Sonjoy Shill, appraised by family and relatives for his outstanding cooking expertise, turned his necessity into passion, soon to be profession. For him, it was tough to manage quality food while staying in a mass during graduation; so he started to learn basic cooking. Eventually he found this impetuous act as passion. The question is to pursue or not to pursue the profession of a chef? Though all the appraisals are there, those same people oppose the idea of being a chef. But Sonjoy Shill is yet to let his passion go. Receiving the YES card, in Bogra round of Rupchanda – The Daily Star Super Chef 2015, bears testimony to his devotion to culinary art.
Each of the participants has a unique reason to be there, give it their all and triumph over the title of Super Chef 2015. There are here to justify their reasons, share their story, win the heart of the judges with their cooking skill and bring about mouthwatering new dishes and recipe for all. Political turmoil, restless situation or unfavorable weather made no difference to them!
The nation’s biggest cooking festival, Rupchanda – The Daily Star Super Chef 2015, has kicked off early January 2015. The first season, Super Chef 2014 has already claimed the position of the biggest and most popular cooking show of the country. This year all the records of previous will be broken, as Rupchanda – The Daily Star Super Chef 2015 will be bigger, better and full of enthralling twist and mysteries.
All the regional rounds have surpassed last year in number and quality. The selection process of the central round participants from the regional rounds was fierce. Pre- registered participants had to be present at the venue and then sit for a written text with 50 questions based on knowledge needed for the journey up ahead comprising the area of basic ingredients, presentation, cuisine and nutrition etc. The participants qualified in the written test were to take part in the cook-off round where they had to cook dishes within 30 minutes and present those in front of the judges. The participants were given Tk. 500 to purchase their required ingredients within one hour. This year there was no restriction on the numbers to be selected, rather all the deserving chefs were to get yes card from the judges for their extraordinary culinary talent.
The regional round started off at Jessore on January 30, 2015 setting the benchmark for this year’s standard. There was huge response from the participants ignoring all the obstacles. Participants came from various locations like Shatkhira, Kushtia, Sayadpur etc. The participants were not only housewives but also advocate, news reporter, chef, student, women activist, social worker, business man, college drop-out and many more different kinds of job holders. From 106 diversified participants 21 were selected for cook-off round through written test. Finally seven remarkable chefs were selected for central round to compete with the finalist from other regional rounds. Tanima Shahid a housewife from Khulna said “I have been cooking for 18 years now, but mostly for family and functions. But I want to see if my cooking skill is up-to-the Super Chef standards.”
In Bogra round, the hype continued to the expected level. 21 contestants among 100 sat for written got the chance to present their prepared dished before the judges, Mila Monjusha, Consultant of Spice Department of a reputed company and Israt Jahan, proprietor of Sukorna: a cooking school. As per Israt, “Just mesmerizing! I’m really astonished to see how talented they all are. Young one’s might lack experience but enriched with new ideas. As a fan of culinary art, I don’t think there would be any better place to enjoy such diverse cooking magic.” The eight selected finalists are Nilufar Yasmin, Sanjoy Shill, Jerin Khan, Mehbuba Begum, Kawsara Begum, Nadim Sarker, Rahela Begum and Bimasha Ahmed.
The cook-off in Mymensingh took place at Shohag Party Center on February 07, 2015. The food loving participants of this region came fully prepared. Participants came from Mymensing, Netrokona, Gazipur, Sylhet and many more side locations. The expert judges Anwara Alam and Mahbuba Khan singled out three best cuisines of DR. Abdullah Al bari, an Associate Professor and two college students, Sabrina Khan and Zahidul islam. “Cannot believe I’m selected! This will be a great experience and leaning opportunity for me. I’m really excited about the next rounds.”Zahidul exclaimed.
Chittagong took the competition to another new level. In Chittagong round, 162 participants stormed the venue, Anamika Community Centers. Seven contestant from 21 written qualified ones received yes card from the judges. Nelima Das, a beautician, created a very innovative dessert with fruits and eggs within 30 minutes. Her dedication for cooking is commendable and was acknowledged by the judges. One of the judges Rawshan Ara Begum shared, “The number of participants is really encouraging. I’m glad to see that many people are taking cooking as a passion as well as art. About the participants, they are marvelous chefs. If they continue what they are doing now, each of them will be a Super Chef future.”
The regional rounds ended with a Bang in Dhaka. Breaking all the records of participation in Super Chef, over 800 people made it to the audition at Gulshan Shooting Club. After the written test, 60 participants managed to enter the cook-off round beating others by margin. Syed Tazammul Huq Tareq, head chef of Watercress Hotel, and culinary expert Shaheda Yesmin were the judges of the Dhaka auditions. Impressing such experts with cooking art of 30 minutes was not an easy task. Finally, 35 people managed to get “Yes” cards and made it to the final. These 35 selected participants will compete with the winners of other regional rounds.
Now it’s time to take the culinary war to a whole new level. The elimination rounds will be aired soon in NTV. Variety and innovation will be at topnotch, judgment will be more rigid and competition will be the toughest ever. Judges panel will be adorned by Mrs. Shaheda Yesmin, founder, Jewel’s Kitchen, Mr. Syed Tazammul Huq Tareq, Executive Chef, Watercress Restaurant and famous actor Mr. Tarik Anam Khan.
Addition of international judges to the local ones will add new spicy flavor to the show. The judges coming from abroad are not only world famous, they are amongst the best in their field. Emma Dean, the Master Chef Australia season 5 winner, Fredrik Insisienmay, French Chef, Consultant and Culinary Expert, Be your Guest, Thailand and Gerard Wallace, Executive Chef, Bellagio will perform as guest judges in Super Chef 2015.
All the things will happen that has never happened in any cooking show in Bangladesh before, not even in Super Chef 2014. In the central round, the finalists of regional rounds have to prepare all kind of dishes to prove their versatility as a Super Chef. The participants will learn tips and tricks about coking in the Super Chef Class. Elimination rounds will have a lot of twist and turns. Team cooking will overlap the individual cooking ability, mystery box will unfold cooking mystery, instant learn and cook will cook the contestants, and there are many more to unveil. The show will be aired on NTV on Sunday and Monday at 9:00 pm starting from……… Let’s see if the contestants prepared enough to take on the challenges to be the Super Chef 2015!
By Iftekharul Dastagir
