Priyanka Chopra picking hot dog over vada pav is the new national crisis—because snack choices are now a parameter to judge someone’s desi-ness or patriotism.
Next step: revoke citizenships for preferring sushi or tacos over butter chicken.
Priyanka Chopra, at the red-carpet premiere of her new film Heads of State, participated in a “this or that” segment—a rapid-fire game about food preferences.
After a range of global dishes – guacamole and hummus to churros and doughnuts – came the big question: Hot dog or vada pav? “I love a vada pav, but hot dog is my weakness,” Priyanka said.
And just like that, her desi quotient and loyalty to India were up for public trial. We have gone from gatekeeping religion to gatekeeping snacks.
Somehow, the world’s largest democracy is so fragile that it takes offence at a woman picking one food over another.
If accents can change within months of living in a foreign country, why can’t food choices? Could we be any more hypocritical?
Priyanka Chopra chose hot dog over vada pav. Big deal. What’s more concerning is how people choose outrage over basic logic.
Food is personal. Culture is fluid. And identity cannot and should not be measured by what’s on your plate.
Food hypocrisy
The very people overreacting to Priyanka Chopra’s food choices are the ones obsessing over matcha latte and boba tea, captioning every second Instagram post with “sushi nights” or “Italian food is life.”
Some even mocked Priyanka for not being able to pick samosa when given a choice between that and empanadas. Well, sorry to break it to you, but the samosa isn’t exactly Indian. Iran to South Africa, many nations stake claim to it.
The streets in our country have more foreign cuisine restaurants than Indian ones. Visit Japan or Italy, and you’ll see how their food scene is populated with local fare.
We celebrate birthdays with pizza and pasta, and serve dumplings, sushi, and Thai curry at weddings.
These days, every other woman craves pesto sauce pasta or ramen. And every other man raves about butter chicken tortellini and pepperoni pizza.
We are now so globally influenced that desi food must fight for space at the dinner table—trying to woo those who spent their childhoods making faces at homemade lauki (bottle gourd), karela (bitter gourd), and tori (ridge gourd). People who refuse to appreciate local produce and preparations judge others for picking foreign snacks over Indian ones.
Priyanka Chopra has a global palate because she is a global icon. She lives in the United States, works across continents, and can safely enjoy a hot dog without being labelled “fake” or “wannabe American.”
If anything, it shows she has taste – something her critics lack in terms of both food and common sense.
Views are personal.
(Edited by Zoya Bhatti)
Let’s admit this publicly and not be coy about it.
We girls love hot dogs. The bigger the sausage, the better it is.