Rise of the veggielantes | Politics of meat

Religious vigilantes are opening caller fronts implicit meat-eating adjacent though much than fractional the state identifies arsenic non-vegetarian

Tucked into the bustling lanes of College Street successful Kolkata is an unassuming nutrient store that old-timers accidental is much than a 100 years old. Inside it sits an idol of Maa Kali, the fierce and beloved goddess of Bengal. Each morning, she is propitiated with flowers, incense and chants; aboriginal successful the day, she presides implicit business—the caller mutton and different cuts sold implicit the counter. Outsiders whitethorn find this signifier of ‘Kasai Kali’ jarring but, for Bengalis, it’s a seamless look of religion and co-existence. As Bantu Singh, a store fixture now, explains, “People don’t recognize our culture. When videos of our store were posted online, galore asked, ‘How tin determination beryllium an idol successful a nutrient shop?’ It’s hard to explicate to them.”