"A group of four friends from Chittagong University crowd around a fuchka cart on the corner of the street. They sit on little bright colored plastic stools with melamine plates full of fuchka; pouring copious amounts of the tetul into the fuchka with a worn metal spoon. They sit for an hour popping shell after shell into their mouth. They're having a competition to see who could eat the most. The winner doesn't pay, of course."
"A group of four friends from Chittagong University crowd around a fuchka cart on the corner of the street. They sit on little bright colored plastic stools with melamine plates full of fuchka; pouring copious amounts of the tetul into the fuchka with a worn metal spoon. They sit for an hour popping shell after shell into their mouth. They're having a competition to see who could eat the most. The winner doesn't pay, of course."
From Jhal NYC's On The Shoulders series. "From a village in Brahmanbaria District called Shahpur. Means the place where kings reside. Married at the age of 9. Started living with her husband after 12. Took the food off her plate so her 7 kids could eat the good piece of meat. Only wore new clothes given to her if one of the two saris she had in rotation ripped. She had received news by letter that her father had passed while she had typhoid. She fainted en route back to her village on a palanquin carried by 8 men. Now lives in the States with 6 children in New York and one in Florida. Sufia"
From Jhal NYC's On The Shoulders series. "From a village in Brahmanbaria District called Shahpur. Means the place where kings reside. Married at the age of 9. Started living with her husband after 12. Took the food off her plate so her 7 kids could eat the good piece of meat. Only wore new clothes given to her if one of the two saris she had in rotation ripped. She had received news by letter that her father had passed while she had typhoid. She fainted en route back to her village on a palanquin carried by 8 men. Now lives in the States with 6 children in New York and one in Florida. Sufia"
From Jhal's On The Shoulders series. From Daria Daulat. During Borsha kal, (the flood season), the village gathers money together so they could buy a small boat. She and her friend Sraboni spend the day playing on the boat and helping people cross a flooded road. One day a heavy uncle of hers got on the boat by stepping right in the middle. The boat sunk right away. She could not swim, but Sraboni could. The water was low enough for the uncle to walk home. Embarrassed to look back, he couldn't see that she was struggling. Sraboni held onto her until they got to land. They went home and changed their clothes. The uncle came to her house to see how the girls were doing. No one knew she nearly drowned. Since then she's been scared of boats. On her way to start her first semester of college. Snigda
From Jhal's On The Shoulders series. From Daria Daulat. During Borsha kal, (the flood season), the village gathers money together so they could buy a small boat. She and her friend Sraboni spend the day playing on the boat and helping people cross a flooded road. One day a heavy uncle of hers got on the boat by stepping right in the middle. The boat sunk right away. She could not swim, but Sraboni could. The water was low enough for the uncle to walk home. Embarrassed to look back, he couldn't see that she was struggling. Sraboni held onto her until they got to land. They went home and changed their clothes. The uncle came to her house to see how the girls were doing. No one knew she nearly drowned. Since then she's been scared of boats. On her way to start her first semester of college. Snigda
In homage to Gordon Matta-Clark’s community project FOOD, the XM Café will feature local chefs as well as artists who incorporate food as part of their social practice. This month, Jhal NYC will share Bangladeshi street food as well as conversations on immigration and community building. Joining the evening will be musicians Ifti & The Royal Bengal Tea House.
Jhal NYC is a social entrepreneurship venture built to empower the Bangali New York community through food. We employ stay at home mothers and new immigrants, help build their language skills, and prepare them for careers they seek to transition to. More than anything, we are creating a community for these marginalized groups.
Jhal NYC was created to shine light on the distinct Bangali- New York culture that we grew up in. The taste of the Bangali food we were raised on, the aesthetic and sound of the streets of New York. We adorn our presence with the faces of those like Tagore and Kazi Nazrul because their words are the ones our family sung.
It's more than just about food, it's us.
Royal Bengal Tea House is a group of musicians, poets and activists based out of greater New York City area. We thrive to build a better community through activism, fashion, story telling and art.
