Welp time for another deep dive. 0:48 - It's biriyani! Biriyani on its own technically is not a dish developed in the Indian subcontinent, Instead it was brought to us via Mughals (and maybe by some previous Persian rulers), but India perfected it. We have so many styles of biriyani, each one looks different, tastes different and even smells different. Biriyani is the staple dish during festivities and served during weddings. While most varieties of biriyani uses a specific type of rice called "Basmati", many (though definitely not all) of Biriyani made by Tamils are usually made from a specific type of Brown and starchy Rice only grown in South India/Sri Lanka called "Samba" Rice. And some places here are well known for their biriyani - Dindigul, Tanjavur, Chettinad and Salem (and special shutout to nasi biriyani from Malaysia and Singapore and Sri Lankan Biriyani). I cannot write it in words how good each style of biriyani are, they are all so good. 1:13 - The main purpose of these herbs is to give biriyani its distinct smell. It is the smell which gives biriyani its taste. Our nose is far more sensitive than our tongue, hence why we focus so much on aromatic herbs. 1:19 - I mentioned this last episode too, but ill mention it here again. "Di" is the feminine form of "da" we have been seeing so far. 2:02 - As soon as the aromatic herbs starts cooking, the smell just envelops the entire kitchen, and sometimes even the entire home. 2:38 - That's basically word for word the advice my mother gave to me, onions first, tomatoes last. One thing they didn't mention is that as soon as you add ginger-garlic paste (which is just mashed up ginger and garlic), things starts to stick towards the bottom of the pan (even if it has a non-stick coating) to avoid that you need to start mixing, if you let it simmer, while not end of the world, its somewhat annoying. You don't need to worry about it after adding tomatoes, as water from tomatoes somehow makes it not stick to the pan. Don't ask me how... its, probably some science. 4:48 - One thing about biriyani masala - Its just a combination of spices mixed together so you wont have to do all the mixing on your own. 5:16 - Its an involved recipe, can take 1.5-2hrs out of your life. But worth it. 5:42 - Thats the most popular kind sold in western countries as far as I'm aware. So chances are you have eaten it. You just haven't noticed it. Usually layered biriyani have somewhat inconsistent color. 9:02 - I might be wrong but from the ingredients look like its Hydrabadi Biriyani, which technically isn't Tamil food, but I will pass, as its still south Indian. Its from our neighbors to the north, Telugu people. While we share a lot of customs and traditions, its distinct on its own and the languages are only about 10-20% inter compatible. 9:57 - Notice how Kavin is eating with a spoon where as Paavalan is eating with hands, the traditional Indian way of eating, its small things like this which tells a lot. 10:47 - Okay this is so funny and yet so relatable. Usually in biriyani, as the meat is not evenly spread, someone is going to get a lot of meat and someone will get less. And people sometimes exploit this by just serving them with less meaty parts. And yes it does lead to some casual fights. And it looks like Paavalan is either oblivious or is trying to move the conversation away. 15:07 - I know couple of people who are in this exact situation, its hard, for both parents and children. Whenever I talk to them in Tamil, they reply back in English. Sometimes its because they are more comfortable with English, which is fine, but others is because of some deeper "shame". I do not have a solution for this... its just sad. Reconciliation is hard. Also about Parent-Child Dynamic, this well executed, and with respect for both the child's actions and for parents feelings. Kudos to the writing team. 17:25 - Kural 1250 - Love - "Soliloquies" Chapter. Time for another fun fact - There are other scholarly works. One that is taught to all children from a young age is a set of very short (like 2-3 words short), single line verses called "Aathichudi" - like thirukkural talks about morality. But unlike thirukkural, its meanings are somewhat easy to understand for a modern Tamil speaker, and Wikipedia has a good translation for each verse. It goes in alphabetical order. Its written by "avvaiar", a female poet. And unlike Thiruvalluar we have some more concrete information on her. Avvaiar means "Respectable good Woman", and this name/title is given to 3 un-named poets, one of them who wrote Aathichudi. She was one of the court poets during 12th Century, and all her poems target young children. All three of them are usually depicted as wise old woman in white, simple cloths. Side note: The last word there "கவின்" is how you write. Kavin in Tamil. According to a dictionary, its means beauty. We don't use them in regular speech. I have always known it as a name. 18:11 - In order it appears: - Murukku - a crunchy snack - Paniyaram - cooking Batter in a mould, it can be made sweet if you add cane sugar, or spicy if you add some chilies. - Meen