New Delhi: Das served herself a plate of rice, topped with fried Hilsa and a bit of mustard oil, quickly moved to a corner, sat down on the door slab, and took her first bite of fish. “Hilsa is incomplete without mustard oil and rice — a true Bengali flavour,” she said, dipping her fingers to debone the fish.
Das was among the guests at the Ilish Fest hosted by the Bangladesh High Commission in New Delhi on Saturday. At noon, women in exquisite Dhakai sarees and men in vibrant kurtas gathered at the embassy to celebrate the Hilsa festival. It was the first of its kind, coming right after a Jamdani festival organised by the High Commission last week.
“Hilsa is a profound element in our culture. It is delicate, delectable, and unique,” said M Riaz Hamidullah, High Commissioner of Bangladesh.
At the entry, a board with the India-Bangladesh flags welcomed guests with the words “Celebrating Friendship” in bold letters. Inside, a small exhibition of photographs showcased fishermen in Bangladesh — an ode to their hard labour in bringing this delicate, niche, and expensive freshwater fish to people’s plates.
An Ilish affair
The aroma of frying Hilsa filled the room. Even as the High Commissioner spoke, the crackling of fish in hot mustard oil provided a tempting distraction.
For Bengalis — whether in India or Bangladesh — Hilsa, or Ilish, is not just food but an emotion. During Durga Puja, it is indispensable, especially at the Navami lunch, where the melt-in-the-mouth fish cooked in mustard sauce evokes nostalgia with every bite.
The embassy recreated this experience with a lavish afternoon spread. Big, chunky pieces of Hilsa fried in mustard oil were followed by a range of classic dishes: fish head cooked with Malabar spinach, Ilish Bhorta, Hilsa egg roe, and Shorshe Ilish — Hilsa steamed to perfection in a yellow mustard gravy.
The dishes, lovingly prepared by women members of the embassy and their spouses, were rounded off with Bengali sweets like Sandesh and Chom Chom, flown in from Bangladesh. Guests happily abandoned cutlery to eat with their fingers. Around 82 kilograms of fish had been brought in from Barisal, Bangladesh.
Even foreign guests joined in to experience the hype.
“What a wonderful celebration of food, fish, and festival diplomacy. Delicious example of India-Bangladesh connectivity,” said Constantino Xavier, Senior Fellow at the Centre for Social and Economic Progress, and Duangkamon Kiatbumrung, Counsellor at the Embassy of Thailand.
Towards the end, the Bangladesh ambassador himself served Hilsa, his favourite being Ilish Bhorta. “The women have deboned the fish with their hands, and minced the flesh like the famous Kashmiri dish in Gushtaba,” he noted.
Hilsa as diplomacy
Hilsa is a food item that has been a cultural bridge between India and Bangladesh, but also a source of friction. Last year, Bangladesh banned Hilsa exports ahead of Durga Puja, but appeals from traders on both sides led the interim government to permit 3,000 tonnes.
Former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had reintroduced Hilsa exports in 2019, and since then over 1,000 tonnes have reached India each festive season. Today, we know this practice as “Hilsa diplomacy.”
“I think we can call it many things — Jamdani diplomacy, fish diplomacy, sweet diplomacy. For me, diplomacy is invisible. Hilsa is just one ingredient that, in subtle ways, helps advance it,” Hamidullah told ThePrint. “When it comes to both countries, I’d say let us liberate the relationship. Liberation is key,” he added.
This year, despite low production, Bangladesh has exported around 1,200 tonnes of Hilsa to India ahead of Durga Puja.
As the ambassador reminded guests: “Please celebrate not just the fish, but life.”
(Edited by Prashant)