A typical Karnatka meal has many delicacies like Kosambari, a salad made of the broken halves of the soaked green moong dal (lentil) minus its skin, spiced with salt, green chili and mustard seed (oggarane) and mixed with tiny scrapings of coconut, cucumber and carrot and dressed with a little lime juice. Then there are the playas which are vegetables steamed or boiled to retain the original color and flavor. Sometimes, huli is replaced with a milder kootu. Tamarind is taboo for kootu, which is spiced with lots of pepper, cumin seeds and ground coconut. Also, no Kannada meal is complete without saaru-a clear pepper broth. Kesari bhath (a halwa made of semolina, sugar, and saffron), chiroti and Mysore pak are among the favorite sweets in Karnatka. But the piece de resistance is the obbattu or holigea-flat, thin, wafer-like chappati filled with a mixture of jaggery, coconut and sugar and fried gently on a skillet. Along with payasa (south Indian kheer), obbattu is always served with celebratory meals in Karnatka. Other delectable sweets that come out of the Kannada kitchen are the shavige payasa made of vermicelli and sugar, hesaru bele made with green gram dal, and baadami hallu, which is, crushed almonds mixed with milk, sugar and saffron.

Kashmiri Cuisine
Think of Kashmiri cuisine and visions of deliciously spicy meat dishes, the kahva (salt tea), and the delicate flavor of saffron come to mind. The Kashmiris are passionate about their food and this is evident from the amount of time they spend either cooking it or discussing about it. That the kitchen is typically the best decorated room in the house says a lot about its importance. However, contrary to impressions of those living outside the state, every Kashmiri meal is not an eight-course wazwan.

State
Kashmir is one of the most scenic and beautiful places of India. It is a part of the state of Jammu and Kashmir, which comprises the Jammu region, the Kashmir Valley, and Ladakh. Though affected by political violence for over a decade now, Kashmir is are gentle and food loving people and their elaborate banquets are world famous.

Specialities
Meat being the staple, most of the special dishes have mutton as a major ingredient. Nahari, a special breakfast dish, is a stew of trotters and tongue, seasoned with cassia buds, cardamom, sandalwood powder, vetiver roots and dried rose petals. The sheermal bread goes well with this stew. The methi maz, on the other hand, is a superb blend of mild tasting entrails and strongflavored fenugreek leaves.
Almost every special occasion in Kashmir is celebrated with a wazwan. Named after the cooks who dish out culinary wonders on these occasions, the wazwan is equivalent to a mutton lover's vision of paradise. Eight preparation of mutton are essential for any wazwan and the number can go up to thirty-six. The preparation for the wazwan begins with contacting the family waza or cook who, together with the host, decides the menu. On the day of the wazwan, the waza, accompanied by his various helpers, starts the pounding, cutting and grating early in the morning. Only the leg of lamb is used for dhaniphol, only ribs for tabak maz, only neck for rogan josh, and so on. During the course of a wazwan, amid a veritable storm of courses, not one dish tastes like another.

Kerala Cuisine
Kerala has a distinctive cuisine, very unusual and different from the rest of India. Cooking in Kerala is all about discoveries, aromas and colors. Kerala cuisine is very hot and spicy and offers several gastronomic opportunities to those willing to experiment with the local cuisine.

State
A tropical paradise of undulating palms and warm sandy beaches, Kerala is a narrow strip of coastal territory sloping down from the Western Ghats in a riot of green, luxuriant vegetation. Kerala is also one of the richest states in India with forests and plantations of rubber, cashew, and coconuts everywhere. The meeting place of many cultures, Hindu and Muslim, Christian and Jewish, Kerala has a particularly rich heritage of dance and drama and the

people are among the most industrious and well educated in the country.

