Food For Thought: YSM8
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Food
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FOOD FOR
THOUGHT: YSM8
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Words by Luc HinsonArtwork by Pooja Rai, Sandy Biring & Alia Romagnoli
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We recently caught up with Poonam Dhuffer, founder of YSM8 a Veggie Punjabi Suppr Club with a twist. Poonam talked us through what you can expect to to see, hear and taste at a YSM8 event, what YSM8 actually means, and her own journey of growing up and self-discovery.
[/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label="Text" text_orientation="center" text_font="neuzeit|on|||" text_font_size="11" text_text_color="#bababa" text_line_height="1em" custom_margin="||0px|" custom_padding="||0px|" inline_fonts="Bree Serif" /][et_pb_text admin_label="Text" max_width="3000px" text_font_size="15px" text_line_height="2em" text_line_height_phone="1.5em" text_line_height_last_edited="on|phone" custom_margin_phone="|-15px||-15px" custom_margin_last_edited="on|phone"]BB: Hey Poonam, can you tell us a bit about yourself, bit of background…
I’m born and bred in South-East London in a Sikh household. I’ve always been obsessed with colour, pattern and textiles ever since I can remember. I’ve always viewed myself as a creative and have been proud of my Sikh, Punjabi heritage. When I was younger, I used to take Bharatanatyam dance classes (a classical Indian dance form), photography lessons from my dad, sewing lessons from my mamma ( grandmother), cooking lessons from my mum. I constantly was expressing my identity through various creative forms.
My parents never suppressed my imagination or my appetite to learn new things. They have always supported my ideas and encouraged my creativity. Their open mindset has enabled my career and side hustle projects to flourish. We have grown up and soaked in a myriad of sounds. My eldest brother is a talented musician who plays the Indian drum called tabla. His music is ingrained into me as well as world music from traditional kirtan (Sikh hymns) and Qawwali (devotional Sufi songs) jazz, soul, R&B.
One of my strengths has always been being able to put things together, talking to people and finding the deeper meaning. I guess I’ve always been curious and had the desire to find out why? How? With a degree in textile design, a curious mindset and drive to work my ass off, I landed my first job at a global trend forecasting agency based in London. After almost five solid years, I went travelling, came back refreshed and decided to board the freelance train and set up YSM8. I learnt so much about the industry and about myself on both a professional and personal level. I began to notice of the waves of diversity and inclusion were hitting mainstream media and brands, yet British South Asians are still not fully represented.
BB: Poonam what is YSM8?
YSM8 (yes mate!) is my motto for life. It’s a positive universal affirmation I say to yes mate! to myself and other people every single day. When I hear a song, eat something amazing or greet my mates I always either say “ Yes mate! Or Yes mate! Smashed it!”
YSM8 is an inclusive event and chat series that celebrates sharing veggie home cooked Punjabi food. It’s about telling a story and shining light on nostalgic veggie Punjabi home cooked food I’ve grown up and continue to love to eat now. It’s about educating people on the veggie and vegan home cooked Punjabi food we eat at home and why we eat certain dishes. Our events reflect the tastes and sounds I have grown up with and continue to be inspired by.
BB: Why did you decide to set it up?
Even today, stories from British Black and Asian backgrounds aren’t fully being documented in media. For me, I still struggle to see authentic representation or documentation of my community in mainstream media. I’m sure like many other British South Asians, I never saw myself in mainstream media when I was growing up. Especially in today’s political climate, it’s imperative for me that I use my voice to champion and collaborate with women for the right reasons.
If we're not documenting stories from BAME communities, we’re erasing it from history. It’s important to narrate and share our own stories. Who is better than us to empower and inspire each other with our stories.
I made a promise to myself that if I was ever in position to represent my culture, I would do everything in power to wave that flag and also give back some how to people who truly were in need.
Being a food lover, I’d also go to other supper clubs and often have to press events for work. I notice how cliquey they were and how overpriced they were. Sometimes, I’d leave early because I didn’t feel like I fitted in and the food was not great. In my workplace, I began taking in dishes cooked by me or my mum. I loved explaining how the dishes was cooked and why we eat certain dishes.
I’d always be inviting friends over for dinner or end up cooking at my mate’s place. There would also be some people who couldn’t make the date and the evenings always ended by my friends and family encouraging me to scale it up. I decided to set up YSM8 for people to seek out authentic cultural experiences through food, conversation, curating world sounds, and creating affordable events for an inclusive community.
Our core values are equality, oneness and inclusivity. All are welcome to our events. I never want anyone to leave our events and not feel warmly welcomed. In a nutshell, YSM8 is shining the light on my Punjabi community, on the Sikh values that have been imbedded into my DNA. A big part of Sikh culture is sharing food and giving back to those who are in need. Ultimately it is unapologetically celebrating my upbringing as a young British Indian woman living in South East London. It’s about bringing people to the table and sharing my identity through food and global sounds.
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"IT'S IMPORTANT TO NARRATE AND SHARE OUR OWN STORIES WHO IS BETTER THAN US TO EMPOWER AND INSPIRE EACH OTHER WITH OUR STORIES."
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BB: Is food intrinsically linked to your identity?
100% Yes! Food is directly linked to my identity. Both my parents were born in Kenya and their roots run deep into Punjab. There are certain Swahili words we use and certain foods such as mogo ( cassava root), dal, we eat in my household which go way back to my parents and their grandparents. My parents surroundings and environment changed, but their food hasn’t changed. There is something incredibly special about this. If we had completely adapted and converted our eating habits to fit in with the English community, we would be losing a huge part of our identity.
