By Natasha Ferrill
Prasanna Ranganathan affectionately describes the cookbook he co-wrote with his mother Prema, Made with Prema, as a culinary cultural love letter.
“Food is the love letter that my mom writes to her family every time she prepares a dish,” says Prasanna. “It’s a love letter that she gives to her friends when she shares her recipes. And it’s a love letter that she once received from her own mom, my grandmother.”
Fifty years ago, when Prema Ranganathan was 26 years old, she boarded a plane for the very first time and moved across the globe from India to Canada, to join her husband Ranga, who lived in Saskatoon.
While she settled in Saskatchewan and grew in love with Ranga, Prema’s love for cooking grew, too. Prema’s mother would send her cherished family recipes in the mail to bring them to life in Canada. But without having access to many of the spices from back home, she adapted her own versions of her family’s classic recipes.
“Her love of cooking started with trying to bridge the culture and community from home and bring it to Saskatoon,” says Prasanna. “As an immigrant family, food was a way for her to preserve our Indian heritage and culture while living in Canada.”
In 2020, at the urging of her friends and former students in her beloved cooking classes, Prema began to document her recipes into a cookbook. But to do so, Prema needed a little help from Prasanna and her friend Chamundi Eswari Selvaraj.
Both Prema and Prasanna live with sight loss. In fact, Prasanna has been legally blind since 2005 and Prema legally blind since 2022. Prasanna has macular degeneration, so his sight loss will continue to deteriorate. But as a human rights lawyer turned diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility educator and advisor, Prasanna is well-versed in empowering people living with sight loss to achieve their dreams – including his mom.
Chamundi Eswari and Prasanna helped Prema transcribe her recipes – and what they thought would be 30 recipes turned into a family treasury of more than 300 South Asian vegetarian dishes.
Prasanna turned to renowned Canadian poet Rupi Kaur and her manager Rakhi Mutta for guidance on publishing the cookbook. To Prasanna and Prema’s amazement, Rupi and Rakhi chose their cookbook as the first publication for their new publishing company and special project, Likhari Authors.
“It fills my heart with such pride to have been a small part of this journey with mom,” says Prasanna as he reflects on the quality time he spent with his mom writing the cookbook.
But what makes this publication even more meaningful is that Prasanna and Prema have committed to donating all of their proceeds from the cookbook to CNIB.
When Prasanna first embarked on his sight loss journey, he says CNIB was there for him every step of the way, providing him with access to aids and transit services. Similarly, when Prema first experienced her sight loss, CNIB extended the same invaluable assistance to her.
“With CNIB, I always felt like I was at home and I was cared for and that my feelings mattered. I never felt alone in a journey that otherwise in so many ways felt deeply isolating,” Prasanna says.
Their message to the world is that disability isn’t inability.
“I always say that stories have the opportunity to not just reflect the world in which we live, but to imagine the world we seek to build,” says Prasanna. “So often the burden is placed on people with disabilities to find services, to correct or fix ourselves – but I want to be clear: there’s nothing wrong with me. It’s up to the world to figure out how it’s going to dismantle barriers and become more inclusive. And I’m so proud of CNIB for doing that work to figure out how the world can and must be more accessible and inclusive.”
Prasanna credits CNIB for removing those barriers to accessing opportunities to live a fulfilling life.
“CNIB allows us to live in the fullness of who we are. Whether it’s through the provision of mobility aids, assistive devices, or guide dogs – CNIB is helping us navigate a world that wasn’t designed for us.”
He recognizes CNIB as a virtual lifeline for so many people.
“CNIB gives us the tools, the support, and the sense of community to realize we’re not alone. We can go reach for our dreams. I can’t overstate the importance of this organization because it’s about the tangible provision of services, but it’s also about the intangible sense of instilling in people the belief that they can pursue whatever brings them to life. And I'm forever grateful to CNIB for that.”
Made with Prema has garnered attention from a few high-profile celebrities. Actress, comedian, screenwriter, and producer Mindy Kaling endorsed the cookbook through an Instagram story shout-out, as did Poorna Jagannathan from Netflix’s hit series, Never Have I Ever. Canadian YouTuber, television host, comedian, writer, and actress Lilly Singh featured Made with Prema in her book club, Lilly’s Library. Prema and Prasanna even made a special appearance on Lilly’s Desi Me Cooking segment, where Lilly herself said, “I’m obsessed with this.”
It's not hard to see why this cookbook has gained such momentum. The vibrant images and easy-to-follow recipes serve as a vessel that tells a deeper story. For the Ranganathan family, every dish evokes a cherished memory. Every page is a glimpse into Prema’s captivating journey that transcends borders, spans generations, and preserves their family’s heritage and culture.
And without a doubt, one thing remains clear: love is the main ingredient that seasons every dish throughout the book.
“My mom IS love,” says Prasanna as he affectionately describes how the name ‘Prema’ means ‘Love’ in Sanskrit. “This cookbook was made with love and I can’t think of someone who more beautifully lives up to her name.”