About EtiKette

India is not one table. What counts as good manners at a meal changes from state to state, community to community, even household to household. A visitor, or a curious Indian from another region, often has no reliable place to learn how to eat respectfully somewhere new. EtiKette is an attempt to write that guide, region by region.

What this is

• A practical, descriptive record of how people eat, serve, and celebrate food.
• Honest about variation: we say when a custom differs by faith, community, or family.
• Open source and community-built, so it can grow and be corrected over time.

The hygiene angle

Some long-standing practices, such as sharing a single water tumbler, eating from a common vessel, or double-dipping fingers, carry real health risks. We don’t shame these traditions; we explain them, note the risk plainly, and offer a more hygienic alternative. Look for these throughout the guides:

🧼 Hygiene note

This is what a hygiene note looks like. It names a risk and suggests a safer way to keep the spirit of the custom without the downside.

What this is not

Not a rulebook, and not the last word. Customs vary and evolve. Treat every page as a well-researched starting point, and tell us when we’re wrong.

🧭 A note on sources

Cultural practices are hard to cite definitively. Where a convention is contested (for example, which way to fold the banana leaf), we say so and link to references rather than stating it as fact.

Ready to help? See how to contribute.