India, Jan. 27 -- Paikmal block in Odisha's Bargarh district lies on the fringes of the Gandhamardan hills, a landscape known not only for its rich biodiversity and medicinal plants, but also for the cultural worlds that Adivasi communities have sustained here for generations. I travelled to remote villages as part of a community-led documentation initiative facilitated by WASSAN, aimed at supporting the nomination of the Gandhamardan region as a Globally Important Agricultural Heritage System (GIAHS). My intention was to document traditional food practices. What I did not anticipate was how deeply food here would speak of memory, identity and healing.

Walking through villages tucked between forest patches and fields, spending time in ho...