Thaal Feasts Hold Sri Lanka’s Bohra Muslim Community Together

On a breezy but warm winter evening in Colombo, the capital of Sri Lanka, I am welcomed into the spacious dining area of the Ali household. Eight of us sit on the floor around a large circular metallic platter called the thaal, which is mounted a few feet above ground on a wooden stand. A plethora of sweet and savoury small dishes are dotted across the gleaming thaal, ensuring that each guest is equidistant from the food. Before we begin eating, a portable basin and jug, known as a chillamchi lota, is passed around for us to wash our hands.

Imran Ali, our main host, invites us to take a pinch of salt from a small dish to activate the taste buds. Defying the rules of conventional dining for perhaps the first time in my life, I indulge in dessert as the first course, which is the delectable malai khaja, a crispy puff pastry constructed in multiple layers oozing with a sweet syrup and revealing a filling of nuts and creamy mango puree.

The Ali family are a part of the Bohra community in Sri Lanka, having migrated here from India five generations ago. Sharing a meal in the thaal tradition at home or in the mosque is a defining feature of Bohra life and an important ritual that holds this tiny, close-knit community together in their adopted home. Imran explains that it is customary to alternate between mithaas (sweet) and kharaas (savoury) courses in a Bohra meal. While seven courses is customary, it is not uncommon for a thaal meal to have up to 52 unique dishes on special occasions such as weddings or the eve of Ramadan, the Muslim holy month of fasting.

Akbar Ali, Imran’s father, notes that the Bohra community came to be in Sri Lanka in the early 1800s not by design, but by accident.

“The first Bohra trader to arrive in Sri Lanka, Jafferjee Esajee, was actually on his way to the Maldives when his boat was struck by strong winds and he changed course towards the port city of Galle in Sri Lanka,” he tells me. “As we have historically been a community of traders, the early settlers saw trading opportunities from Sri Lanka’s abundance of natural resources and stuck around.”

With a population size of 2,500 people, today’s Bohra community comprises a small segment of Sri Lanka’s Muslim population, which cuts across ethnic groups but derives a shared sense of identity from its adherence to the same faith. The majority of Sri Lankan Muslims are referred to as “Moors” (reflecting European colonial usage) and trace their roots to Arab and Persian traders, who arrived on the island in pre-colonial times and often intermarried with locals. The Bohra Muslims are relatively more recent migrants to Sri Lanka. Belonging to the Shia sect of Islam, the Bohra community relocated to Sri Lanka from the state of Gujrat in India, where they migrated from Yemen in the 1500s. Many Bohra families operate multi-generation trading houses, as reflected by the fact that the word Bohra is derived from a Gujrati word vahaurau, meaning “to trade.”

Outside of Sri Lanka, the Bohra community resides in India, Pakistan, Yemen, and parts of East Africa. Despite being geographically scattered, a unifying thread that ties them all together is food. Specifically, a communal eating tradition that sees eight or more members of a family or the community eat from the same thaal. This ritual is considered sunnat (tradition), following the example of Prophet Muhammad who ate in a similar manner with his family members.

“The thaal tradition is about fostering equality and breaking down barriers, which is a central tenet of Islam,” Imran says. “Everyone sits together as equals and we use our hands to eat from the same plate and converse about politics, cricket, work in a circle so there is equal participation.”

The migration patterns and geographies of settlement of the Bohra community are reflected in their cuisine, which is a melange of Gujrati, Mughlai, and Middle Eastern flavours. A quintessential Bohra dish served on special occasions is the daal chawal palidu, featuring steamed rice layered with pigeon pea lentils and served with a stew made with chickpea and bottle gourd. It is flavoured with cumin, coriander, fenugreek, and curry leaves. Bohra thaal feasts can also include local specialties, such as fermented rice flour hoppers.

“We have been in Sri Lanka for many generations and integrating dishes that are commonly eaten here as part of the Bohra thaal tradition helps us maintain that hybrid identity,” says Imran.

As the dinner continues, we move on to the second course of bateta chaap, a moreish minced mutton and potato cutlet, eating with our fingers and savouring each bite. Next, we tuck into a jiggly caramel custard, which strikes me as an unusually European dish.

Imran’s grandfather, Abdul Ali, offers a possible explanation for why this dish is eaten as part of the thaal: “Bohra traders travelled far and wide for business, often bringing back ingredients and techniques with them. In some old cookbooks, you may even find recipes for dishes like khao soi, custard and soufflé that are not traditionally Bohra dishes.”

Rice is considered auspicious by the Bohras, so it comes as no surprise that the main dish takes the form of a piping hot mutton biryani served with a flavoursome chicken broth. As I take my third helping of the biryani and retire any attempt at portion control, Imran applauds me for doing justice to the dish.

“Bohras have a no food waste policy,” he says. “Ideally, there should be no grain of rice left on the thaal when you finish the meal.”

Savouring the last course of paan, a betel leaf folded with areca nut, fennel seeds, and coconut, I try to recall another time I shared from one plate with people I barely knew. Appetite isn’t the only prerequisite for fully enjoying a seven-course Bohra feast—both your shoes and inhibitions must be left at the door as you embrace a truly communal dining experience.