BOSTON—If you’re from India’s Andhra region, you must be familiar with the joy of podis, pachadis and pickles. It is said that people from Andhra can convert anything that grows in the garden into pickles.
Well, Bostonians Anu Chitrapu and Nirmala Garimella have just compiled over 100 such recipes in a book titled “Absolute Andhra.” Anyone from around the world can try these easy recipes.
These recipes come from their mothers and families, and they all have been tested and tried in Boston. The book is dedicated to their mothers: Satyavathi Chitrapu and Vanka Subbalakshmi.
In an exclusive video interview with INDIA New England News, Ms. Chitrapu and Ms. Garimella talk about how they came up the book idea and how they tested and tried these recipes.
To watch the full interview, please click here, or on the image below.
Ms. Chitrapu, a Senior Vice President and Executive at Bank of America, is passionate about women empowerment, eliminating gender based violence, education for girls and protecting the environment. It was this passion that led to the creation of Nyrvaana, a social enterprise with a mission to save fabric from landfill while providing employment to disadvantaged women.
Ms. Chitrapu recently created You Can Be, a book for young girls. It inspires them to pursue any profession they like, by showing them examples of accomplished women role models who look like them.
Ms. Chitrapu served as President of TiE Boston between 2020 and 2022. She is on the Board of Advisors for the Museum of Science, Boston and on the advisory board of Direct Action for Women Now (DAWN). She is also an active member of several Boston based non-profit organizations including American India Foundation (AIF). She holds an MBA from MIT Sloan School of Management.
Ms. Garimella is a non-profit consultant and champions national and international efforts to support women, children, and families. An emphasis on cross-cultural understanding is reflected in many dimensions of her work, as she advocates for gender equity and greater awareness of women and girls’ issues.
Ms. Garimella worked as Development Head for AIF’s New England chapter and in 2017, she co-founded Circle of Hope, a giving circle of women philanthropists in New England. She is also the co-founder of the community website lokvani that covers local Indian Americans news in Boston.
Ms. Garimella also serves as an advisory Board Member at Direct Action for Women Now, (DAWN worldwide) and also volunteers for RESPOND Inc. which works to end gende- based violence in New England. She has a certification in nonprofit management from Boston University and is an avid traveler.
