A Pinch of Salt

A famous Tamil proverb says, "Uppillaa Pandam Kuppayilae", meaning anything that doesn't contain salt is to be dumped in the trash. A pinch of salt makes all the difference between a delicious meal and an insipid one.

And a handful of salt, when it was in Mahatma Gandhi's hand, showed the world what a real revolution is. It seems after Dandi, we've almost forgotten the humble salt. We often find ourselves unable to answer questions like how they produce salt, or what methods are used to extract salt.

How would it feel like when you explore all by yourself a salt pan, interacting with the 'salt people', observing, inferring, and photographing places and events, and above all, applying your knowledge. That's what Nomita, my friend and ex-colleague has done.

A jovial, talkative, and 'Yea, I've read that in a wonderful book...' kind of girl with appreciable knowledge in Biology and Earth Science, Nomita makes an impression within the first 5 minutes (if at all you can stand that :D) you talk to her. She talks Harry Potter, reads Paulo Coehlo, discusses Marine Biology, and explains gold hallmarking process, all with the same interest and enthusiasm. Here's an update of her recent visit, accompanied by her brother, to a salt pan as a part of her project:

http://picasaweb.google.co.in/lh/sredir?uname=nomita.b&target=ALBUM&id=5364632848100209809&locked=true&authkey=Gv1sRgCPL255PsqpOrUQ&feat=email

I thank Nomita for sharing the link with us, and making this article worth its salt.

And I came across this old issue of Frontline, covering the life of Agariya tribes in the Little Rann in Gujarat.