Vikas Khanna

Vikas Khanna

Chef Vikas Khanna
Born (1971-11-14) November 14, 1971
Amritsar, India
Education Welcomgroup Graduate School of Hotel Administration

Culinary career

Cooking style Indian cuisine

Vikas Khanna (born November 14, 1971) is an award winning Michelin starred Indian chef, restaurateur, and cookbook writer, filmmaker, humanitarian and the judge of MasterChef India Season 2, 3, 4, 5 and Masterchef Junior.[1] He is based in New York City. In 2011, People magazine named Khanna in the list of Sexiest Men Alive and also referred to him as "The Hottest Chef of America"[2]

Early life and education

Khanna was born in Amritsar, India to Davinder and Bindu Khanna.[3] He was born with misaligned feet and wasn't able to run until he was 13. He was inspired by his grandmother who loved to cook, and her kitchen became a part of his foundational training.[4] He has an elder brother, Nishant Khanna, and a younger sister, Radhika Khanna.

Khanna began developing recipes at a very young age and opened Lawrence Gardens Banquets to host weddings and family functions when he was 17.[5] He graduated from the Welcomgroup Graduate School of Hotel Administration from Manipal in 1991,[6] and established SAANCH, a cultural festival gala, to bring together various foods and traditions from different parts of India. This festival has been an important event in the college's calendar.

Career

He has worked for the Taj, Oberoi, Welcomgroup, and Leela Group of Hotels and with some of the most influential chefs of the world including Gordon Ramsay, Bobby Flay, Jean-Georges Vongerichten.

He has also studied at Cornell University, Culinary Institute of America, and New York University. He also appears in Marquis Who's Who in America 2012 edition.[7]

Junoon

Khanna started a restaurant on Dec 2nd, 2010, in Flatiron district of Manhattan, New York, called Junoon. On March 29, 2011, Khanna's restaurant Junoon received a favourable review from Sam Sifton in The New York Times.[8]
Junoon has been awarded a Michelin star by the Michelin Guide for 6 consecutive years since 2011.

Television shows

In 2011, Vikas hosted the TV Show MasterChef India (season 2),[9] an Indian competitive cooking game show based on the original British version of MasterChef, telecast on Star Plus. He has also hosted the third season, MasterChef India (season 3) , the fourth season, MasterChef India (season 4) and the fifth season which is currently being aired.

In September 2007, Vikas Khanna was featured as the consultant chef on the Gordon Ramsay TV show on Fox. On October 13, 2009, Khanna appeared as a judge and Indian-cuisine specialist on the two-part season finale of Hell's Kitchen. On June 23, 2010, Khanna appeared on Throwdown! with Bobby Flay as a judge. Vikas Khanna was guest chef in the episode "The India Show" on The Martha Stewart Show telecast on March 4, 2011.[10] On June 23, 2014, Vikas Khanna appeared on MasterChef Australia as a guest judge.[11]

Holy Kitchens

Khanna's Holy Kitchens[12] film series explores the food sharing traditions in a spiritual context. The first film in the series True Business[13] is based on the Sikh community kitchens, known as Langars, with an introduction by Deepak Chopra. The film premiered at the Sikh International Film Festival[14] in October 2010. Other films in the Holy Kitchens series are based upon the food traditions of Hinduism, Islam, Buddhism, Christianity, Zoroastrianism and Judaism. Karma to Nirvana,[15] the second installment in the Holy Kitchens documentary series premiered at the New York Indian Film Festival in the US, on May 7, 2011.[16] In March 2012, "Moon of Eid"[17] the third film in the Holy Kitchens Series was released at Harvard University[18]

Philanthropy

Khanna is a Democrat and a supporter of US President Barack Obama. On May 14, 2012, Vikas cooked for a fundraiser hosted for President Obama at the Rubin Museum of Art in New York City[19] In September 2009 Khanna bought a house across from the United Nations Headquarters in New York City.

Sakiv

Khanna launched the foundation "South Asian Kid's Infinite Vision" (SAKIV)[20] to focus on worldwide issues that demand urgent action such as Tsunami Relief, Hurricanes of the Gulf Coast, Haiti. In collaboration with charitable institutions, such as Save the Children, the foundation has hosted many events worldwide - from The Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt to the Taj Mahal in India.[21][22]

“Cooking for Life" was founded by Khanna in 2001 in New York with the world’s top chefs.[23] In years the foundations has supported relief efforts around the world including 9/11, Tsunami Relief, Hurricanes of the Gulf Coast, South Asian Earth Quakes, Darfur, and Haiti.

Vision of Palate is his award-winning[24] workshop developed to educate people with visual disabilities about the sense of taste, flavor and aromas.

Smile Foundation

Khanna is the goodwill ambassador for Smile Foundation and supports the cause of malnutrition in India. [25] He has pledged to raise 1 million US dollars for the same.

Personal life

Khanna is single. In an interview with Hindustan Times he said that he looks forward to having a family one day, but nothing as of now.[26] He is a contributor to Deepak Chopra's Intent[27] and The Huffington Post.[28]

Bibliography

Awards

He was featured on the cover of Men's Health India Magazine - October 2012.[33]

Recognition

He was voted "New York's Hottest Chef"[35] in a poll conducted by the New York Eater blog.

