Interviewer:- Who  gives you Inspiration to cook

Chef:- If I think of one person then it would be my mother and that would probably hold true for everyone of us. 

Interviewer:- How and when did you get into cooking?

Chef:- Being born and bought up in a small place Kharagpur, West Bengal, known for IIT, Railways and Airforce, my first preference was to get into engineering as there were only few streams one would think of in the earlier days. After my 12th i was preparing for engineering and my elder brother asked me to try our hospitality as he believed that it would grow in time to come and there would be ample of job opportunities. I got through the entrance exam of hotel school and joined IHM Bhubaneswar. Although no one from my family had a hospitality background but it was in the second month of the 1st year itself i developed a liking for Kitchen and i knew that i had to become a Chef and ever since then there was no looking back. 

Interviewer:- You are a well known face on television; please tell us about your experiences?

Chef:- Well the journey has been a long one. I began my career as a trainee cook in Oberoi Bhubaneswar and mastered everything the hotel had to offer within a year and had no choice but to look for better options in Major metros. I got through in Centaur hotel Juhu Beach as a Chef Trainee and grew up the ranks to become a Banquet Chef. 

My professional journey took me abroad; I worked in free standing specialty restaurants when very few professional Chefs thought of taking up careers in a restaurant.  Became an Executive Chef of a proposed five star hotel in Nagpur at the age of 27 and then move to Mumbai to work further in a International hotel chain as a Chef. 

As i had a fire belly which would always look for what next, moved ahead to do television and helped people grow their business. 

Very few people know that the famous Khana Khazana show series started with my program first in 1993. Having gained professional experiences in hotels, restaurants, catering and abroad I thought it is about time to share my experiences with people and i got serious opportunity to do television which i focused for a few years. By God’s grace my simple jingle became famous across genre of people ranging from 5 years to 80 years. The love and support people gave me was amazing and i started my own company Turban Tadka Hospitality Pvt Ltd which now has presence in Digital space, television, restaurants, food products and home appliances. 

Interviewer:- What is your take on organic and Ayurvedic food and their relevance today?

Chef:- When i was a small child i would always spend time in the villages of Punjab at my Granny’s place and would do farming. The growth and produce was almost organic, over the years as demand grew the pressure on produce increased on farming. We went through the cycle of producing two to three cycles in a year. With time things changed and now we have technology involved in organic growth and pay a price to get great stuff because the actual yield is low. There are restaurants serving Organic produce and it has entered a niche category now. 

Ayurvedic i simply believe is a way of life and is implemented in each and everyone’s personal life cycle there would be less of lifestyle diseases one would have. It is also something that our grandmothers would imply in their cooking. Combinations of ingredients in cooking were taken into account. Simple things like no water after eating banana or fruits. These simple things that protected us from lifestyle diseases were well known to them. 

I am happy to see all those principles coming back to our lives once again and people are serious about knowing and understanding culinary trivia of our grandma’s. 

Interviewer:- Tell us something about your current Ventures?

Chef:- In my own company today we manage digital content seriously and are amongst the top ten you-tubers of the country. We are making digital content on a regular basis so that people get benefited from the same. We are also empowering and recognizing homechefs by giving them a platform for growth.

We also franchise our brands for restaurants; we currently have four of them operational in Bangalore, Amritsar and Jalandhar. We have now tied up with Yellow Tie Hospitality to grow our restaurants brands over the next five years.

Our home appliances business which we started last year has started slow entering markets across the country and we are seeing a great growth as people now aspire to have great cookware to cook in.

We manage and endorse food products for various companies.

Interviewer:- What do you aspire to do as a chef in coming future?

Chef:- The journey of a Chef is never ending. The process of learning, exploring and research on food never ends. I would love to empower more people across the world to cook and teach them through all the mediums that i can. 

I want to spread happiness in the faces of people specially when they cook along, I would love them to remember Namak Shamak Namak Shamak dal dete hain and sing along every time i cook. 

Interviewer:- The most popular dish of yours

Chef:- In my restaurants we have some great stuff specially Twist of Tadka,  we have dishes that excite people a lot our Mirchi ka Halwa is a great invention. We served some fabulous Masor dal ki roti, the Dal Dhaba Tadka , Dal Paneer Bhurjjee and many things are something for which people keep coming time and again.

Interviewer:- Your favorite Restaurant

Chef:- Well there are many across the world. Every time i travel i definitely love to  explore restaurants I remember having dined in a restaurant called Adolf Wagner in Frankfurt Germany, simply great food, my dining experience at NOBU in Dubai was a memorable one. Simple road side eateries have been memorable ones Guru ka Dhaba in Lokhandwala Mumbai is simply great, food at Chandi Chowk by lanes is great, I recently dined in a simple restaurant in Nangal were the Desi Chinese was simply superb. 

Interviewer:- Your favorites food

Chef:- Since we travel  lot, coming back to eat home cooked food by my wife Aparna is simply great. I love the way she makes Rajma, Baigan ka Bharta, Kadhi, tamatar ki Chutney. I also cannot forget my childhood days when my mother would cook simple Yellow dal, rice and tamatar ki chutney simply a delight.

Internationally i do love Mediterranean food and enjoy Street food experiences in Singapore.

Interviewer:- Your Favorite Actor/Actress/Movie

Chef:- I have not defined anyone as my favorite i think i love to see moves either for entertainment for content that makes a movie great. I think most stars are great but when it comes Aamir Khan and Nawazudin their acting skills are great. Rekhaji is a great actress and has done some great movies. In the recent past i think Dangal is a movie which has surpassed all my earlier experiences.

I also love the movie Hoffa and Jack Nicholsen.

Interviewer:- Your Favorite Cook Book

Chef:- During my early days in IHM i was called the walking Larousse and would keep reading every page of it. Other books On Food and Science by Harold Mcgee. 

Interviewer:- What advice would you give to new young chefs who are inspired by your style of cooking?

Chef:- I always feel that most people drop out after doing hotel schooling but those who stay focused have created great ventures for themselves and grown in life. Nothing comes free so you have to work hard and have patience in life.