Motivated by things that are very tasty, Bhagya and Carl travel to the motherland of Sri Lanka to visit forest gardens, coconut mills, rice paddies and Aachi’s house. After a couple years bringing Lankan flavours to the people of Ōtepoti - and armed with the cultural knowledge of diaspora kids - they want to know: Who grew this and why is it so delicious?
One day Bhagya Herath sees a poster on the streets of Dunedin inviting her to a Sri Lankan banquet called Hari Rasai (Very Tasty). Her curiousity (and love of rice and curry) leads her to Yours cooperative cafe to find Carl Naus in the kitchen.
The kaupapa of our cooperative includes a focus on knowing where ingredients are coming from, ensuring the land and the people are treated fairly. This time we wanted to go further, to see for ourselves.
So Carl convinces Bhagya they should make a documentary. They visit the fields, factories, cooperatives and organisations that supply them with the essential spices and coconut, as well as experts in the methods and histories of Sri Lankan agriculture.