Specialities
Kerala is noted for its variety of pancakes and steamed rice cakes made from pounded rice. Though the same ingredients are used all over the state, each of the communities has its own specialties. For the Muslims, the lightly flavored biryani-made of mutton, chicken, egg or fish-takes pride of place. In seafood, mussels are a favorite. A concoction of mussel and rice flour, cooked in the shell is called arikadaka. The Arab influence on the local cuisine is very visible in the rich meat curries and desserts. A community of Muslims who live in an area called Kuttichara, have a special dish-a whole roasted goat stuffed with chickens inside which are eggs. For the Christians, who can be seen in large concentration in areas like Kottayam and Pala, ishtew (a derivation of the European stew), with appam is a must for every marriage reception. There would also be beef cutlets with sallas (a salad made of finely cut onions, green chilies and vinegar), chicken roast, olathan erachi (fried mutton, beef or pork), meen moilee (a yellow fish curry), meen mulligattathu (a fiery red fish curry), and peera pattichathu (a dry fish dish of grated coconut). Another interesting feature is the abundant use of coconut oil, mustard seeds, curry leaves, and coconut milk.

Maharashtrian Cuisine
The culture of Maharashtra, which reveals itself in many ways, is also reflected in its local cuisine. Though most people are not very familiar with Maharashtrian cuisine and it has yet to find its way into five-star kitchens, there does exist a large and interesting culinary repertoire

State
Overlooking the vast expanse of the Arabian Sea is the western state of Maharashtra, which presents a strong blend of the traditional and the contemporary-each co-existing with the other with surprising ease.

Specialities
Among seafood, the most popular fish is bombil or the Bombay duck, which is normally served batter fried and crisp. Bangda or mackerel is another popular fish in coastal Maharashtra. It is curried with red chilies, ginger and triphal. Pomfret is another popular fish eaten barbecued, stuffed, fried or curried. Pamphlet triphal ambat is a traditional dish in which fish is cooked in creamy coconut gravy that greatly enhances its taste. Besides fish, crabs, prawns, shellfish and lobsters are also relished by the coastal Maharashtrians. A popular prawn dish is the sungtachihinga kodi, which consists of prawns in coconut gravy, blended with spices and asafetida

Special Occations
In Maharashtra, festivals and food go together. During Ganesh Utsav, every Maharashtrian welcomes Lord Ganesh into his home and offers Modak-a favorite sweetmeat of Lord Ganesh that is made only during this festival. It has a rice flour casting that is fashioned like a large flower bud and stuffed with freshly granted coconut cooked with jaggery. The modak is placed on lightly greased banana leaves and steamed.

Punjabi Recipe
Mention Punjab and the first image that comes to mind is that of lush green fields. Mention Punjabi food and the first thing that comes to mind is makke ki roti and sarson ka saag. Punjabi cuisine is like the Punjabis themselves. It is simple, sizeable and hearty - with no unnecessary frills or exotic accompaniments

State
The land of Punjab is a land of earthy culture, myriad images of swaying emerald green fields and warm people whose robust rustic ways of camaraderie and bonhomie are very much a part of their heritage. Beyond its joyous people and carpet spreads of fertile fields, this 'Land of Milk and Honey' has a host of culinary treasures that it readily offers to the others too.

Specialities
Most Punjabi menus are made according to the season. The universal favorite is chole-bathure which is a round-the-year item and is available at every wayside dhaba anywhere in Northern India. But, the pride of the Punjabi winter cuisine is sarson-ka-saag (mustard leaves) served with blobs of white butter accompanied by makke-diroti and lassi (churned yogurt). The other popular dishes, which belong exclusively to Punjab, are mah ki dal, rajma (kidney beans) and stuffed parathas. Punjabi cuisine is characterized by a profusion of dairy products in the form of malai (cream), paneer (cottage cheese) and curds. Then there is also paneer-a must in the vegetarian Punjabi menu. Several delectable items are made out of this rather bland derivative of milk. Creations like the Kadai Paneer, and Makhani Paneer are basically Punjabi but are well loved all over the country.

