Tonight is Thursday, which means "Aloo Paratha" (flatbread stuffed with spicy potato). The mother rolls the dough while the daughter cuts the butter. The father burns his fingers trying to flip the bread on the open flame. The family eats together on the floor, sitting cross-legged, using the right hand to tear off a piece of bread. The conversation swings from politics to the price of petrol to the boy the eldest daughter is secretly dating.
It is a common sight in Indian trains to see families opening large steel containers to share food with fellow passengers. The question, "Have you eaten?" is less about hunger and more about checking if you are okay. Tonight is Thursday, which means "Aloo Paratha" (flatbread