In this One-on-One conversation, The Messy Truth’s Gem Fletcher speaks with photographer Tami Aftab about her work The Rice is on The Hob, which was originally published in 2024 as a photo-cookbook. Following an accident in operation almost thirty years ago, her father Tony suffered from short term memory loss but has always been able to recollect dishes from his childhood in Pakistan. Food and cooking have subsequently become an important coping mechanism for living with chronic disability and a great connector between father and daughter. They long dreamed of co-authoring a photography meets recipe book, in which Aftab’s photographs sit alongside her father’s recipes. The Rice is on the Hob is the culmination of their collaboration. Gem and Tami will discuss this body of work alongside aspects of her broader practice.

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Tami Aftab is a British-Pakistani photographer based in London.

Gem Fletcher is a writer, consultant and host of The Messy Truth Podcast. Her work has been published in Foam, Aperture, Dazed, Creative Review, 1000 Words and The British Journal of Photography. The Messy Truth podcast is a series of candid conversations that unpack the future of visual culture and what it means to be a photographer today. Now in its tenth season, Gem explores reflections on criticism, starting out, mental health, politics and success with guests like Antwuan Sargent, Catherine Opie, Farah Al Qasimi, Carmen Winant, Charlotte Cotton, Quil Lemons, Brea Souders and Laia Abril.
@gemfletcher

Tami Aftab's The Rice is on the Hob will be exhibited in Room 3, Copeland Gallery, part of Peckham 24 16-25th May 2025.