Boti

On the left, a coconut grater known as Narkel Kuruni and on the right a regular Boti used to cut fruit, vegetables, fish, meat, etc.

Boti is a cutting instrument,^[1] most prevalent in Bengal, a region in the eastern South Asia which is now divided between the Indian states of West Bengal, Tripura, and Barak Valley of Assam and the independent country of Bangladesh.

Boti is a long curved blade and cut on a platform held down by foot, both hands are used to hold whatever is being cut and move it against the blade. This is quite unlike using a knife; the sharper side faces the user. The method gives excellent control over the cutting process, and can be used to cut anything from tiny shrimp to large pumpkins.

Variations

A larger version of the Boti, with a bigger blade is used for gutting and cutting fish. Another version of the boti comprises the Narkel Kuruni (coconut grater) in the form of a flat round top with sharp small shark like teeth all around it to serrate coconut. Dao (a more prevalent name in Bangladesh) is a variation of boti, which is hand held.

References

1. Mukerjee, Madhusree (2011). Churchill's secret war : the British empire and the ravaging of India during world war ii. New York: Basic Books. p. 84. ISBN 978-0-465-02481-0.