varuval - Roasted fish seasoned with spices. Best eaten while at or near a sea shore. - Rasam - Hmm... how can i explain this... its a type of soup which we mix with boiled rice, or you can drink it as a soup standalone. - Kari kolambu - Curry. I believe its fish here... it can be made with any meat, but default is fish. EDIT - Its Goat meat, according to lyrics in the background - Koli varuval - Roasted chicken. Note - The romanizations here are technically not accurate, (there are some letters there which have no english equivalent) but it should help you in pronunciations. And any Tamil person will understand from context 99% of the time. [If you know Chinese this will help in pronunciation, as their phonetic inventory has one overlap. Try to pronounce 是 (shi), and be aware of the position of the tongue and don't worry about tone. now instead of 'sh' sound, try pronouncing an 'l' sound. That is how you pronounce 'li' in 'koli' and this is why I said Tamil pronunciation is hard. It's not the case for all 'l' sounds, only some of them will have this. For the linguists out there its the voiced retroflex approximate - ɻ, searching for that in wikipedia should give you the correct sound] 22:37 - While it does look like chilies, its actually dried tamarind. It has a very unique sour taste, unlike lemons. EDIT - Nope its chilies after listening to the lyrics. I have not made this style of rasam so I was out of my element. TIL. We do use Tamarind for Rasam though. 22:44 - Its called Asafoetida, which I honestly didn't know the english name till now. Its a type of gum. You have to use it sparingly as adding too much can make the food... weird and disgusting. Its not a requirement but it does enhance flavor. And its sold in small containers like that. 24:47 - Look at it, its so good. Also some of them are served in banana leaves, indicating that its a special occasion for her. Some of the things which were not shown in the montage are as follows - Three little cups with green/red/white substance - Those are chutneys (Chili chutney, Tomato Chutney I think, and Coconut Chutney), used as a dipping sauce for either fish or chicken. - Sliced fruits next to rice - That's just sliced mango. Fun fact - Mango is actually a Tamil word, English got the name from Portuguese who got it from Malay and who again got it from Tamils. 25:57 - Hours.... days of work, just gone. One thing about food is that it is best served while hot. So we always try to time our food to complete right about lunchtime/dinner-time. Yes freezing and then reheating can be done, but it wont hold the same taste as before, the aroma will be reduced. Only thing which can be saved is murukku, but even that starts to loose its crunchiness after sometime. And not to mention the prep and cleaning time. 26:52 - Kural 1250 - Love - "Soliloquies" Chapter. I did forgot to mention this in the previous episode so might as well mention it here - Not every Tamil is a Hindu, Although a majority, there are religious minorities within our ethnic group, a sizable portion actually - Muslims, Buddhists, Jains, Christians, etc. and we do get along pretty well. It's the common language, culture and food which binds us. EDIT: Something I didnt notice till now - The lyrics in the montage sequence literally lists all the ingredients and how to cook each of the dishes here which is so cool. Name of the song - Thulludhadi Valasu (Jumping Bangles) It's quite good.
I wonder if he'd selected "help" would it just have been subtitles for the music. That she cooked the entire feast without checking the book says it's all the best family favorites, the ones most loved, rather then the fanciest ones she knows. Seeing it go to waste is most painful for that. And where is Paavaram?
Oh hey asafoetida mentioned! Time to plug my favourite food-tuber Max Miller: He's an amateur food historian who tries to recreate ancient (or just old) dishes as closely as possible with modern tools and ingredients, including certain Roman era ones. The one most relevant to asafoetida being "Parthian Chicken". I encourage you to look it up to learn some things about how people have always and everywhere longed for tasty food. Now as for asafoetida, it is the only spice we still have that most closely resembles an ancient Roman spice called silphium, of which the plant was foraged to extinction as it could not be grown in a farm setting. IIRC correctly the Romans themselves called asafoetida an "adequate" replacement for silphium. After it died off asafoetida did not replace silphium in Roman cooking however, they seemed to be content with herbs and spices that could be found closer to the Mediterranean. A while back his whole Discord was in a buzz because a researcher found a plant that might be of the same genus as silphium growing in Turkey, because it could be a big deal in understanding ancient Roman cuisine and medical practices. IIRC that researcher was also trying to find a way to get the plant to grow outside it's natural environment for easier research and possibly even actual production, but I haven't heard about any success on that yet.
