It is believed that one of the reasons why cows -- Gau Mata -- are regarded as sacred in India is because they provide life-giving doodh.
Milk is a vital part of our culture, from ancient days, and has an integral role in our daily lives, says Hemantkumar Shivsharan. Let's take a journey...
Before tetrapaks, packet milk, Scootsy, Swiggy and other app grocery delivery, there was the neighbourhood doodhwala. A hero on a cycle, two cans on either side, with the skill of measuring milk without spilling a drop.
Visiting Nani Ka Ghar meant observing the intriguing milking or dhona, watching it boil on a chulha, skimming the fresh malai (cream) off it and tasting the difference.
Women play a special role in India’s milk story. They walk through dewy fields at dawn, gracefully carrying milk cans on their heads, bound for village milk collection centre, like these Rajasthani ladies.
India's dairy day begins at interior milk hubs, like this one near Jaipur -- farmers pour fresh milk into chilling units and from here it flows into a massive tanker, ready to travel many kilometres miles to cities.
Milk on the move... Every day, fresh milk travels to urban centres on trains too, like this Delhi-bound express.
The Amul Girl with her iconic polka-dot dress & bow and cheeky one-liners, became the beloved face of Indian milk. Milk was also part of our study rituals... Mug of milk. Open book. Half-asleep. And Maa saying, “Doodh pee lo, dimag tez hoga.”
Pouring milk or doodh abhishek on a Shivling during Mahashivratri in Chandigarh is a path to blessings. “Om Namah Shivaya” echoes as the stream flows.
At Karni Mata Temple, Deshnoke, Rajasthan, the 25,000 rats that live here are not pests. They’re holy. Divine guests. Devotees offer bowls of milk daily, believing the rats are reincarnated souls.
Frowned upon by animal organisations, Nag Panchami still sees devotees lining up with bowls of milk for Naag Devta.
Doodh is a major part of festival cooking traditions. Be it Diwali pedas, Eid seviyan, Durga Puja rosogollas or Janmashtami Makhan Mishri, milk-based sweets are the real showstoppers.
Milk of compassion for a malnourished kitten, a lifeline for the tiniest lives too, at an animal hospital at Hathijan, near Ahmedabad,.
Showers of milk for the Superstar! From village squares to city streets, milk becomes the ultimate fan tribute -- it's a ritual to toast an actor's success and shower him with love and blessings.
Kojagiri Purnima is a starry celebration of joy and tradition -- bathed by moonlight, families sip masala milk in silver bowls on terraces and balconies.
Griha Pravesh begins with milk boiling over. Not considered a mess, but a sign of prosperity, of overflowing abundance, a sacred welcome before entering a new house.
From the buffalo to the tetrapak -- The Doodh Evolution. The way India consumes milk is changing but the feeling hasn’t.