Shimmering piles of silver fish are snapped up for exorbitant prices in India’s port of Kolkata, the unlikely side effect of a diplomatic fallout after a student-led revolution in neighbouring Bangladesh.
Demand is so high for the herring-like hilsa – the national fish of Bangladesh and a much-loved delicacy in India’s adjoining West Bengal state – that Dhaka this year banned exports.
The decision follows a festering diplomatic dispute between Dhaka and New Delhi, after Bangladesh’s autocratic leader Sheikh Hasina was ousted in August and escaped by helicopter to old ally India.
“You have to taste it to know why it is so in demand,” said Kolkata fishmonger Mohammed Zeeshan.
As long as a forearm, the saltwater fish is commonly steamed, fried in fragrant mustard oil, or steeped in spicy curry sauce.
“I cannot describe it in words”, 29-year-old Zeeshan added, beaming a wide smile.
Fans say its white flesh is not only delicious and nutritious.
It is also an integral part of religious festivals, especially during Hindu celebrations for the goddess Durga, which this year falls in October.