I appreciate how this game's story maturely and organically depicts the son's blended cultural integration with the parent's oppositional cultural retention without making them adversarial concepts or framing one superior to elevate it over the other, subconsciously or deliberately influencing the audience, as less accomplished more bias prone writers would when approaching this kind of cultural and generational divide story.
Given the way the emotional tone of the narrative had been trending, when Venba got that text and then suddenly got all excited to cook that huge meal, I thought to myself, "Uh oh. I _really_ hope this doesn't end sad!"
Man, this story is hard-hitting. I'm adopted and of a different ethnic and cultural origin, so I've had different specific struggles, but I very much identify with Kavin's desire to fit in, his parents' description of Kavin being _afraid_ to be unique, and his parents' sentiment of sadness towards Kavin losing a rich cultural heritage he has through his parents/ancestry. The last especially-cultural diversity and celebration of the personal and community multiculturalism of nth-generation immigrants has become a hugely important thing to me through adulthood, and I always feel a sadness when I witness a culture weakened or lost through generations of immigrant families. (That's not to say I'm equating "lost" with "transformed"-Asian-American and Asian-Canadian cultures certainly exist distinct from the cultures back home, and I see the mingling of local and heritage culture and evolution into its own identity as something to celebrate too.) Anyway, thanks for featuring this, Dan. These kinds of immigrant stories feel like they're too niche to have general appeal in the anglosphere, outside of the communities whose stories they tell or communities within their immediate (social, not geographic) vicinity, so it's really nice to see one-and such a solidly relatable one-be featured here.
Also an adoptee and yeah, I see a lot of stuff I can relate to, without having experienced them myself either. It’s also enhanced by the recounted experience of friends who are children of immigrants, but where the parents actually held back some of their culture in hopes their children would fit in better, without thinking about the wealth of heritage they were keeping from them, which is really a shame.
I did not expect a clock view of time passing could feel so sad. The devs have done an amazing job telling so much story with such simple devices. I also feel a strong need to dig out my biriyani recipe and make it.
I'm a second generation American. My parents immigrated shortly before I was born. We were lucky enough to go to a church with other families of the same culture, and I definitely think that helped us to be proud of our culture instead of thinking we weren't "normal". Religion is not important to me at all, but I'm really glad I had others my age to relate to
Venba’s cooking evolution definitely got me in the feels, how she goes from deciphering her mother’s recipes to cooking a whole feast super confidently. Reminded me of my grandmother, who didn’t know how to cook when she got married and is now one of the best cooks I know. And then for me, it wasn’t until I moved to the US for university that I really took up cooking, but it was the best way of bringing the taste of Singapore and Malaysia with me. Now I’ve got a number of my grandmother’s recipes squirrelled away on my phone, though I’m still maybe 50 years away from her level! The scraping of the coconut at 23:05 is pretty relatable - I’ve helped my grandmother with that a number of times.
This story hits weird when you're a parent. To me, this is the story of a mother who outright refuses to see her child through any other lens than one she picked out before he was born, and a father who desperately wants something good for his family but is unsure of how firm of a hand to take with guiding the boat.
I love the way this game combines storytelling and gameplay. I can't think of another cooking game that has such a compelling story with it. Thank you for showing it to us!
Noooo, this is so sad 😭 And Paavalan's glasses next to his picture 😭 I really really hope the last section has Kavin reconnecting in some way with Venba - it's the least she deserves!
22:20 If I know indian cooking, those are black mustard seeds and cumin. They're the basis for making tadka - a spice infused oil you make at the start of a recipe, or put on as a garnish here. I think if nothing else, the Venba devs HAVE to put out a cookbook based on this game
I finally realised why people shout stuff like "Don't open that door!" at horror movies. Because I just had exactly that reaction to Dan putting in the tomatoes before the ginger-garlic paste. I think I might actually know how to cook after all. 😂
11:11: Oh no...there's probably a worse thing Kavin could have said, but I don't know what... (It _is_ pretty funny that the dad is completely oblivious to their conversation.) 12:07: Oh no. _That_ might be the worst thing.
I'm not a parent yet, and even I can relate to Kavin wanting very little to do with his family. I'm very different from my siblings, and sometimes I feel as though they resent me for that. I still love them though!
