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Whatwould you do ifyou saw this note on your building's noticeboard?

Sincethen,Aishwarya became alittle moreconsciousofhercookingathome, where shehadAmerican, Latino, and Korean flatmates.To be more mindful ofthosearoundher, shestarted toputa clocheoverthepanwhile cookingand begantoventilate the houseasmuchas possible.

Formanyfirst-generation kids, there's also the daunting'lunchboxmo1nent' when theyfeel targetedforthesmells coming from theirpacked lunches. Toavoid ridicule,theyeventuallyswitch to 'safer' lunchesat school like hamsandwiches.

Ofcourse, the argumentgoes beyond homes.Acommonquestion onAirbnb's hostdiscussions rooms hasbeen: 'Can you askgueststo not cookcurryorsmelly foods?' Some queries are morestrongly worded thanothers, but thecon1mon sentimentisthat curryhasa strong, lingeringsmellwhich allAirbnbguests might notenjoy.

Cultural perspectives on food

Itallboilsdown to understandingand recognisingdifferences.

BY RHEAL NATH

hen 29-year-old Vaibhav Pokhriyal moved intohis newapartinentin the Sydney suburbofDee Why, he never would have guessed whata stir(no pun intended) his cookingwould create.

Merelytwoweeksin, asignwentup on the building'scommunity noticeboard, in bold letters: 'Stop cookingcurry! This buildingsmells likean Indian restaurant.'

Wasitthegarlicpaste inbisdal?The hingin hisaloosabzi? Whateverthecase,it rubbedhisnewneighboursthewrongwayand theywere determined tolethimknow.

Toreceive suchapassive-aggressive note abouttheircookingmightdetersome people. Vaibhav, though,was determined to continue hishabitsas is.

"I'm stillcooking Indianfood," hetold IndianLink. "I'm notgoingtostopbecause ofthiscon1plaint. I'mcertainly notgoingto makepasta everyday."

Infact,hetookit astepfurther. He decidedto address thepassive-aggressive note with alittleone ofhis own: 'Ifyouare tired ofyourfood,you'rewelcome totry someof1nine.'

Bothnotesstayedup onthenoticeboard foratleast a1nonthbefore theywere taken down.

Unfortunately, thisisn't aloneincident ofIndian cookingreceivingbacklash from neighboursorlandlords. Indian cotnmunitygroupson Facebookhave seen numerousposts about neighbourswho complain aboutthe strongsmell emanating from their kitchens.

"l an1 in so 1nuch stressthat 1 have stopped cooking Indianfood," oneuser lamented.

Anotherusersharedthattheymovedout oftheirnewapartmentaftera fewweeks because ofunpleasant incidentswith their neighbours.

"Mycousinwaslookingatproperties around Western Sydney. When he found onethatheliked,hewastold by the agent thatthe landlord doesn't lease to Indian orChinese familiesbecauseofthe smell of the cooking,"Vaibhavadded.

In situationslike this,it'shardtoshake offthe paranoia upon realisingyourfood makesyou stand out negativelyfrom the restofthe crowd.

24-year-oldAishwarya Reddy, an HRconsultant recalls across-cultural managementclass fron1hertime atthe UniversityofSydneywherethestudents were encouraged tohaveanopen,honest conversation about stereotypes.

"Wewere aprettymixed classwith Indian, Chinese, andAussiestudents. WhenwewereaskedaboutAsian stereotypes,wetalked about seafood, soy, strongvinegarsmells," sheexplainedto IndianLink.

"Whenit cameto Indianfood, Iwas surprisedand initiallyoffended.Then I realised this is howthe othercommunities must've feltduringthediscussion."

As individuals, wetendto becautious ofsmells,sights,andsounds that we aren'taccustomed to. However, when migrantcommunitieshavefacedthese kindsofissuesallove1·theworld,the idea of"smelly food"isn'tlimited toanyone culturalgroup.

Plentyof"white"foodslikebluecheeseand anchoviesareassociatedwithstrongsmells.

Early European familiesarrivingin AustraJia felt thebrunt ofsimilarostracism with theirsalamis, cheesesand sauerkraut.

South-east Asian foods like kimchi, and fruitsuch asdurian, are strongin their smells butaredelicious to eat.

What WEcan doaboutour cookingsmells

• A new-agetricktogetridofstrong smellsis lightinga candletosoak up the airin a room. Tryitoutnexttime you're cooking- and no,itdoesn't haveto beascented candle.

• Cookingfood,especiallyIndianfood, can bea longprocess. Trytoclean asyougo, includingwipingdown thestovetopandtheadjoiningwall whenyou'redone,to limitthelasting scent.

• Ifyou'reexpectingguests, itmight helptofinishyourcookingofcurries and otherstrong-smellingfoodthe daybefore.

WhatYOUcan doaboutour cookingsmells

• Simplytell us ifyoufind ourfood overpowering. Wedon'tfind itso,

Andyetwithincreased interaction and exposure came acceptance, even true relish. Evenaubiquitoussupermarket iten1 such asyogurtwashard tofind comn1erciallyuntil notso longago - today the averageAussieconsumes around 7.5 kilogramsofyogurtannually.

The internationalfoodaisles in supennarkets,while convenient, are anotherwaythatwe see a formoffood politicsplayout. Some items, like olive oilwith Mediterraneanorigins, sit comfortablyonshelveswhile lentils, tortillas, and currypaste find themselves indifferent aisles. With time, as these ingredients become more commonand normalised in households, maybewewon't need to see such ademarcated space.

So what's the problem?

Unfortunately, unpleasant incidentscrop upwhenothers feel the need to impose their ideas. Who likes to be told what theycancook in thecon1fortoftheirown home?

Perhaps all this boils down to the way we accept, and giveout,criticism. Think back to neighboursofother cultural backgroundswhosecooking might have affectedyounegatively in anyway. Or even considerother Indianfamilieswhose cookingn1ightsmell different than our own.

Withoutdolingoutshame or disapprovaJ, maybe it's time we accept that foodhas asmell. Sometimeswe like it, sometiineswedon't.

(But ifyou're facingparticularly nastyincidents withyour neighbours orlandlords, do somethingabout it. Reach outtostrataoryour local council. Disagreementsareokay, racistremarks are not.)

sowewon'tbeaware until youtell us. Mostofuswouldtakean extra step, like usinga cloche,to make it a more comfortableexperience. (Try nottosound likeVaibhav Pokhriyal's neighbourthough).

• Knowthatsomeofyourownfoods smelltoo -there aresome pretty strong-smellingcheese; and an egg sandwichfor lunch can stink upthe office, oreven microwaved cheddar popcorn.Soit's notjustcurry,or 'ethnic' or'Asian'foods.Strongtaste =strongsmell.

• Giveourfoodatry.Ifyou likethetaste, youmightfindyou'llbeabletotolerate thesmell.Mostofuscould notstand the lookandsmellofVegemitewhen wefirstcame here, butwegave ita goastheanthemofAustraliasayswe should.Tryand broadenyourpalettes whenyougoouttoeat.

PS: Numerousreadersreachedouttosaythattheyhad actuallygotten compliments abouttheircookingfromfriends,neighboursandacquaintances.Someevenaskedfor recipestotryathome.Alwaysagreatsign!

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