Have a project for us?

A cookbook prototype, a studio in the making and some dhoop postcards

If you are reading this and like what we do, now is a good time to tell us. Dhoop is an independent food magazine that I started in 2022. It all began when I was studying liberal arts at a design school where I was focusing on food research and taking graphic design classes (a combo I would def recommend). As we progress in our journey of continuing to make magazines — thanks to the bookstores around India and the US for giving us space on their shelves, I want to tell all of you about dhoop studios. Yes, we are a magazine starting our own small studio so that we get to work with more like-minded people. We took a lot of time to come to this decision — it came from studios using our work as a reference and building on it, it also came from brands and organisations reaching out to us with projects that we weren’t ready for…but, now we are somewhat ready.

If you are an author, a brand, or an organisation and want to work with us, please write to us at hello@dhoopmag.com. We are now taking projects for the rest of the year.

With the third issue out in the world, we wanted to go beyond the magazine to highlight our way of working. What is so different about how we research and create stuff as compared to any other studio? In case the magazine doesn’t answer that question, we thought the community cookbook would.

Left: All the photos sides of the Community Cookbook, Right: Presenting the book in Bangalore at Issue 3 launch

Dhoop’s first community cookbook was designed and produced as a prototype, an extension of the third issue on COOKING.

If you look closely, the photos are of a specific ingredient and not the full dish. If you hold it, it is unlike any cookbook you have held - loose sheets tied together with a theme. The cookbook is intentionally designed to be sheets of paper that one can easily carry to the kitchen based on the chosen recipe. The photos are somewhat abstract — to encourage curiosity, to compel you to flip the page, and hopefully be surprised.

We don’t intend to print more copies or sell this as a cookbook, but we created this to show you how we are thinking about food and design and how whatever we produce compels action, makes you think about food in a slightly different way.

Back and front of a page from the Community Cookbook ( Bhandare Wali Kaddu ki Sabzi)

We also designed some postcards based on the third issue of the magazine. The dhoop team of three (at the time) brainstormed and collaboratively created this set of postcards.

Issue 3 postcards

Beautiful, right?

And ofc you are familiar with the third issue of dhoop, right? Or do we need to show off a little more?

---

If you are an author, a brand, or an organisation and want to work with us, please write to us at hello@dhoopmag.com. We are now taking projects for the rest of the year.

Big thanks to all of the following people who generously shared their recipes for the community cookbook.

Manasi Deshpande’s Mulyacha Chatka, Shakuntala Sampigethaya’s Menaskai, Dina Weber's Base Bone Stock & Noodle Khushboo Gursahani’s Punjabi Kadhi, Hemlock’s Solkadhi, Binal Gandhi’s Mom’s Special Gujarati Kachori Dal Dhokli, Beena Shenoy’s Avrekalu Saung, Zahra Harmain’s Dumroat, Lamiya Huda ’s Keema Stuffed Capsicums, Rohini Kejriwal’s Ma’s Sprout Tikki Recipe, Anouksha Pati’s Narangi Ginger Marmalade, Thirupurasundari sevvel’s Kozhi Idicha Kaari & Rasam, Anjali Narendra ’s Maa Laddu, Abha's Mix Fruit Cake, Karthikeya & Amrutha’s Cucumber Kimchi, Tia Choubey’s Egg Drop Soup , Mugdha Joshi’s Raatalyachi Feni, Maaz Azam's Ammi's Home Style Mutton, Shobna Dhamija’s Bhandare Wali Kaddu Ki Sabzi, Zoya Naaz Rehman’s Banana Blossom Fritters – “Fish” and Chips, Zoya Naaz Rehman and Nabila Yusuf's Ragi Roti, Tanaya Desai’s Raw Mango Takku, Taiyaba Ali’s Aloo Tamatar ki Qatliyan, Rachna Khandelwal’s Lifafa Paratha, Shreya J’s Palak Sabzi, Shruti Tharayil’s Mixed Masala Rice, Nida’s Dahi Chawal with Aloo Bhujia, Sindhu Shivaprasad’s Punarpuli Saaru, Payal Pereira's Amma's Chutney Pudi, Neeta Bhandari’s Rice Khichu and Moen Khakra ,Pearl Sandhu's Awadhi Khatte Baingan ,Jayshree Parekh’s Dapka, Nihar Desai's Umbe Upkari, and Lata Bramhecha’s Sabudana