God this game kinda gets heartbreaking, doesn't it? I'm also the child of immigrants and this just hits extra hard. I see a lot of myself in Kavin, and seeing the other side of that relationship so starkly is really... iunno. Is making me feel all kinds of things.
It's so important to make that time for family, especially when they are getting old and don't have much else in their life. It was always a bit annoying to make the time to visit my grandmother when I had a lot going on, but something like that will be the most important thing for her all month. I've got my share of regrets but none of them were taking too much time to see family while I still have them.
This game definitely makes me crave Indian food and its not fair! I have some Daal in my cabinet but I’m sick and can’t cook right now, and none of my favorite Indian restaurants do delivery. Maybe I’ll ask my mom to make my favorite curry. It’s not the most authentically Indian, but it’s how my mom makes it and therefore its the best.
As soon as she said home is where Paavalan and Kavin are, I knew Paavalan was going to pass away... God. I need to call my parents. This is so sad. 😭 I haven't managed to visit my dad in over a month because I had a couple busy weekends and then I caught COVID and was sick for several more weeks. He keeps telling me it's no big deal, he doesn't want to pressure me to visit if I have other stuff going on, but I know it makes him happy when I get over there. I'm making a point of getting there this weekend, no matter what.
5:34 Looks like I'm making butter chicken soon (apparently butter chicken is the... precursor to tikka masala, which is an interesting history, if it's even half right). Also, I'd like to plug methi mushroom. No clue how "actually Indian" it is, but it's amazing. 16:28 No matter where you go, you always get compelled to be "normal" for where you are. Get too far off the mark and you're pushed away for being "weird", or in this case "little India". 21:59 I'm not saying you have time, but it rarely takes as much time as it's made out to take. 22:09 Given that it looks like Paavalan has passed, and she's happy-cooking... I'm betting Kavin is coming home, possibly with girlfriend/spouse.
I am a mess of tears right now! She worked so hard on that meal! God! It's so sad! How could you DO that to your MOTHER! AHHHHH! I'm both furious and just.... AAAAGH
I enjoy cooking because it's a place creative art and hard science meet; a lot of delicious flavors are created through chemical reactions. Meat are veggies are made more tasty and tender by pre seasoning them and letting them hang out a minute through the process of osmosis. Fruits contain pectin, most heavily in the skin, which is an excellent thickening agent for sauces that doesn't brust like cornstarch does. Tempering eggs works every time so long as you know exactly what temp to cool your mixture to. It's edible chemistry, and sometimes quite pretty, too! Meanwhile the process of idiation on entire meals is very much a creative process, balancing the resources of your own time and energy with the ambition of the meal you're trying to execute. I don't cook as often as I used to due to chronic pain, but I'm shifting my focus to recipes that allow me to sit down once in a hot minute. Also helps to break up preparation.
I am kinda sad I can't experience these kind of dishes. I'm allergic to most spices, and the fact that there are straight *chillies* in here, not to mention chilli powder, this would burn me to bits. It still has a beautiful resonance to the foods, they feel so gentle and loved, even when intense
hey dan if you're down for more short narrative games with big cultural signatures please play a space for the unbound on the channel too its such a gem!
![Cooking with my tears | Venba [FULL GAME]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/NKMGJW9xyJM/mqdefault.jpg)
Welp time for another deep dive.
0:48 - It's biriyani! Biriyani on its own technically is not a dish developed in the Indian subcontinent, Instead it was brought to us via Mughals (and maybe by some previous Persian rulers), but India perfected it. We have so many styles of biriyani, each one looks different, tastes different and even smells different. Biriyani is the staple dish during festivities and served during weddings. While most varieties of biriyani uses a specific type of rice called "Basmati", many (though definitely not all) of Biriyani made by Tamils are usually made from a specific type of Brown and starchy Rice only grown in South India/Sri Lanka called "Samba" Rice. And some places here are well known for their biriyani - Dindigul, Tanjavur, Chettinad and Salem (and special shutout to nasi biriyani from Malaysia and Singapore and Sri Lankan Biriyani). I cannot write it in words how good each style of biriyani are, they are all so good.
1:13 - The main purpose of these herbs is to give biriyani its distinct smell. It is the smell which gives biriyani its taste. Our nose is far more sensitive than our tongue, hence why we focus so much on aromatic herbs.
1:19 - I mentioned this last episode too, but ill mention it here again. "Di" is the feminine form of "da" we have been seeing so far.
