It’s been a funny couple of days for the London-based celebrity chef Vineet Bhatia. Earlier this week, it transpired that his social media pages were hacked as he shared cautionary messages with his friends, with screenshots of the imposter soliciting money using his name. But, India’s first Michelin-starred chef seems to have cleared up the mess and moved on. We caught up with him yesterday on the eve of his new innings in London, ‘Kama by Vineet’. “Our new home in London is at Harrods’s, an icon,” said the dapper chef. The venture looks to showcase Indian cuisine in all its dimensions. “Be it traditional dishes like butter chicken, lamb korma, lassis, the iconic samosa and other classics that people over the world now identify with Indian cuisine, to an evolved Indian interpretation that I have been cooking since 1993,” he says, adding, “So, my signature spice smoked honey mustard salmon is also featured in the menu offering here and so is sambaar podi, grilled prawns and Alaskan king crab tikki. Kama looks to use the best of British produce and we are working closely with local suppliers,” he says. As for his iconic location, the products will be available at the store’s deli counter for now and the restaurant will be opening next year in the store’s famous food hall, we are informed. “Harrods has an amazing footfall of tourists on a daily basis and there are many out there who still haven’t tasted a gulab jamun or a samosa. And when they do, I want to make sure it is the best!” he said. And with this, the re-entry of the chef, who helped create the modern Indian food phenomenon in London, after a bittersweet couple of months, which saw his eponymous flagship London restaurant shut down only a week after it won it’s Michelin star due to differences with his partners, is complete. Bhatia also shared that we would see him on TV soon. “The final Chef’s Table will air on Netflix on November 20 and I am honoured to represent Indian cuisine on a global platform in it.”
True Lies
The city’s tribe of culture vultures are certainly birds of a fine feather. And, with the past week featuring all manner of cultural extravaganzas, they have been rather spoilt for choice. No surprises then that we came across two cultural grande dames, who appeared to be rather overstretched and weary with the plethora of theatre, art shows, concerts, book launches, poetry and film festivals on current offer and were taking respite from it all in a coffee shop attached to a book store, the other day. “I managed to make it to the second anniversary celebration of the Royal Opera House,” said one. “But I had to miss the talk at the Alliance Franchise (sic),” she said, adding, “So sad, as I was really keen on attending it.”
“Oh, that’s a shame,” said her companion. “I wanted to attend the Franchise (sic) talk too, but could not.
“Oh no!” said her friend, “why couldn’t you?”
“Because I was seeing back-to-back films a day at the MIAMI (sic) film festival, that’s why,” replied her friend.
And, so it goes…
Separated at Birth?
Dizzy Times with Disney
Ever since Walt Disney’s $52.4 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox’s film and entertainment business made it the world’s most formidable media conglomerate, all eyes have been on how this will pan out on India shores. After all, in India, Fox’s Star TV platform, with its 50 broadcast channels across Hindi, English and regional languages, as well as its Hotstar, Fox Star Studios, DTH and TataSky comes with its own impressive footprint and influence. Which is why, last week, when Disney’s second-in-command Kevin Mayer visited India to oversee the merger of Star Network with his firm, it was said to resemble something of a royal tour and Mayer, who had been elevated a few months ago as chairman of the firm’s new Direct-to-Consumer and International business segment, was described by media insiders as “the most important man for media and entertainment in India” (a sobriquet previously held by James Mur- doch). Besides cond- ucting meetings at Four Seasons, he is said to have made courtesy calls to Reliance chairman Mukesh Ambani and Tata chairman N Chandrasekaran (which Star partners with on Tata Sky.) “From IPL rights to Hotstar, Hulu’s new boss is going to give a major challenge to Netflix. It’s a marriage of Lion King with cricket,” said a dizzy-eyed source, about Disney’s India plans. Incidentally, it was Mayer’s former colleague at Disney ABC, Keli Lee, managing director international content, platforms and talent, who had been instrumental in getting Priyanka Chopra her break with Quantico, and thus a foothold in international entertainment after a chance meeting with the star at a dinner.
First Published: Nov 02, 2018 00:57 IST