Right from the platter!

If you are passionate about one thing in your life, and there’s no other thing that you can even think of, then definitely destiny will play its way to shape it for you. But it’s you who has to smoothen it further and work for it with all the passion. That is, if you have a dream and you work to achieve it, you will definitely achieve it.

Pick up any example. I mean example of any personality who made it large. By the way, I got the recipe for this article from a recent reality show for chefs called “Master Chef India 2”. Being a food lover, I love watching reality cook shows. I have followed (though not all episodes) Master Chef Australia, Master Chef USA, and Hell’s Kitchen, to name a few. I was not a very regular viewer of Master Chef India-2 though, for which I can blame a bad internet connection and absence of a TV. However, my vacations started, I got access to the TV (thank God for that) and I loved watching the show. That was the 10^th day of December, Saturday. The participants (8) were assigned a task to cook the dish of a 2 Michelin Star Chef of Hong Kong. They were supposed to work in pairs. At a point of time when nervousness comes naturally, I saw Jyoti ji consoling Joseph (who were both a team) just like a mother would do when her child loses confidence or/and is nervous. She was asking him to just relax and….. Wow….This happens only in India…..The following day was the elimination round.

11^th Day of December.  That team was in the elimination round. Finally Jyoti ji got eliminated. But, once her name was called upon for elimination, I saw Chef Vikas Khanna saying some very humble words to Jyoti ji and even touching her feet. He said that he wants to touch the feet of a mother who is of no comparison to any chef in the world. He said that this is the reason why no food cooked by any of the world’s greatest chefs could match the essence of a food cooked by a mother. And believe me I was watching the show spellbound and this part of the show was the “wow factor” for me. I mean a Michelin star chef himself praising the dish cooked by a participant, who is a mother, was just something… You will never experience such things on a Gordon Ramsay Show, never ever.

Chef Vikas Khanna who hails from Amritsar, Punjab is now one of the most prestigious hospitality group owners in the US. His success story might not be so dramatically discussed by some. It might be just another story. But, he is a personality who can easily be taken as a source of inspiration. From cooking in ‘langars’ to being an executive Michelin star chef of the Junoon Hospitality Group cannot be just another story. It takes the exact temperature, the right amount of spices, the perfect condiments and precisely chosen ingredients to make a good dish. But the precise garnishing and the specific attitude makes it perfect.

What I mean to tell is that, he had a passion for food from his childhood. He wanted this to be his life. He worked for his passion and he achieved it. Sounds simple, does it? But believe me, it is not. Having a clearly defined and distinguishing passion is not that easy. It even takes half a lifetime to discover your passion. But if you have it, just work to make it happen. And that is not easy as well, but not trying is worse than failing. 

Like I always say, keep dreaming and make them real.

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Update (December, 2016): I have been following Chef Vikas Khanna's shows because he inspires me. His interaction with people in his 'Twist of Taste' episodes are so humble and motivating. Truly, a gem of a person! 
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