2:02 - As soon as the aromatic herbs starts cooking, the smell just envelops the entire kitchen, and sometimes even the entire home.
2:38 - That's basically word for word the advice my mother gave to me, onions first, tomatoes last. One thing they didn't mention is that as soon as you add ginger-garlic paste (which is just mashed up ginger and garlic), things starts to stick towards the bottom of the pan (even if it has a non-stick coating) to avoid that you need to start mixing, if you let it simmer, while not end of the world, its somewhat annoying. You don't need to worry about it after adding tomatoes, as water from tomatoes somehow makes it not stick to the pan. Don't ask me how... its, probably some science.
4:48 - One thing about biriyani masala - Its just a combination of spices mixed together so you wont have to do all the mixing on your own.
5:16 - Its an involved recipe, can take 1.5-2hrs out of your life. But worth it.
5:42 - Thats the most popular kind sold in western countries as far as I'm aware. So chances are you have eaten it. You just haven't noticed it. Usually layered biriyani have somewhat inconsistent color.
9:02 - I might be wrong but from the ingredients look like its Hydrabadi Biriyani, which technically isn't Tamil food, but I will pass, as its still south Indian. Its from our neighbors to the north, Telugu people. While we share a lot of customs and traditions, its distinct on its own and the languages are only about 10-20% inter compatible.
9:57 - Notice how Kavin is eating with a spoon where as Paavalan is eating with hands, the traditional Indian way of eating, its small things like this which tells a lot.
10:47 - Okay this is so funny and yet so relatable. Usually in biriyani, as the meat is not evenly spread, someone is going to get a lot of meat and someone will get less. And people sometimes exploit this by just serving them with less meaty parts. And yes it does lead to some casual fights. And it looks like Paavalan is either oblivious or is trying to move the conversation away.
15:07 - I know couple of people who are in this exact situation, its hard, for both parents and children. Whenever I talk to them in Tamil, they reply back in English. Sometimes its because they are more comfortable with English, which is fine, but others is because of some deeper "shame". I do not have a solution for this... its just sad. Reconciliation is hard.
Also about Parent-Child Dynamic, this well executed, and with respect for both the child's actions and for parents feelings. Kudos to the writing team.
17:25 - Kural 1250 - Love - "Soliloquies" Chapter. Time for another fun fact - There are other scholarly works. One that is taught to all children from a young age is a set of very short (like 2-3 words short), single line verses called "Aathichudi" - like thirukkural talks about morality. But unlike thirukkural, its meanings are somewhat easy to understand for a modern Tamil speaker, and Wikipedia has a good translation for each verse. It goes in alphabetical order. Its written by "avvaiar", a female poet. And unlike Thiruvalluar we have some more concrete information on her. Avvaiar means "Respectable good Woman", and this name/title is given to 3 un-named poets, one of them who wrote Aathichudi. She was one of the court poets during 12th Century, and all her poems target young children. All three of them are usually depicted as wise old woman in white, simple cloths.
Side note: The last word there "கவின்" is how you write. Kavin in Tamil. According to a dictionary, its means beauty. We don't use them in regular speech. I have always known it as a name.
18:11 - In order it appears:
- Murukku - a crunchy snack
- Paniyaram - cooking Batter in a mould, it can be made sweet if you add cane sugar, or spicy if you add some chilies.
- Meen varuval - Roasted fish seasoned with spices. Best eaten while at or near a sea shore.
- Rasam - Hmm... how can i explain this... its a type of soup which we mix with boiled rice, or you can drink it as a soup standalone.
- Kari kolambu - Curry. I believe its fish here... it can be made with any meat, but default is fish. EDIT - Its Goat meat, according to lyrics in the background
- Koli varuval - Roasted chicken.
Note - The romanizations here are technically not accurate, (there are some letters there which have no english equivalent) but it should help you in pronunciations. And any Tamil person will understand from context 99% of the time.
[If you know Chinese this will help in pronunciation, as their phonetic inventory has one overlap. Try to pronounce 是 (shi), and be aware of the position of the tongue and don't worry about tone. now instead of 'sh' sound, try pronouncing an 'l' sound. That is how you pronounce 'li' in 'koli' and this is why I said Tamil pronunciation is hard. It's not the case for all 'l' sounds, only some of them will have this. For the linguists out there its the voiced retroflex approximate - ɻ, searching for that in wikipedia should give you the correct sound]
22:37 - While it does look like chilies, its actually dried tamarind. It has a very unique sour taste, unlike lemons. EDIT - Nope its chilies after listening to the lyrics. I have not made this style of rasam so I was out of my element. TIL. We do use Tamarind for Rasam though.
