An Indian student has received a payout of more than $200,000 from the University of Colorado Boulder after a remark about the smell of his packed lunch escalated into a civil rights lawsuit and ended his academic career. Aditya Prakash, a doctoral candidate in anthropology, was told by a staff member in September 2023 to stop using the department microwave because his Indian food smelled 'pungent'. The university denies any liability as part of the settlement.
According to a federal civil rights suit, Prakash was heating palak paneer, a spinach and cottage cheese dish, when a staff member entered and remarked on the 'pungent' smell, claiming a rule against microwaving food with a 'strong odour'. Prakash felt 'othered and saddened' and later spoke to the staff member, who called in an administrator. The administrator said she wanted to keep the office 'smelling nice' and suggested 'sandwiches' were acceptable while 'curry' was not.
Two days later, Prakash and four fellow students, including his partner Urmi Bhattacheryya, heated Indian food in an 'act of solidarity'. Prakash claimed another staff member 'heckled' them and shut the kitchen door. The department accused them of 'inciting a riot' and referred the matter to the Office of Student Conduct, though no formal findings were made.
Within months, Prakash and Bhattacheryya lost their PhD supervisors and funding, effectively ending their doctoral work. In September 2025, they filed a lawsuit alleging discrimination and retaliation. The university settled in January 2026 for $200,000 while denying liability. It also awarded them master's degrees but barred them from future enrolment or employment. The couple have since left the US.
Prakash said the incident echoed childhood experiences in Europe, where the smell of his home-cooked Indian food was routinely ridiculed. 'It wasn't about that one lunch. It was about whether I had to change what I eat and where I eat it,' he told The Independent.
