Peter Menzel and Faith D'Alusio conducted a photographic study of what families around the world eat over the course of a week. They then collected their work in a book called “Hungry Planet: What the World Eats.” Included are photographs of 30 families from 24 different countries. This photograph allows the viewer to witness the immense differences and striking similarities in diets around the world. The photos are beautiful, but it's the questions posed by the jarring comparisons that make these images so provocative. Each photograph contains a week's worth of food and the cost spent on that food. One of the families Peter Menzel chose to photograph was the Patkar family from Ujjain, India. India has a population of 1.237 billion and of these 80.5% identify as Hindus. In the photograph it is recognizable that the Patkar family practices some form of Hinduism. There are multiple aspects of this photograph that make this evident. The first appearance is the red dot, known as bindi, on the mother's forehead. Married Hindu women wear this symbol, displayed brilliantly between their eyebrows. The bindi is said to represent feminine energy, which is believed to protect women and their families. Another aspect of the photograph that proves that the Patkar family is Hindu is the absence of meat in their weekly diet. Hinduism is one of the major religions in India, and therefore most of the Indian population abstains from eating meat. Hindu scriptures proclaim the interconnectedness of all existence, including humans, animals, and all of nature. Traditionally, followers of the Hindu religion were careful to pay close attention to what they ate. According to Hinduism, food is a gift given by God. Therefore... in the center of the sheet... all religious and cultural beliefs. However, the carefree placement of packaged foods in traditional Indian dishes exemplifies the casual influences of the Western diet on India's strong cultural history. There are many individual parts that make up this photograph, but the entire photograph is a snapshot of India as a whole. Most importantly, this food not only brings the Patkar family together to enjoy meals and connect with each other, but it is a giant system that connects the community to their meal. Appreciating the bounty of food provided by the local market, the Patkar family is part of a larger whole. Hinduism teaches that all things are sacred and that all things are interconnected. The Indian Patkar family is a beautiful example of how even ancient traditions resist the ever-changing Western world.