An Indian doctoral student has received a $200,000 settlement from the University of Colorado Boulder after a complaint about the smell of his packed lunch led to a civil rights lawsuit and the end of his academic career. Aditya Prakash, who was pursuing a PhD in anthropology, was told by a staff member in September 2023 to stop using the department microwave because his palak paneer smelled ‘pungent’. The university denies any liability as part of the settlement.
According to a federal lawsuit filed by Prakash and his partner Urmi Bhattacheryya, the incident escalated when a staff member entered the kitchen and remarked on the odour, claiming a rule against microwaving strong-smelling food. Prakash said he felt ‘othered and saddened’. The couple alleged that the university retaliated against them, leading to the loss of their PhD supervisors and funding, effectively ending their doctoral studies.
The lawsuit, filed in September 2025, accused the university of discrimination and retaliation. The university settled four months later, awarding $200,000 and granting the couple Masters degrees, but barring them from future enrolment or employment. Prakash and Bhattacheryya have since left the US, with their story gaining attention in Indian communities online.
Prakash told The Independent that the remark echoed childhood experiences in Europe, where the smell of his home-cooked Indian food was used to ridicule and exclude him. He said the issue was not about one lunch but about whether he had to change what and where he eats. The lawsuit noted that no formal policy banned using the kitchen, and that other foods like beef chilli had not been treated similarly.
The couple’s case highlights ongoing concerns about discrimination faced by South Asians in the West, where the smell of their food is often used as a pretext for exclusion. Prakash and Bhattacheryya’s departure from the US has sparked discussion online about racial bias in academic settings.
