From food to politics to even football… this is how the hilsa fish exerts influence over the two Bengals. 🐟
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00:00It's a diplomatic tool, a cultural symbol, and it's loved to death.
00:20Hilsa or Ilish is known as the king of fish and it's loved in equal measure by both the
00:25Bengals.
00:26A lot of times when India and Bangladesh were in a sticky diplomatic situation, the Hilsa
00:32came to the rescue.
00:33Like in September 2024, when the neighbour briefly banned the Hilsa's export to India
00:39but resumed it before the Durga Puja.
00:41Even former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina sent Hilsa to the frontlines.
00:53Hasina gifted the fish to West Bengal's Chief Minister Jyoti Basu just before signing the
00:58Ganga Water Sharing Treaty with India.
01:00President Pranab Mukherjee was supposed to break a stalemate between India and Bangladesh
01:05sharing water from the Tista River.
01:07And guess what Sheikh Hasina gifted him?
01:10That's right, Hilsa.
01:16Bangladesh which is the world's largest producer of the fish had put in place an export ban
01:21since 2012 but it was lifted for exports to India during Durga Puja in 2019 as a gesture
01:28of goodwill.
01:29In 2024, the new Bangladesh PM Mohd Yunus also placed a brief ban on the fish's export
01:36to prioritise the domestic demand.
01:38But they resumed exports ahead of the Durga Puja with 3,000 tonnes of the fish being sent
01:44across the border after appeals from exporters.
01:47But what is it about the Hilsa that makes it so sought after?
01:58When Sir Cyril Radcliffe divided the subcontinent during the partition in 1947, he also divided
02:04the rivers that flowed there, including the Ganga, the Padma and the Brahmaputra.
02:09Although Hilsa is a saltwater fish found in the Bay of Bengal, it actually swims upstream
02:14in rivers during the breeding season.
02:17This gives the fish its quintessential soft, oily texture.
02:21And while the rivers in West Bengal also have Hilsa, they are much lesser in numbers since
02:26these waters are much better suited to breed crustaceans like prawns.
02:30The Hilsa-Prawn rivalry also found its way into football.
02:34When the East Bengal club plays Mohan Bagan, the prices of Hilsa and Prawn invariably skyrocket
02:40the next day depending on which team wins.
02:43Both sides celebrate by devouring their respective team mascots to an extent where all markets
02:48are often sold out.
02:51Coming back to Hilsa, the fish is enjoyed during all special occasions from births to
02:56weddings to pujas and even funerals.
02:59But there's a dark side to this love for Hilsa.
03:02The demand for the fish throughout the year and the exorbitant prices it fetches has resulted
03:07in massive overfishing even during the breeding season when the government in India had banned
03:12Hilsa fishing in the country's rivers and seas.
03:21This, coupled with siltation in rivers, drying riverbeds and increasing water pollution has
03:27drastically reduced Hilsa populations.
03:29So if we're not careful, there might soon be a time when Bengalis might not get to offer
03:34the Goddess Durga their favourite fish during puja.
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