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There are so many ways to describe Jiggs Kalra, though none quite completely define him. The Czar of Indian Cuisine, renowned chef food show host, restaurateur, columnist; whatever role you admired him the most for, it had to have food in the foreground. Flavour simply followed.
At 72, the man who introduced Indian cuisine to India itself breathed his last on Tuesday. The food fraternity mourns in unison. “I used to call him the Flavour Supremo. When it came to food, Jiggs Kalra was a veritable Tsunami of talent. The body had weakened with the onslaught of a stroke but a mere ‘khaney ka charcha’ would energise him instantly. His eyes would light up like Christmas candles as he held animated discussions about foods, spices and traditional techniques,” Chandigarh- based Master Chef finalist Kandla Nijhowne recalls how he truly loved and lived food and touched the lives of several through good food. “His repertoire stretched across the arc and nothing gave him more pleasure than to toss and simmer a dish to supreme perfection. Farewell, dear stalwart of the culinary world. You’ve walked away too soon. My shelf, laden with your priceless work shall live on, and you with this treasure chest full of food gyaan.”
At the time when Western foods and fusion cooking were ever threatening to take over the authentic, he can’t be credited enough for reintroducing age-old delicacies like galouti kebabs and putting good-old India back on the culinary map. Chef Pankaj Bhadouria, host of Kifayti Kitchen, recalls how Daawat was the first of its kind cookery show and the one she was hooked to. “It’s not just that his cook-book Daawat was among the first cook books I ever bought for myself. Very importantly, he introduced Indian cuisine to India itself. Digging out gems and making North Indians aware of South Indian food and vice versa. But most importantly, he brought acceptance to cooking as an art form and initiated the philosophy that food is an art, nothing less.”
Chef Harpal Singh Sokhi, host, Turban Tadka, shares his grief over the news, “We have lost a legend who was the pioneer in promoting Indian cuisine on the world map,” while recalling memories of having worked with the legend once. “I have strong memories of working with him. My father would actually keep all the cuttings of his newspaper articles and would hand them over to me whenever I visited my hometown. I still have all of those treasures on Indian cuisine. We will miss him.”
Do you know
- Popularly known as Jiggs Kalra, the czar of Indian cuisine, not many know his original name was Jaspal Inder Singh Kalra.
- He had served some of the most prominent personalities in the world like Princess Diana and Prince Charles, Bill Clinton among several others.
- While everyone is aware of him being a food consultant, food show host, cook author etc, not many know he started his career as a journalist.
Celebrity tweet
Hansal Mehta
RIP Jiggs Kalra. Thank you for introducing me to Indian food and it’s treasure of recipes. All your books adorn my bookshelf and the masala and oil on each page is testimony to how your recipes have shaped my passion for cooking. ???