22:44 - Its called Asafoetida, which I honestly didn't know the english name till now. Its a type of gum. You have to use it sparingly as adding too much can make the food... weird and disgusting. Its not a requirement but it does enhance flavor. And its sold in small containers like that.
24:47 - Look at it, its so good. Also some of them are served in banana leaves, indicating that its a special occasion for her. Some of the things which were not shown in the montage are as follows
- Three little cups with green/red/white substance - Those are chutneys (Chili chutney, Tomato Chutney I think, and Coconut Chutney), used as a dipping sauce for either fish or chicken.
- Sliced fruits next to rice - That's just sliced mango. Fun fact - Mango is actually a Tamil word, English got the name from Portuguese who got it from Malay and who again got it from Tamils.
25:57 - Hours.... days of work, just gone. One thing about food is that it is best served while hot. So we always try to time our food to complete right about lunchtime/dinner-time. Yes freezing and then reheating can be done, but it wont hold the same taste as before, the aroma will be reduced. Only thing which can be saved is murukku, but even that starts to loose its crunchiness after sometime. And not to mention the prep and cleaning time.
26:52 - Kural 1250 - Love - "Soliloquies" Chapter. I did forgot to mention this in the previous episode so might as well mention it here - Not every Tamil is a Hindu, Although a majority, there are religious minorities within our ethnic group, a sizable portion actually - Muslims, Buddhists, Jains, Christians, etc. and we do get along pretty well. It's the common language, culture and food which binds us.
EDIT: Something I didnt notice till now - The lyrics in the montage sequence literally lists all the ingredients and how to cook each of the dishes here which is so cool. Name of the song - Thulludhadi Valasu (Jumping Bangles) It's quite good.
I wonder if he'd selected "help" would it just have been subtitles for the music.
That she cooked the entire feast without checking the book says it's all the best family favorites, the ones most loved, rather then the fanciest ones she knows. Seeing it go to waste is most painful for that. And where is Paavaram?
Oh hey asafoetida mentioned! Time to plug my favourite food-tuber Max Miller:
He's an amateur food historian who tries to recreate ancient (or just old) dishes as closely as possible with modern tools and ingredients, including certain Roman era ones. The one most relevant to asafoetida being "Parthian Chicken". I encourage you to look it up to learn some things about how people have always and everywhere longed for tasty food.
Now as for asafoetida, it is the only spice we still have that most closely resembles an ancient Roman spice called silphium, of which the plant was foraged to extinction as it could not be grown in a farm setting.
IIRC correctly the Romans themselves called asafoetida an "adequate" replacement for silphium. After it died off asafoetida did not replace silphium in Roman cooking however, they seemed to be content with herbs and spices that could be found closer to the Mediterranean.
A while back his whole Discord was in a buzz because a researcher found a plant that might be of the same genus as silphium growing in Turkey, because it could be a big deal in understanding ancient Roman cuisine and medical practices. IIRC that researcher was also trying to find a way to get the plant to grow outside it's natural environment for easier research and possibly even actual production, but I haven't heard about any success on that yet.
Thanks for the information I think everyone can do with learning more but have a nice day/night everyone
That’s so so cool that the music is singing about the food!!
@@firenter History can do weird things. its so weird that Asafoetida was just "forgotten" by Romans after Silphium was driven to extinction.
I appreciate how this game's story maturely and organically depicts the son's blended cultural integration with the parent's oppositional cultural retention without making them adversarial concepts or framing one superior to elevate it over the other, subconsciously or deliberately influencing the audience, as less accomplished more bias prone writers would when approaching this kind of cultural and generational divide story.
Given the way the emotional tone of the narrative had been trending, when Venba got that text and then suddenly got all excited to cook that huge meal, I thought to myself, "Uh oh. I _really_ hope this doesn't end sad!"