Special Occations
A predominantly wheat eating people, the Punjabis cook rice only on special occasions. Rice is rarely cooked plain or steamed and is always made with a flavoring of cumin or fried onions, which is the served with rajma (kidney beans) or kadhi (curd curry). In winter, rice is cooked with jaggery - gurwala chawal or with green peas or as a delicacy called Rao ki kheer, which is rice cooked on a slow fire for hours together with sugar cane juice.

Rajasthani Cuisine
The Land of Princes, as Rajasthan is called, boasts of many a fine kitchenboth within the palaces and outside. In the royal kitchens of Rajasthan, the preparation of food was a very serious matter and was raised to the level of an art form. Hundreds of cooks worked in the stately palaces and kept their recipes very closely guarded. Some recipes were passed on to their sons and the rest were lost forever.

State
Situated in northwest India, Rajasthan is india at its exotic and colorful best, with its battle-scarred forts, its palaces of breathtaking grandeur, its riot of colors, and its romantic sense of pride and honor. In Rajasthan, the spectacular is commonplace and colorful costumes, festivals, and customs relieve the tedium of coping with a harsh, demanding land.

Specialities
Perhaps the best-known Rajasthan food is the combination of dal, bati and churma but there is a wide variety to choose from in Rajasthan cuisine. The bati, lachhedar paratha and besan ki missi puri are types of bread peculiar to Rajasthan. Two meat specialties are lal maans (red meat), a fiery heavily spiced dish, and safed mass (white meat) cooked with almonds, cashew nuts and coconut. Various chutneys are made from locally available spices like turmeric, coriander, mint and garlic. Apart from the spicy delicacies, each of the regions of Rajasthan is distinguished by its popular sweet - ladoos of Jaisalmer, mawa kachori of Jodhpur, malpuas of Pushkar, dil jani of Udaipur, mishri mawa and ghevar of Jaipur, sohan halwa of Ajmer, mawa of Alwar, and rasgullas of Bikaner, to name a few. Bikaner also has a whole range of other savories and snacks like the world famous Bikaner ki bhujia.

Special Occations
With every festival in Rajasthan, some traditional goodies are associated like the ghevar with Teej, and the malpuas with the Pushkar cattle fair. For occasions like hunting, there special preparations of meat that the men cooked themselves. During the times of the kings and princes, every cook tried a new dish almost everyday. Game, ranging from peacocks to camels, was prepared to perfection and decorated elaborately before being served in silver platters.

Tamil Cuisine
Tamil Nadu provides the visitors with a wide variety of delicacies, both vegetarians as well as non-vegetarians, though most food in Tamil Nadu consists of grains, lentils, rice and vegetables. Spices are added to give a distinctive taste to this cuisine, which uses chili liberally.

State
Situated in the southernmost part of India, Tamil Nadu is referred to as the cradle of the Dravidian culture, the ancient Indian culture distinguished for its unique languages, customs and architecture. The cultural icons are everywhere-huge temples with their towering gopurams (gateways), intricate rock carvings, evocative music, classical dances, and, of course, the cuisine.

Specialities
Some of the popular dishes in Chettinad menu are varuval -- a dry dish fried with onions and spices (chicken, fish or vegetables sauted), pepper chicken, poriyal a curry, and kuzambu which has the ingredients stewed in a gravy of coconut milk and spices. In the same range, one can include the numerous pickles, powders, specially roasted and ground spices, dry snacks, papads, appalam and vada. Numerous shops now sell pre-packed snacks like murukkus, small spirals of fried rice dough, chips and other edible 'hand grenades' like thattai, masala vada and so on. The Tamil variation of Mughlai food can be savored in the biryani and paya. The latter is a kind of spiced trotter broth and is eaten with either parathas or appam. Tamil Nadu is famous for its filter coffee as most Tamils have a subtle contempt for instant coffee. The making of filter coffee is almost a ritual, for the coffee beans have to be roasted and ground. Then the powder is put into a filter set and boiling hot water is added to prepare the decoction and allowed to set for about 15 minutes. The decoction is then added to milk with sugar to taste. The final drink is poured individually from one container to another in rapid succession to make the ideal frothy cup of filter coffee.