Our food isn’t just nourishing our bodies, it links us back to our roots, our ancestors, our traditions, our stories and our home land. To lose our food culture would be a disaster in my eyes. Which is why I am so proud that my family have taught me and my brothers how to cook. I’ve been cooking since the age of ten years old and been learning how to make dishes that have been passed down generation to generation. These are recipes my family and I hold very dear to our heart, as they tied to precious memories to my grandparents and other members of my extended family.
The method of cooking, the stories and conversations behind these dishes are ingrained into me and make me the person I am today. Eating together is another huge element in my culture. I remember going to uni in Birmingham and eating my first meal on my own. I sat there and cried (I was home sick too, which made everything worse). My core values are deeply connected to my family and the Divine. They are all interlinked. Learning how to cook and eating with my family is beyond value, you can’t put a price on it.
BB: What makes food so effective at bringing people together?
The food is home-cooked by me and my Mum. We are serving up food that in our culture sometimes is classed as peasant foods. For instance we made misi roti- which is wheat flour mixed with dal. Served with yogurt, mint, coriander,apple chutney. Everything is home cooked. We don’t buy sauces and add them in. Every dish is made exactly how we make it at home.
The food is simple but delicious and wholesome, most importantly it is cooked with love. We make our own pickles, chai masala and spices for all the dishes. We serve up sharing platters and keep filling up until the food is finished. There’s nothing worse than not being full-up from an event. So I make sure everyone is brimming with food by the time they leave. People connect through sharing food and understanding more about our culture through the story-telling at the beginning of the event. I always share a small story about the dish, why we’re serving it, why it’s close to my heart, my memories about that dish.
Food connects us to the past, the present and the future.
When people are hearing the stories and trying the food, they are broadening their thinking. They begin to understand what it must feel like to have grown up eating these foods and how degrading the world “curry” is. We never use the word curry, and you will never see it on our menu. Why? Because we don’t eat curry. This dish and word doesn’t exist in our vocabulary. We eat Kadi, which is a traditional dish made from yogurt and gram flour. There are different variations depending on your roots. For us, our Kadi has bhajia/pakoras made from onion, spinach, ginger and gram flour and potatoes.
We also donate 10% or more to a chosen charity that fits with the ethos of each event. For instance we donated 50% of profits to Help Refugees Charity in December last year. It’s important for me to give back to people who are truly in need. Over the festive period, we’re so wrapped up in our own bubble we often forget to look outside that. One of the teachings of our first Guru- Guru Nanak Dev Ji is - Vand Kay Shaki which translates to selflessly serving others. So even though people are paying a ticket to come to the supper club, it was a non-profit event. Their money is going further than just having a good time and understand more about Punjabi culture.
BB: What can we expect to taste, hear and see at one of YSM8’s events?
The events are reflection of what I’ve grown up listening to and the music that inspires me today. The sound of Qawwali has filled my house since such a young age, so it’s a natural choice we play Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Abida Parveen and more modern Qawwali sounds by The Noorian Sisters.
My dad is a huge fan of the guitar legend Santana, BB King, Elvis, Earth Wind and Fire. Mum loves the Bhangra Kings Malkit Singh, Surjit Bhindrakhia, A.S Khan, but loves also The Temptations. I love listening to an eclectic range of music from Onra, Kaytranada, Qais Essar, Sade, A Tribe Called Quest, Homayun Sakhi, Eric Lau, Yedi Karanfil to BADBADNOTGOOD, Mall Grab, The Spy From Cario, Koma Amed and Khalid.
Our events are filled with global sounds as these are the sounds I’ve grown up with, not just Bhangra or Bollywood classics. Being creative is about having open mind, that is now difference to how I listen to sounds, how I adjust the spices in my dal or how I choose the colour palettes for the tables. You can expect to see pattern on pattern and bursts of colour accompanying the settings. Everything from the colour choices, patterns on the menus to the IG feed express a fun, open and not taking life too seriously vibe.
I want all the senses to be immersed and not just restrict it to taste. Yes, the food is important but the music and decor adds value too. At the end of the day, it’s about sharing my identity with people. I can only reflect that through the things I am passionate about - which is telling stories, feeding people, making them listen to new sounds
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BB: What does Britishness mean to you in the 21st Century?
I have mixed feelings about Britishness - it doesn’t just mean one thing to me.
I’d like to say Britishness means unity, tolerance, community and compassion. We’re living in a multi-cultural society and we should see the strength in our differences. Yet, I do struggle to see this some places there isn’t unity or compassion yet there’s a community.
There are definitely certain behaviours that are more British to me than Punjabi. I feel like there is a huge shift happening and the cogs are in motion, but only time will tell what that looks like.
BB: For you Poonam, What do you consider the main obstacles to integration in Britain today?
Language would be an obvious obstacle for people who are trying to settle here in Britain. Also adapting to the surroundings, the weather and the culture here in Britain could be challenging for some.
We are human beings before we are any labels are placed on us. I believe we need to be more patient, tolerant and compassionate with each other. We should treat each other with love and respect. When my parents and grandparents came here, they soaked in the British culture but they never forgot their roots. Despite dealing with racism and prejudices, they learnt how to adapt and survive on foreign soil. They went through hardship and struggled go give us ( the next generation) a better life. We must never forget our roots and the stories that make us who we are.
BB: What are your hopes for YSM8 in 2019 and beyond?
I want YSM8 to be a platform that unites young British South Asian creatives and builds out a community in real life, not just on social media. It would be great to work brands and agencies who are interested in hearing my story.
Instagram: @_YSM8
The next YSM8 event is in collaboration with Hungama, which will take place on Saturday 11th May The Chateau in South East London. Info in link above.
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