Ammana Hittu: From a Badaga Mother's Kitchen

Ammana Hittu: From a Badaga Mother's Kitchen.

Conversations and Lunch by Suresh Belliraj, Meenakshi Belliraj, Chitra Devraj & family | Conducted by Monisha Raman

A multi-generational conversation featuring Meenakshi Belliraj and the women of her family, anchored by writer Monisha Raman.

At the heart of this gathering is a homestyle Badaga lunch, prepared by the Belliraj family — a rare chance to taste dishes that are seldom cooked outside the home. The menu showcases the warmth of a Badaga kitchen: generous, seasonal, and deeply tied to the land. Using fresh, indigenous Nilgiris produce from TOHFA (The Nilgiris Organic Horticultural Farmers Association), the meal reflects traditional cooking methods, seed-keeping practices, and the flavours that mark Badaga food culture.

Interwoven with stories of festivals, harvests, and home remedies, Ammana Hittu is not only a conversation about food but a recognition of how women shape culture, continuity, and care in the Nilgiris.

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Dr. Suresh Belliraj is an educationist by training and a passionate foodie by nature, and currently manages Odae, a family-run restaurant within the Riverside Retreat Community in the Nilgiris. What began as a circumstance of fate has become a joyful second calling. During the pandemic, he and his family revived Riverside Bakes—initially meant to supply the local school—into a beloved bakery venture. Today, Suresh continues to blend community, tradition, and creativity through food. At Odae, he has introduced a Badaga-inspired meal, curated by his sister Chitra Devaraj and mother Meenakshi Belliraj, a heartfelt family collaboration that celebrates the flavours and hospitality of the hills.

Monisha Raman is a content editor by profession. Her essays have been published by New Asian Writing, The Curious Reader, Kitaab, Spacebar Magazine and Feminism in India. Her works of fiction have been published by Bengaluru Review, The Punch Magazine, Phenomenal Literature, Active Muse, Indian Ruminations, Asian Extracts, The Universe Journal, Usawa Literary Review, Storizen Magazine and Jotted. Her work was a part of the anthology Narratives in Domestic Violence by the International Human Rights Arts Festival. She is passionate about travelling and considers coffee the elixir of life.