Cookery books are still the rage, even in the face of glamorous programmes with renowned star chefs wooing viewership on food channels, or the touch-and-you-get recipes off the Internet.
In fact, market observers, hoteliers, publishers and authors feel technology with visual glamour has only increased the sale of books. While the unprecedented demand of Srinidhi Publications’ Oggarane Dabbi, presented by D.R. Muralidhar, which saw a record 50,000 copies sold in 50 days this year, have left publishers amazed, authors too are amazed by the responses of readers who just “want more”. What are the reasons behind the rapid sales of cookery books in every bookstore?
Publishing houses such as Sapna Book House, Prism and Srinidhi Publications, and retailers like Gangarams and Nagashri Book House confirm the overwhelming demand for cookbooks, and the wave of new entrants writing them in the last five years. “There are a dime a dozen TV programmes on food that seem to have kindled the curiosity for food and wellness, helping the print medium benefit from the trend,” says K.V. Venkatesh of Nagashri Book House in Jayanagar, who sells nearly 25 cookery books a week.
At Prism too, the talk is about bestsellers such as Veena Bhat’s Seven Wonders In My Spice Box that has won international gourmet awards. Vijayalakshmi Reddy’s non-vegetarian Kodi Masala is an evergreen hit, just as her Andhra Gumagumalu is any Home Science student’s reference book.
Cash registers just don’t stop ringing for cookbooks, says Nitin Shah of Sapna Book House. From the traditional authentic cuisine of each region, vegetarian and non-vegetarian, to microwave recipes and the latest organic variants, “the assortment of books is a serpentine list, and sales touch nearly 250 books a month”.
At Gangarams, more than 50 cookery books get sold in a week. “A whole new set of new authors have arrived and that’s why we see an increase in the number of cookery books,” says the owner, Prakash Gangaram. “Of the 2-lakh catalogue in our shop, nearly 7,000 titles are on cookery, written by around 15 authors. The latest takeaways are Husna Rahaman’s Spice Sorcery: The Kutchi Memon Cookbook by HarperCollins, with bewitching tales of the community and its delectable recipes, followed by Bridget White’s Anglo-Indian recipe books,” he says.
Today, food is discussed not just within the realm of recipes, but from a holistic viewpoint, making it a whole new habit for the reader.
More bestsellers
Bombaat Bhojana by Sihi-Kahi Chandru
Tiffin Box for Children by Vijayalakshmi Reddy
Sampradayika Pakashastra by Sri Melukote Sitarama Iyengar Sampath Iyengar
Udupi Adige by Rajeshwari
The Udupi Kitchen by Malati Srinivasan and Geetha Rao
Oota Upahara by Jaya V. Shenoy
Gruhini by Hemalatha Parashuram
Making a big splash
This a generation of hoteliers behind him, Sadananda Maiya of Maiyas was drawn into writing interesting anecdotes and legends related to food and its preparations. Ahaara Vihaara was born out of public demand for sharing his knowledge “in a book format”. Be it the history of asafoetida or its earliest use in India by vocalists, who used a pinch to clear their throats; the food allergy noticed by Mr. Maiya that has a link with each blood group; or preparing pure coffee from naturally preserved moisture-free seeds without chicory, Mr. Maiya’s narrations are practical accounts of his personal encounters. Mr. Maiya, the food scientist, is releasing five more books this Dasara.
Her students are her inspiration
For Vijayalakshmi Reddy, who has 12 books to her credit with six more expected to hit the stands anytime, it is a connect with her students in her cookery classes and TV programmes that get extended to books.
“I have conducted classes for 30 years and trained 3 lakh students. The working lot also requested me for a ‘Working Woman’s Cookbook’ for weekly planning, which I did recently,” says Ms. Vijayalakshmi.
The food scientist With a generation of hoteliers behind him, Sadananda Maiya of Maiyas was drawn into writing interesting anecdotes and legends related to food and its preparations. Ahaara Vihaara was born out of public demand for sharing his knowledge “in a book format”. Be it the history of asafoetida or its earliest use in India by vocalists, who used a pinch to clear their throats; the food allergy noticed by Mr. Maiya that has a link with each blood group; or preparing pure coffee from naturally preserved moisture-free seeds without chicory, Mr. Maiya’s narrations are practical accounts of his personal encounters. Mr. Maiya, the food scientist, is releasing five more books this Dasara.
