Dishcovery – Otenga

In collaboration with Graphic Design (Mdes programme), System Design, NID
Co facilitators : Dipender Baoni, Tarun Deep Girdhar

WHAT

Dishcovery was a speculative food design experience curated by the M.Des. Graphic Design batch of 2021 at NID Ahmedabad, in collaboration with Project Otenga and The Humane Collective. It asked a simple but probing question:
How do unconscious decisions shape what ends up on our plates?

Participants engaged with five simple binary choices presented playfully as part of the experience, which influenced the food they were served without their knowledge. Through taste, contrast, and a layered reveal, Dishcovery created space for reflection on fast vs. slow life, conscious vs. habitual eating, and value vs. cost.

WHY

The goal was to create an experience that quietly disrupted assumptions around food, taste, health, and culture. In a world of ever-accelerating consumption and information overload, Dishcovery brought awareness to the paradoxes of choice, the disconnect between intention and action, the impact of processed vs. organic sourcing, the emotional and physical response to sensory difference.
It used food not just as nourishment, but as data, inviting guests to reconsider everyday decisions and their consequences.

What Choice Would You Make?

Guests encountered five interactive “choice tables” laid out in Otenga’s open-air space and each tasting station framed a binary choice between slow and fast living. Examples included:

Cut fruit in plastic wrap vs. Whole uncut fruit
Bottled water vs. Matka (earthen pot)
Roselle sherbet vs. Packaged pomegranate juice
Sanitizer vs. Herbal handwash
Swiggy vs. home-cooked origin stories

The Aftermath of Your Choices

Guests were then served a meal—either organic or regular (market-bought)—based on their selections. The menu included simple Indian home-style dishes:

Rice
Daal
Brinjal fry
Palak (spinach)
Lauki (bottle gourd)
Saar (tomato curry)
Bhindi fry
Bhakri (wheat bread)
Pineapple raita

Both versions used the same recipes, but the ingredients varied in quality and sourcing.

After the meal, guests received a personalised bill showing their decisions, along with a booklet prompting deeper thought. They were then invited to try the alternative plate, allowing them to directly compare taste, texture, and digestion between the two.

A final segment included waste measurement, interactive installations, and an opportunity to reflect on personal food choices.