A tale as old as time: the Netherlands and India’s surprising relationship

There is a little joke we make in India — “first comes the software boom, and along come our countrymen.”

Arriving at Schiphol five years back, little did I realise that this country of windmills would make room for many Indians like me.

Today, the colourful Indian diaspora brightens the Dutch cultural sphere, thanks to computerisation and procreation.

However, this connection is anything but recent. There is a history between the Netherlands and India before any computer prototype. 🇮🇳🤝🇳🇱

A blast to the past

While many people know about the Dutch connection with Indonesia, they rarely discuss the Netherlands’ relationship with India.

However, thanks to the Dutch East India Company (VOC), established in 1602, Dutch voyagers camped on the shores of India for a solid 200 years.

The Dutch from back then remind us of the Dutch today with great business acumen and an eye for deals. Whilst other colonial powers pushed to gain political control, the VOC were mostly after fortune.

READ MORE | The Dutch East India Company was richer than Apple, Google, and Facebook combined

Textiles and spices made the biggest buck for Dutch traders, as they acquired larger parts of the country. They employed labourers, and transported and traded with other countries.

That is how an entire generation of people of Indian origin came to live in Suriname and subsequently in the Netherlands.

A Dutch-Indian love story

While “doe normaal“ feels almost like an anthem, some stories about the Dutch were filled with drama!

One is that of Eustachius de Lannoy, a Dutch war prisoner handpicked by a strategic Indian Maharaja (king) to be his general.

His ladylove Margaret lived in the British controlled territory of India and wasn’t allowed to marry him.

That is until de Lannoy’s boss stepped in.

The Maharaja threatened to send his army over if Margaret’s parents didn’t agree to this union. Subsequently, they lived happily ever after.

READ MORE | What’s it like living in the Netherlands as an Indian, you ask?

This story must be one of many Bollywood-esque love stories because a sizeable community of people trace their origins back to Dutch marrying Indians.

An interculinary coupling

Talking about love stories, how can we overrule the lowlanders’ classic love for bread?

Did you know that the mundane ontbijtkoek is a celebratory breakfast on feestdagen for certain ethnic communities in parts of India and Sri Lanka? 👀

Breudher (like brood) is made with flour, butter, eggs, spices, raisins or sultanas, and sometimes candied citrus peels to lend extra flavour.

The result is dense bread that tastes like cake and can be eaten steamed or straight-up (with a slice of cheese! 😋).

Where the Dutch have been, so have poffertjes — the dish that disguises itself as breakfast, snack and dessert.

Many countries in Asia practice this love for baby pancakes, albeit in different names and forms.

However, India has its own version of this Dutch delight, and their take is even more varied.

Paniyaram is popular in the south of the country, which celebrates rice, spice and everything nice. It goes by several other names in every part of the country.

It is made with a fermented rice batter, sweetened with brown sugar and spiced with cardamom.

The batter is shallow-fried in an indented pan with clarified butter to make delicious golden-brown balls, not too different from poffertjes.

No sweet tooth? There is also a savoury version that uses intensely hot chilli peppers, ginger and coriander.

Whether the former colonies twisted a Dutch classic or if the Dutch twisted a local classic, it is safe to assume that most of humankind agrees on one thing — fried bits of dough taste divine.

The Netherlands and India today

While all these commonalities and history are interesting, Indians today are just as enamoured by Netherlanders.

Many now choose to send their kids to Dutch-medium schools, celebrate Sinterklaas and gobble pepernoten by the dozen!

Did you know about this secret affair? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below!