Indian Hotels Company (IHCL) and Tata Steel Foundation (TSF) bring their celebration of indigenous culinary heritage to Goa, creating sustainable livelihood opportunities for tribal home cooks. Anchored in Paathya, IHCL’s ESG+ framework, the collaboration with Samvaad – A Tribal Conclave by TSF supports home cooks through capacity-building initiatives that strengthen skills and encourage entrepreneurship. Following a successful showcase in Mumbai, a series of curated tribal food pop-ups will be hosted across IHCL’s iconic Goa properties — Taj Holiday Village Resort & Spa and Taj Exotica Goa.
Goa has long held its place as India’s culinary crossroads. From humble tavern kitchens to refined resort dining rooms, the state’s food story is one of evolution. This February, that story expands further as two of Goa’s most iconic luxury resorts open their tables to India’s indigenous culinary heritage, creating a rare confluence of deep-rooted tribal cuisine and contemporary fine dining.
From the golden sands of Candolim to the tranquil shores of Benaulim, two of Goa’s most celebrated Taj properties are transforming into a vibrant cultural canvas this season. From 27th February to 1st March, Tales From Tribes unfolds simultaneously across Taj Holiday Village Resort & Spa and Taj Exotica Goa, bringing India’s forest kitchens and ancestral hearths into Goa’s most refined dining spaces.
At Taj Holiday Village, where relaxed luxury has always carried a strong sense of place, the festival arrives with rustic, earthy conviction. Bilati Sode from the Santhal community of Jharkhand steps onto the stage with its integrity intact, embodying uncomplicated techniques and flavours rooted deep in the land. Guests can also savour Dhuska and Ghoogni, the beloved Jharkhand pairing of crisp rice-and-lentil breads served with spiced black gram curry, robust, comforting and deeply rooted in tradition. Beside it, Pongna Bam from the Rabha community of Meghalaya speaks in the quiet, deliberate language of slow-cooking traditions and indigenous ingredients drawn from the lush Northeast.
Further south along Benaulim’s serene coastline, Taj Exotica, known for its expansive lawns, grand architecture and Mediterranean-inspired elegance, joins the celebration from 28th February to 1st March, lending its sophisticated culinary stage to the same ancestral stories. Here, Chicken Kappa with Black Lentils, a traditional Garo preparation, takes centre stage, celebrating slow cooking, indigenous spices and community-style feasting. Within Taj Exotica’s polished dining spaces, these dishes take on a new dimension, plated with finesse yet retaining their authenticity, a reminder that luxury today is not about excess, but about storytelling, provenance and cultural depth.
Together, the two resorts offer a rare confluence, one rooted in Goa’s breezy, laid-back charm and the other in grand, sun-drenched elegance, yet both united in their reverence for India’s living culinary heritage. Tales From Tribes is not merely a festival; it is an invitation to sit at hearths that have fed communities for generations, now brought lovingly into the light.
Speaking about the showcase, Mr. Ranjit Phillipose, Senior Vice President – Operations, IHCL Goa, shared, “Goa has always been a celebration of food and culture, and bringing tribal cuisines to our iconic resorts here is a natural extension of that spirit. It allows us to create a dialogue between India’s deeply rooted culinary traditions and the refined experiences our guests seek, honouring heritage while elevating it within a luxury setting. At its heart, Tales From Tribes in Goa is about convergence. It is where forest-foraged ingredients meet beachfront sunsets, where ancestral techniques find expression in elegant dining rooms, and where Goa, known as India’s food capital, once again proves that it can embrace diversity while celebrating authenticity.”
For guests at Taj Holiday Village Resort & Spa and Taj Exotica Goa this is more than a festival. It is an invitation to taste India differently. Through flavours that are ancient, soulful and now thoughtfully woven into the fabric of Goa’s finest luxury hospitality.
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