The Night Diary

Throughout The Night Diary, the act of cooking is most directly associated with Kazi, the family’s Muslim cook who plays an integral role in the household. Through his cooking, Kazi nurtures and cares for Nisha and her family; Nisha wants to emulate Kazi for his skills in the kitchen and appreciates his important contributions to their family.

How do cooking, meal preparation, and cooking tools serve a symbolic function in the novel? Discuss at least 3 scenes in the text where cooking, food, and kitchen utensils are prominent in the story. Reflect upon the larger significance of these moments. 

Teaching Suggestion: Cooking is symbolic of class division in the novel. When Nisha practices Kazi’s skills with cooking, Papa and Dadi tell her that, when she grows up, she will have someone to do the cooking for her, implying that cooking—Kazi’s livelihood—is beneath Nisha. Having a cook marks privilege in their society. However, in Nisha’s desire to cook, it shows her defiance and rejection of the stratification of Indian society, all the while underscoring her youthful idealism and naivete around the class system that divides India. Relatedly, kitchen tools and utensils—for example, Kazi’s favorite bowl, as well as his mortar and pestle—are emblematic of Kazi and his relationship with the twins.