RANI O' RANNa
RANI O' RANNa
Rani O’ Ranna, translated to the ‘Queen in her Kitchen’ - is a documentary photo series capturing the lives of women within some of the most diverse household spaces of Calcutta- its kitchens.
A certain melody of a Bengali song calls me in even before any smell and as I follow the tune through the corridor, I am led to the kitchen of Rozeli, where the first thing she asks me is, “Cha Khabe?” Will you have some tea?”
Kitchens in India remain one of the most gendered spaces and this series reflects and questions why women should feel the need to embrace the identity of a care-giver time and again. For a woman, does the dominance over her kitchen truly make her powerful, or does it reinforce her lack of control over other spheres of her life?
the Photobook
"Rani O’ Ranna - Stories of her stove and Identity" is a photobook which records these stories in the form of intimate portraits and conversations that Rakshita shared with the women in Calcutta.
The book captures different aspects of gender and identity within these kitchens through the stories of these women. Power, identity, memory and migration are few lenses through which this relationship between the women and their kitchens is explored.
THE EVENT
This self-published book was launched along with a dinner hosted by The Goya Journal and Lipi. This multi-course dinner revolved around the themes in the book. The menu for the night was be curated by Lipi, Bangalore’s ground-breaking ingredient-driven restaurant.
Read the Live Mint feature about the event here.
STUDIOS