There are a few things that stay with you without you ever really thinking about them. For me, turmeric is one of those things.

Growing up, it was never introduced as something “healthy” or “medicinal.” It just existed. In the kitchen. In the food. In a glass of hot milk when you had a fever. Or when you couldn’t sleep. Or when your body just felt…off. You know.

My grand mother explained to me the benefits one too many times. But you know children. They don’t listen. So when I was younger I never really cared about it. (Silly me!) But now, I find myself going back to it. On colder nights. On days when I feel worn out. Or when I need something simple to reset the body.

When turmeric stopped feeling the same

You know, somewhere along the way, the turmeric I was buying didn’t feel the same. The colour was duller. The smell was weaker. And strangely, it needed more to feel like it was doing anything at all. Sometimes there was even a slight aftertaste, something that didn’t quite belong. I would like to think it was the adulteration, but honestly I am not sure.

At first, I ignored it. You assume it’s normal. That maybe you’re imagining things. When I complained to friends and family, they agreed and recommended a new ‘someone’ that was better. But it just kept getting worse.

The more I cooked, the more I paid attention, the more obvious it became. Not all turmeric is the same.

And yet, we treat it like it is. Just like everything else. We just make peace with things and assume that that is how it must have always been. A pinch here, a spoon there.

Which is strange, because turmeric more than just colour.

What turmeric was always meant to be

It carries something deeper. Something that traditional kitchens understood without needing to explain it. Today, we might call it ‘Curcumin’. The compound that gives turmeric its strength. The thing that quietly works in the background — supporting the body, reducing inflammation, helping it recover.

But growing up, no one called it that.

It was just, ‘haldi betaa!’

And maybe that’s the part that feels lost.

Because when something becomes industrial, it also becomes distant. Standardised. Flattened. It looks the same everywhere, but it doesn’t feel the same anymore. I didn’t think much of it until I came across a batch of turmeric that just felt…like it was from my memories.

Stronger. Warmer. More alive in the way it showed up in food.

It reminded me of something I hadn’t realised I’d forgotten.

Because maybe the problem isn’t turmeric.
Maybe it’s what we’ve slowly gotten used to.

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Until next time.
Y
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