On July 29, 2011, Khanna hosted dinner for the Hindu American Seva Charities Conference held at the White House organized by Anju Bhargava, who is a member of President Barack Obama's Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships.[36]

Khanna was featured in the Top Sexy and Successful list of Anokhi Magazine in their 5th Anniversary Issue.[37] Metro New York featured Khanna as Hottest Chef Around.[38] In November 2011, Vikas was featured in the list of Sexiest Man Alive by People Magazine.

Khanna has received acclaim for his cooking style from the James Beard Foundation,[39] and received the "Access to Freedom Award"[40] in 2005 from SATH, and The Shining Star Award from "Just One Break, Inc."[41]

He has also received a proclamation from the New York City Council[42] for his outstanding contribution to the city, and was chosen "New Yorker of the Week" by NY1.[43]

His book Return to the Rivers[44] was nominated for the 2014 James Beard Foundation Award [45]

Vikas Khanna has also been featured in Online Food and Wine Magazine PioneerChef.com [46]

Recently the chef is named as the brand ambassador of Gadre Marine Exports.[47][48]

See also

References

  1. http://starplus.startv.in/characters.aspx?sid=126
  2. http://eater.com/archives/2012/10/04/is-vikas-khanna-the-worlds-hottest-chef-abs-point-to-yes.php
  3. http://www.thehindu.com/features/metroplus/a-chef-traces-his-spice-root/article6101442.ece?homepage=true
  4. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on June 13, 2008. Retrieved October 9, 2011.
  5. http://blogs.villagevoice.com/forkintheroad/2010/10/post_65.php
  6. http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-karnataka/article2862408.ece
  7. https://cgi.marquiswhoswho.com/OnDemand/Default.aspx?last_name=khanna&first_name=vikas
  8. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/30/dining/reviews/30rest.html/?_r=1/
  9. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on November 7, 2014. Retrieved September 10, 2011.
  10. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on March 7, 2011. Retrieved March 5, 2011.
  11. http://tenplay.com.au/channel-ten/masterchef/episodes
  12. Holy Kitchens
  13. True Business Archived September 19, 2010, at the Wayback Machine.
  14. SIKH INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL 2010: FEATURE Vikas Khanna’s Holy Kitchens - True Business
  15. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on April 24, 2011. Retrieved May 13, 2011. K
  16. http://www.iaac.us/NYIFF2011/HolyKitchens.htm
  17. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on April 24, 2012. Retrieved May 27, 2012.
  18. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on June 6, 2012. Retrieved May 27, 2012.
  19. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on January 11, 2014. Retrieved May 24, 2012.
  20. SAKIV
  21. http://www.sakiv.org/SoulofTaj.html
  22. http://www.sakiv.org/PastEvents.html
  23. http://www.sakiv.org/Chefs.html
  24. http://www.vkhanna.com/documents/job.pdf
  25. http://www.smilefoundationindia.org/cookforsmile/
  26. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on October 26, 2014. Retrieved October 9, 2011.
  27. http://intentblog.com/?s=vikas+khanna&submit.x=0&submit.y=0
  28. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/vikas-khanna
  29. http://www.michelintravel.com/what-is-bib-gourmand/new-york-city-2012-starred-restaurants/
  30. http://www.michelintravel.com/michelin-selection/new-york-city-2013/
  31. http://www.michelintravel.com/michelin-selection/new-york-city-2014/
  32. http://www.gqindia.com/index.php?q=node/3684
  33. http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/chef-vikas-khanna-features-on-mens-health-magazine-cover/1/223317.html
  34. http://www.starchefs.com/cook/features/editors_dish/rising_stars/2011/new-york/
  35. http://ny.eater.com/archives/2011/02/junoons_vikas_khanna_is_new_yorks_hottest_chef.php/
  36. The Economic Times: Vikas Khanna: Man behind Junoon, the famous Manhattan eatery with over three months wait list. December 1, 2013. Accessed February 12, 2015
  37. http://www.vkhanna.com/AnokhiMagazineSexyandSuccessful2008.htm
  38. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on August 9, 2011. Retrieved March 5, 2011.
  39. http://www.vkhanna.com/Awards.html
  40. http://www.rollingrains.com/archives/000805.html/
  41. http://www.vkhanna.com/documents/job.pdf
  42. http://www.vkhanna.com/Awards.html
  43. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on May 15, 2012. Retrieved May 27, 2012.
  44. http://www.amazon.com/Return-Rivers-Vikas-Khanna/dp/1891105531
  45. http://www.jamesbeard.org/blog/complete-2014-jbf-award-nominees
  46. http://www.pioneerchef.com/2014/02/01/vikas-khanna-the-gourmet-charmer/
  47. "Gadre Marine Export signs chef Vikas Khanna as brand ambassador". Financial Express. Financial Express. November 6, 2015. Retrieved 24 December 2015.
  48. "Gadre Marine names chef Vikas Khanna as brand ambassador". Economic Times. Economic Times. Nov 19, 2015. Retrieved 24 December 2015.

Vikas Khanna - Guide for Making Healthy Food!

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