Man, this story is hard-hitting. I'm adopted and of a different ethnic and cultural origin, so I've had different specific struggles, but I very much identify with Kavin's desire to fit in, his parents' description of Kavin being _afraid_ to be unique, and his parents' sentiment of sadness towards Kavin losing a rich cultural heritage he has through his parents/ancestry. The last especially-cultural diversity and celebration of the personal and community multiculturalism of nth-generation immigrants has become a hugely important thing to me through adulthood, and I always feel a sadness when I witness a culture weakened or lost through generations of immigrant families. (That's not to say I'm equating "lost" with "transformed"-Asian-American and Asian-Canadian cultures certainly exist distinct from the cultures back home, and I see the mingling of local and heritage culture and evolution into its own identity as something to celebrate too.)
Anyway, thanks for featuring this, Dan. These kinds of immigrant stories feel like they're too niche to have general appeal in the anglosphere, outside of the communities whose stories they tell or communities within their immediate (social, not geographic) vicinity, so it's really nice to see one-and such a solidly relatable one-be featured here.
Also an adoptee and yeah, I see a lot of stuff I can relate to, without having experienced them myself either. It’s also enhanced by the recounted experience of friends who are children of immigrants, but where the parents actually held back some of their culture in hopes their children would fit in better, without thinking about the wealth of heritage they were keeping from them, which is really a shame.
This part is the one that hit me most, and now is the reason i visit my mom every week or try to
I did not expect a clock view of time passing could feel so sad. The devs have done an amazing job telling so much story with such simple devices.
I also feel a strong need to dig out my biriyani recipe and make it.
Venba cooked all that and then Kavin didn't come??? *rolls up sleeves* Alright, time to go slap some sense into a video game character
I'm a second generation American. My parents immigrated shortly before I was born. We were lucky enough to go to a church with other families of the same culture, and I definitely think that helped us to be proud of our culture instead of thinking we weren't "normal". Religion is not important to me at all, but I'm really glad I had others my age to relate to
Venba’s cooking evolution definitely got me in the feels, how she goes from deciphering her mother’s recipes to cooking a whole feast super confidently. Reminded me of my grandmother, who didn’t know how to cook when she got married and is now one of the best cooks I know. And then for me, it wasn’t until I moved to the US for university that I really took up cooking, but it was the best way of bringing the taste of Singapore and Malaysia with me. Now I’ve got a number of my grandmother’s recipes squirrelled away on my phone, though I’m still maybe 50 years away from her level! The scraping of the coconut at 23:05 is pretty relatable - I’ve helped my grandmother with that a number of times.
This story hits weird when you're a parent. To me, this is the story of a mother who outright refuses to see her child through any other lens than one she picked out before he was born, and a father who desperately wants something good for his family but is unsure of how firm of a hand to take with guiding the boat.
I love the way this game combines storytelling and gameplay. I can't think of another cooking game that has such a compelling story with it. Thank you for showing it to us!
Noooo, this is so sad 😭 And Paavalan's glasses next to his picture 😭
I really really hope the last section has Kavin reconnecting in some way with Venba - it's the least she deserves!
Im not crying its the onions i swear! 🥺😭
Yep. Just those digital onion fumes. They got me too.
22:20 If I know indian cooking, those are black mustard seeds and cumin. They're the basis for making tadka - a spice infused oil you make at the start of a recipe, or put on as a garnish here. I think if nothing else, the Venba devs HAVE to put out a cookbook based on this game
NO ONIONS HERE-
IM JUST CRYING!!
I mean, there _are_ also onions.
@@timothymclean It's okay, Paavalan chopped them for us.
I finally realised why people shout stuff like "Don't open that door!" at horror movies.
Because I just had exactly that reaction to Dan putting in the tomatoes before the ginger-garlic paste. I think I might actually know how to cook after all. 😂
11:11: Oh no...there's probably a worse thing Kavin could have said, but I don't know what...
(It _is_ pretty funny that the dad is completely oblivious to their conversation.)
12:07: Oh no. _That_ might be the worst thing.
he know what is happening
I'm not a parent yet, and even I can relate to Kavin wanting very little to do with his family. I'm very different from my siblings, and sometimes I feel as though they resent me for that. I still love them though!
That she can cook THIS on that tiny little one burner hob, without much of a kitchen at all. Makes it all the more impressive.
25:50 I did not expect these feels at midnight in my time zone. I should have, but I didn’t.
There’s more to Venba and Kavin’s text conversation if you scroll up. Mainly Venba trying to reach out and Kavin giving one word replies. 😢
Oh I am absolutely gonna cry over this tomorrow. It's such a good game
God this game kinda gets heartbreaking, doesn't it? I'm also the child of immigrants and this just hits extra hard. I see a lot of myself in Kavin, and seeing the other side of that relationship so starkly is really... iunno. Is making me feel all kinds of things.
