MasterChef India

 Does this topic even need introduction. The Title’s pretty much self explanatory. I mean I grew up watching it ( although now really understanding every nuance). It is  my and mom’s favourite show although it seems to be slowly slipping from her favourites’ list. I suspect my demands to make exquisite dishes at home has something to do with it! Can you blame me though? Why eat Kichdi when you have some mouthwatering, hard to pronounce dish in front of you! Especially when show's timing coincides with my dinner timing.😓

I honestly thought I wouldn’t be able to watch this season what with the board exams and all, but fortunately, I was able to keep up,  albeit missing a few episodes. Let’s start with the judges. My mom is a big fan of Chef Ranveer’s recipes from biryanis to dal makhni, everything is made by referring to his recipes. Chef Vikas became a household name through MasterChef while i really didn’t know much about chef Garima. But, like she is so cool though, one glance and you get boss lady vibes😎.

This season was…a bit different from the other seasons at least from my perspective . First, because this was the first season where i somewhat understood what in the world of going on in the whirlwind of masalas and plates. Seriously, in the seasons before lockdown,  the only thing I used to understand was that they were making some dishes and placing it in front of three people. I was honestly puzzled because that’s precisely what mom does at home! Then why were they being broadcasted on national television and not us? 😅

One thing that caught my eye the most was the makeup. I know I know you are probably thinking that the show is about cooking, not cosmetics. But I am an impatient teenager who has no interest in seeing people chopping vegetables. So obviously my gaze got diverted to the judges’ makeup more than once. They were literally shining in half the episodes with the amount of compact applied. They are already famous, they don’t need the makeup, at least not like a whole compact bottle per episode!

Moving on to the contestants, my faves were definitely Nayanjoti and Suvarna and Priyanka. The best thing about Nayan was that he was so chill out.  He never threw shade at other contestants and was always like ‘I mind my own business’. I am a sucker for desserts so it makes sense for me to instantly fangirl over Priyanka. I was honestly ready to write a whole damn complaint letter to SONY when she was eliminated. Imagine a person as lazy as me was ready to do so. My mom was shooketh!. She said that if I was feeling that energetic I could try and clean my room! And that was my cue to end the convo.

Now coming to Suvarna. She was the contestant I connected with the most. Like literally the woman went through so many black apron challenges and still the smile on her face and her confidence is just chefs kiss. I read this somewhere and I just had to add it ‘I want someone to love me like Suvarna loves her thecha’😂😂. This is sooo true. Credits to the original writer. But I did feel that some of the contestants were way overhyped and besides the top3 who are really deserving, some others definitely came a long way due to bias. You already know who they are so not gonna name them. There were some others who I felt should have remained a tad bit longer like Avinash Patnaik seemed a really good chef. He should have definitely stayed on longer.

And oh, how can I miss out Baa! She was just sooo sweet and cute and I just want to squish her cheeks! She showed that age doesn’t ever limit us. She definitely inspired my Nani a lot who we roped in for watching few episodes.. With Nani's cooking, I get the job of a taste tester. It’s all good with mithai and some savoury items but not with different types of dishes to get me to eat laukey (bottle guard). 😒

One thing I really need to add is that I don’t understand how they are even able to judge with how little amount they actually taste. Seriously in such a tiny bite, more air than food. And I love the presentation of the various dishes and sympathise with the contestants as they  present the dish so beautifully and with such great effort all for it to be spoiled in a jiffy during tasting. Of course, the judges do need to taste the dish but i have decided that if I ever prepare such a beautiful dish, no one will be getting 2 miles near it!

I really loved how challenging the dishes were throughout the season. It definitely kept me  hooked. A big applause because they managed to interest a 15 year old  who doesn’t even know how to hold a knife properly. And by impatient, I mean really impatient. But they weren’t really dishes I would order in a restaurant. Talking about dishes, I just have to talk about Santa’s starter in the grand finale. She cooked the chicken through bamboo and presented it in bamboo. The creativity! She definitely understood the challenge and every grain on the dish screamed Assam!

So stay tuned for the finale and readers, aap kahin mat Jana, agla blog padhane jaroor aana! If you watched this season of MasterChef do comment about your favourite contestants. Logging off-your favourite blogger!