Too many cooks...
bring variety

Cookery shows are the current flavour on Indian television. The latest to join the bandwagon is Fox History & Traveller with Twist of Taste by Michelin-star Indian chef Vineet Bhatia, writes Neerja Bahadur

Aditya Bal hosts Chakh Le Academy on NDTV Good Times

Mealtime has never been so much fun for middle-class India. Back in the 1990s, when Sanjeev Kapoor began hosting Khana Khazana on Zee, little did he imagine he was opening the floodgates for a slew of cookery shows. His show is now broadcast in 120 countries and has more than 500 million viewers.

Foodies have now become star attractions on all channels. Apart from Sanjeev Kapoor, well-known names in the culinary world like Tarla Dalal, Madhur Jaffery, Aditya Bal, Vicky Ratnani and a host of other cookery specialists can be seen dishing out delicacies on various leading channels.

In today’s world of nuclear families and double incomes, cuisine is receiving more attention on television than even the reality and game shows. In fact, some months ago a food reality show did for Star Plus what Kaun Banega Crorepati had done for Sony. Hosted by Akshay Kumar, Masterchef India notched up a healthy and a much-high viewership with audiences passionately watching culinary skills of the participants.

Tarla Dalal has authored more than 30 cookery books Vicky Ratnani is the host of show Gourmet Central

Pick up the remote and flip channels and you will realise that cookery shows seem to be the current flavour on Indian television. NDTV Good Times has three such shoes — Highway On My Plate, Chakh Le Academy and Gourmet Central. Sanjeev Kapoor has launched a 24X7 food channel called Food Food. Zee has a dedicated food channel called Zee Khana Khazana. Alva Brothers Entertainment is ready with a 24 X 7 cookery channel called Food First. With many more ready to jump in the fray, you have a houseful audience lapping it all up.

The latest to join the bandwagon is Fox History & Traveller with Twist of Taste by the London-based Michelin Star Indian chef Vineet Bhatia, who goes from one famous eating joint to another and re-invents their iconic dishes. These include Moti Mahal in Delhi, Kesar Ka Dhaba in Amritsar, Murugan Idli Shop in Chennai and Tundai Kababi in Lucknow and reinvent their iconic dishes.

Madhur Jaffery is considered the original Indian celebrity chef in England. Honoured by Queen Elizabeth with the Commander of the British Empire Award, Jaffery introduced millions of Britons and Americans to Indian food back in the 1950s when she compiled her mother’s recipes into a book. "I was swept off my feet with the response I got for my first book," says Madhur, who has now over a dozen cookbooks and more are in the pipeline.

From Foolproof Indian Cookery to A Taste of India and from World Vegetarian to the Ultimate Curry Bible, Jaffery has created a sensation with her variety of books. The secret of her unprecedented success is that she does not just do cookery books but there is also the history of each Indian recipe — where it originated from as also the detailed description of spices, their origin and varied usage.

Like Jaffery, another chef who is a byword for every Indian foodie, is Tarla Dalal. The lady, often referred to as the mother of modern Indian cookery, is a great chef and a voracious writer, who has authored more than 30 books on best recipes from all over the country.

It speaks volumes for her achievements that she was honoured with the Padma Shri in 2007 for her contribution to Indian cookery. Besides hosting several cookery shows on television and radio, her website www.tarladala.com has a passionate fan following across the world.

If Tarla Dalal is right on top of the Indian culinary scene, then Sanjeev Kapoor is not far behind. He, too, has earned a big reputation from his television shows, books and website. The chef, synonymous with the TV show Khana Khazana, is an undisputed authority on Indian cuisine. A graduate from the Indian Institute of Hotel Management in Delhi, Kapoor worked in the ITDC and later was the executive chef at Hotel Centaur in Mumbai before venturing out to become one of Indian television’s best-known chefs.

In Twist of Taste, Michelin-star Indian chef Vineet Bhatia re-invents iconic dishes of famous restaurants

In fact, over the years, Kapoor has turned his culinary success into a multi-million business. He now runs a chain of Indian food restaurants called The Yellow Chilli. He also co-owns a 24X7 TV channel called Food Food, which has Bollywood actor Madhuri Dixit as its ambassador. He also manufactures a wide range of pickles, masalas, ready-to-cook mixes and chutneys under the brand name Sanjeev Kapoor’s Khazana.

Kapoor has been honoured with the Best Executive Chef of India Award and the Mercury Gold Award at Geneva. He is also a member of its International Culinary Panel, with Singapore Airlines and has helped create the shahi thali for its first-class passengers. CNN’s celebrated anchor Richard Quest calls Kapoor one of the top five chefs of the world, along with Gordon Ramsay.

"We are not looking for simple and routine recipes," says Shalini Chottani, who channel surfs through all cookery shows. "What people like me want are exotic recipes. I don’t want to waste half an hour learning to cook daal, subzi and roti."

Which explains why channels spare no pains to make their programmes as original as they can. No matter, what the costs involved. And the investment involved can at times be quite substantial.

Madhur Jaffery introduced Britons to Indian food. Photos: NF

Even a show produced in a studio has to have a lavish set of a kitchen, complete with the latest gadgetry and fresh ingredients. Kirit Pal, who is producing a cookery show, says, "It’s expensive getting the raw materials together. Many chefs don’t compromise on the stuff used. Some items need to be bought twice over if the chef is explaining a complicated dish, as all the cooking is not done on the screen. To cut back on time some dishes are prepared in advance and shown as finished products."

Keeping their increasing popularity in mind many news channels have also started devoting time to cookery. Kunal Vijaykar in The Foodie on Times Now, Bikramjit in the Secret Kitchen on CNN-IBN, and Vinod Dua in Zaike India Ka on NDTV India enjoy popular ratings. Non-chef show hosts like Rocky and Mayur in Highway on My Plate on NDTV Good Times, too, have now become star attractions in their own right.

So, if you are a foodie, put on the chef’s hat and see Tarla Dalal and Sanjeev Kapoor wave their magic wand in the kitchen. The two chefs and other innovators of culinary art have become larger-than-life celebrities whose contributions have reinvented the art of fine dining.

Indeed, mealtime will never be the same again. — NF

What’s cooking, masterchef? Hosted by Akshay Kumar, Masterchef India notched up a healthy TRP for the channel The wait is finally over. Masterchef India 2 is coming back soon on Star Plus and season 2 will feature new personalities and newer culinary talents. This is a unique cooking competition that tests amateur budding chefs to the limit with a series of tough challenges judged by culinary experts. From dishes prepared in the studio to cooking for the rich and famous to surviving the kitchens of top restaurants, the pressure will be on again to find the MasterChef champion at the end of the season. The absorbing series has all the drama and histrionics of a thriller. Regional flavours Hetal and Anuja on Show Me the Curry has more than 23 million hits on YouTube Apart from mainline channels, even regional networks are inundated with special cuisine shows, which attract lucrative sponsorships. Suvai Thedi on Vijay TV, 5-Star Tadka on Gujarat TV9, Rasoi Se on Eenadu TV, Aaha Enna Rusi on Sun TV, Aamhi Saare Khavayye on Zee Marathi, Bombat Bhojana on Suvarna TV and many more are dishing out food ranging from the common man’s dal-roti to the delectable Shahjahani kebab, Thai green curry and scrumptious pasta Mexicali. Even cookery videos like Manjula’s Kitchen, Vahchef and Expert village are a huge hit on YouTube. A special mention must be made of Show Me the Curry hosted by Hetal and Anuja, which has over 23 million views on YouTube.