 "Food in the time of conflict")
A plateful of dumplings stuffed with meat and topped with minty yoghurt is in front of me. It’s the first time that I taste manthu, an Afghani snack. Next on the plate are some succulent shami kebabs and as I bite into them, the words of Tehmina (name changed) who made them, come to mind. “Since my husband was kidnapped and lost to the Taliban, and I was forced to escape to India with my children after years of torture from my in-laws — the first time I felt proud of myself was when a customer praised my kebabs.” Tehmina is one of the several Afghan refugees, single mothers all, who’re taking small steps towards a dignified livelihood in India, one kebab at a time. Thanks to the efforts of the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, and its development partner Access, these women are part of Ilham, a home-cooked catering service that not only introduces Indians to the flavours of Afghanistan, but also gives them a chance for a dignified livelihood.
Afghans, along with Somalis and Syrians, account for over 53 per cent of the world’s refugees today. Regardless of the country in which they seek refuge, they have a unique set of problems. Most of them have crossed borders without official papers. In India, this means that refugees can’t open bank accounts, buy property, get proper jobs or live normal lives. All they have by the way of identification, is the Refugee Card issued by the UNHCR. “My nineteen-year-old son worked in a call centre for three months before they told him that they couldn’t pay him in cash anymore,” says Tehmina. Further, coming as they do from conflict zones, many suffer from anxiety, depression and other manifestations of post traumatic stress disorder. Tehmina is teaching her youngest child, nine years old, at home because he is still scared of going alone to school.
Building a group livelihood programme for Afghan refugees around food, was a natural choice. “As a cultural group, Afghans love food and love to feed others,” says Sabbarwal. “We developed a menu that included specialties by different women that they could make in their homes, and then worked to standardise the recipes.” Much of this initial time was spent in training on maintaining hygiene and quality standards. Ilham’s debut at Dastkar’s Asia Bazaar in 2015 was a runaway success. “People used to perceive my country as simply a conflict zone,” says Tehmina. “We were able to showcase our rich culinary heritage to them.”
The successful debut encouraged the group to think of their startup as a more commercial venture. “We worked hard on costing, menu and packaging,” recalls Sabbarwal. Two months later, they were a much more professional and confident lot when they participated in Dastkar’s Winter Bazaar. “This time, not only was the response excellent, we also developed contact with customers like the US Embassy and UNHCR, who have been ordering regularly from us,” says Tehmina.
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From its four original members, Ilham now has seven. The earnings are varied. Depending upon assignments they get, the women earn between Rs 2500 to 12,500 per month. For the moment, they are content to work on this part-time, and get paid for the quantum of work they do. “But we would all like to do this full-time; perhaps open a small restaurant, or at least a take away with an open kitchen so customers can see us cook,” says Tehmina. Access is presently training these ladies in the skills required to run such an enterprise. Meanwhile, what they need are more orders for their delicious fare, which can be picked up from the Access office in Bhogal, New Delhi.
I relish the mutton dopiaza, pondering over the word Ilham, which in Arabic, means an inspired, positive beginning. “When I come to work, I interact with other people like me and for those few hours, I step out of my life,” says Tehmina. “Maybe as the volume of work increases, my cooking could help me transform my life altogether.” As these seven vulnerable women dish out the flavours of a conflict-torn motherland to which they may never return, it’s as if every kebab they make is steering them toward s a more palatable future.
For more, visit www.unhcr.org.in; to order food, call +91-9818944096 or email your order to aditisabbarwal@accessdev.org
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