SOPORE, June 8: Kashmir’s culinary landscape has long been defined by its grand Wazwan and rich meats. But beneath that celebrated spread lies a quieter, older food culture — one that is now fading.
Pickles made without oil. Dried vegetables that sustained families through harsh winters. Chutneys that carried a grandmother’s touch. These everyday recipes, never featured on restaurant menus, are slowly disappearing.
Meet Iram Janwari. A teacher. A mother. And now, a digital preserver of Kashmir’s fading culinary memory.
‘Some traditional foods have simply vanished’
“Some traditional foods have simply vanished,” Janwari, a teacher at SRM Welkin Higher Secondary School in Sopore, told Kashmir Convener. “People are caught up in modernization. But those old foods — they were healthy, pure, and came with emotions attached.”
In 2017, while away from home for her Master’s degree, she found herself sneaking into cooking — even though it was not allowed. With limited ingredients, she made pickles, dried vegetables, and sweets.
“Those small experiments kept my love for cooking alive,” she said.
After her marriage in 2019, Janwari began exploring traditional Kashmiri cuisine more seriously. That is when she noticed the gaps. Family recipes, passed down orally for generations, were being lost to time and changing tastes.
In 2022, she launched Recipe Bites — a YouTube channel and Instagram page dedicated to lost Kashmiri recipes, easy travel meals, and hostel-friendly dishes.
“My aim is not only to share food but also to preserve our culture, traditions, and memories,” she said.
Balancing teaching, motherhood, and content creation
Janwari is also a mother. Her days begin early. After school and family responsibilities, evenings are for creating content — shooting, editing, and testing recipes.
“There are moments when balancing everything feels challenging,” she said. “But the love and support from people who try my recipes keeps me motivated.”
Through her journey, she is also challenging a persistent social narrative — that a girl’s dreams end after marriage.
“Never underestimate the power of starting small,” she said. “Every dream begins with one small step. If you truly believe in your passion and continue working on it with dedication, there is no limit to what you can achieve.”
What began as a few secret hostel recipes, she said, has now become a platform to share “a piece of Kashmir with the world.”
Iran said, “Nothing is impossible. No situation or challenge can stop anyone from pursuing their dreams. It is willpower that enables a person to follow their dreams and keep chasing them until they come true.”
“There are many daughters and sisters who often feel that one failure is the end, or that without even trying, life is already over. But life begins after every challenge, at every stage. So let us step out of our comfort zones, work hard, chase our dreams, and make ourselves winners in every choice we make. This world is equally ours as it is of any other gender. No one can stop you unless you lack the willpower.”
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