Royal marriages & the shift in cuisine across India

In 'Of the Raj, Maharajas and Me', MA Sreenivasan’s memoir of working as an administrator for Indian princes, he recalls banquets in Gwalior where the table was famously fitted with a silver mini-railway. “It was operated by a push-button near the seat of the host, carrying drinks, dishes and delicacies which the host could tempt a guest with, and whisk away when the guest reached for them.”The anecdote sums up a lot about the world of the