Foodistan - Do believe the hype!Poppy Agha
For me, Foodistan began with the buzz of my telephone.
An unfamiliar number was blinking away, and I must confess I did not want to answer as I was just beginning to unwind at the end of the longest day ever.
I let it ring and ring, thinking that if it were a wrong number, they would give up, and if they were looking for me, they would call back.
That's what happens when you've been teaching four two-hour cooking classes in a row, and wrestled with many things going wrong. Not that I'm complaining. I do love my students.
Coming back to that fortuitous phone call - fortunately, they were persistent! Or rather she was - had it not been for Bani Kukreja at Big Synergy Productions, I would have missed one of the best experiences of my life! She called me back not once but four times before I answered the phone... And it changed my life forever.
From that moment on, everything was a whirlwind. Dates changed, tickets got booked, dates got changed again, excitement built, and if course so did nervousness.
What was the competition? How would it work itself into an entertainment show? Would I be any good? Who was going to be there? What if I were a disaster in the kitchen? A never-ending list of questions whirled in my head, and I'll let you in on a secret…I still haven't answered many of them. At least, not the ones to do with my performance. But I guess that's what an enriching, learning experience does for you.
The questions to do with the execution of the concept vanished within a day of my arrival in Delhi as I met some of the most talented people.
Not only did Big Synergy and the mastermind of the show, Siddharth Basu along with his wonderful wife, Rosa manage to work the competition into a show, they and their team have made it fly! I'm not going to say anymore for now, so you can see for yourself, bite your nails, sit on the edges of your seats…and so on!
Through it all, I'll keep writing in here, starting with my next post on the world of Foodistan -- hope to see you in your living rooms and here!
ABOUT THE ANCHORS
Ira Dubey Ira Dubey is the co-host on the show. An experienced
theatre artist, Ira has also acted in Bollywood films like Aisha. Ira is a self-professed
foodie and she brings in her love for all things tasty to the cooking arena, where
she interacts with the chefs as they compete to seduce the judges with their culinary
creations. The chefs may love her for her constant encouragement and support, but
she always gets them nervous and anxious when she reveals the final scores at the
end of every episode.
Aly Khan Aly Khan is our host and food commentator. Besides acting
in many film, television and theatre productions, including the recent hit Don 2
and the Hollywood production A Mighty Heart, Aly is also a discerning foodie. He
is well acquainted with food from all over the country and across the border as
he has lived in Mumbai, Karachi and London. He guides the audience through the chaos
in the kitchen, and reveals the ingredients, which will be the game changer in this
competition. His interactions with the chefs and the judges during the tasting,
add more tadka and flavour to the kitchen drama.