I've never had biryani, but there's a Greek place in my town that I visit regularly, and they serve it there. I'll have to give it a try sometime.
It's so important to make that time for family, especially when they are getting old and don't have much else in their life. It was always a bit annoying to make the time to visit my grandmother when I had a lot going on, but something like that will be the most important thing for her all month. I've got my share of regrets but none of them were taking too much time to see family while I still have them.
This game definitely makes me crave Indian food and its not fair! I have some Daal in my cabinet but I’m sick and can’t cook right now, and none of my favorite Indian restaurants do delivery. Maybe I’ll ask my mom to make my favorite curry. It’s not the most authentically Indian, but it’s how my mom makes it and therefore its the best.
Congratulations, Dan. You've sold me on another video game that I otherwise wouldn't have even heard of.
As someone who never was really into Asian foods, I can appreciate this game for telling such a compelling story it is on my Games of The Year list.
I think I cried harder seeing this a second time. Cos I knew what was coming next so I could pre-cry.
As soon as she said home is where Paavalan and Kavin are, I knew Paavalan was going to pass away...
God. I need to call my parents. This is so sad. 😭 I haven't managed to visit my dad in over a month because I had a couple busy weekends and then I caught COVID and was sick for several more weeks. He keeps telling me it's no big deal, he doesn't want to pressure me to visit if I have other stuff going on, but I know it makes him happy when I get over there. I'm making a point of getting there this weekend, no matter what.
5:34 Looks like I'm making butter chicken soon (apparently butter chicken is the... precursor to tikka masala, which is an interesting history, if it's even half right). Also, I'd like to plug methi mushroom. No clue how "actually Indian" it is, but it's amazing.
16:28 No matter where you go, you always get compelled to be "normal" for where you are. Get too far off the mark and you're pushed away for being "weird", or in this case "little India".
21:59 I'm not saying you have time, but it rarely takes as much time as it's made out to take.
22:09 Given that it looks like Paavalan has passed, and she's happy-cooking... I'm betting Kavin is coming home, possibly with girlfriend/spouse.
makes my own wild curry dish…oof, too much ginger? oh well.
Of course I'm watching this while my stomach rumbles because I can't be bothered to make food.
I am a mess of tears right now! She worked so hard on that meal! God! It's so sad! How could you DO that to your MOTHER! AHHHHH! I'm both furious and just.... AAAAGH
I'm North Indian, but looking at all this food I'm craving a good traditional South Indian Tamil food ngl 😋
I enjoy cooking because it's a place creative art and hard science meet; a lot of delicious flavors are created through chemical reactions. Meat are veggies are made more tasty and tender by pre seasoning them and letting them hang out a minute through the process of osmosis. Fruits contain pectin, most heavily in the skin, which is an excellent thickening agent for sauces that doesn't brust like cornstarch does. Tempering eggs works every time so long as you know exactly what temp to cool your mixture to. It's edible chemistry, and sometimes quite pretty, too! Meanwhile the process of idiation on entire meals is very much a creative process, balancing the resources of your own time and energy with the ambition of the meal you're trying to execute.
I don't cook as often as I used to due to chronic pain, but I'm shifting my focus to recipes that allow me to sit down once in a hot minute. Also helps to break up preparation.
15:27, was that hiccup in game?. or did Dan do a sneaky edit after having to step away?.
Had biryani for the first time at lunch today and can agree. Biryani is good
I am kinda sad I can't experience these kind of dishes. I'm allergic to most spices, and the fact that there are straight *chillies* in here, not to mention chilli powder, this would burn me to bits.
It still has a beautiful resonance to the foods, they feel so gentle and loved, even when intense
Food is my love language so this game is really hitting my feels 🥲
hey dan if you're down for more short narrative games with big cultural signatures please play a space for the unbound on the channel too its such a gem!
gawd this game has me sympathy sobbing! such good emotion here
Food and feels, man this game
Ooh, that hurts deep. Having cooked a bunch of stuff and then they can't make it
wow. THat was heartbreaking
thiis is so sad though ... :(
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This game is really pretty, but the sad undertones are too much for what i'm looking for rn
I'll put the playlist in watch later
This game is fun but it's not really for me. "I don't want to have the smelly food" wasn't really a thing in my "pepper is spicy" household.
What's with the long İ?