Masterchef India is back – Kitchen mein bhi khwaab sajte hain!

By Radhika Gupta

The third season of Masterchef India is back, with celebrity chefs Sanjeev Kapoor, Vikas Khanna and Kunal Kapoor as the judges of the show. The incredibly popular cooking reality show aired on Star Plus on the 11^th March 2013, with tons of viewers watching from all over India and abroad.

The three judges: (from left to right) Kunal Kapoor, Sanjeev Kapoor and Vikas Khanna

What got hooked me to this show was its very fascinating concept. Being a food lover, not only do I enjoy the innovatively made cuisines by the fellow contestants but I also love the manner in which the show progresses each week. The judges focus on three main things when they judge a dish- soch (thought), surat (presentation), and swaad (taste). And it seems like with every season, the show just keeps getting better and better! While actor Akshay Kumar hosted season 1, Sanjeev Kapoor was roped in as the celebrity presenter for this new season.

Masterchef, originally from the UK, made its place into many countries, such as the US, China, India and many more. I personally love watching Masterchef US, with Gordon Ramsay, Joe Bastianach and Graham Elliot as the judges of the show. Season 3 of Masterchef USA ended recently, with blind contestant Christine Ha emerging as the winner. Filled with lots of drama and excitement, Masterchef is easily the favourite show of many food-lovers everywhere.

After countless rounds of auditions and intense challenges at the boot camp, the top twelve talented contestants who emerged as the best were – Aditi Madan from Haryana, Devyani Bhati from Jaipur, Doel Sarangi from Kolkata, Happy Singh from Ajmer, Ishrat Ali from Kolkata, Jehan Sarkari from Ahmedabad, Khoku Patra from Dehli, Navneet Rastogi from Vanarasi, Nisha Varma from Meerut, Ripu Daman from Dehli, Sachin Naik from Mumbai and lastly Yasmin Sheikh from Ujjain.

All twelve of them, no doubt, are great chefs. Each of them has their own story and their own motivation to be the winner of Masterchef India Season 3- Kitchen ke Superstar.

However, I am personally rooting for Khoku Patra and Ripu Daman, as they seem to be incredibly gifted. Khoku Patra, a Bengali from Dehli worked as a cook in many rich households in Dehli and unfortunately, is illiterate. Despite facing hardship, she has proven herself to be one of the most talented contestants amongst the chosen ones. Her dishes were acknowledged as one of the five best dishes in the first challenge, and that secured her a place in the top 12.  Her main motivations to win Masterchef are to get proper shelter for her and her family, and to educate her children as well.

Chefs with the best five dishes in the first challenge (from left to right): Ripu Daman, Ishrat Ali, Nisha Varma, Sachin Naik, and Khoku Patra.

On the other hand, Ripu Daman, a gym instructor from Dehli, has also proven himself to be a very capable chef. Like Khoku, he also secured his place in the top 12 as his dish was one of the top five in the first challenge. Judge Kunal Kapoor commented that “even at home in domestic Dehli, you were already thinking about global dishes”, emphasizing that Ripu’s aptitude is of an international level.

Masterchef India 3- Kitchen ke Superstar seems to be a very promising program and I am going to religiously watch this season. It is really one of those unpredictable shows which will compel you to sit at the edge of your seat, bite your nails, simply not knowing what’s going to happen next. So, tune in to Star Plus on weeknights to catch Masterchef India 3!

Image Courtesy : Starplus.in