Diwali Banquet 2012

On Sunday 18th November, the Diwali Banquet returned for a third exciting year. This gala dinner united 6 of the country's top Indian (and this year Mauritian!) chefs, who prepared a one-of-a-kind meal for our lucky guests, raising more than £34,000 for Action Against Hunger's international work. As part of our Love Food Give Food appeal, these funds can be Aid matched by the UK Government, enabling us to reach even more children, families and communities with emergency support and long term sustainable solutions to hunger.

This year's chefs were Vivek Singh and Abdul Yaseen of the Cinnamon Club and Kitchen, Sriram Aylur of Michelin starred Quilon this year's Masterchef winner, Shelina Permalloo, Head Chef at Benares Sameer Taneja and food writer and broadcaster Anjum Anand.

From the first time Sriram stepped into his father’s kitchen, it was the beginning of a long quest for passion and knowledge of food. “I remember being fascinated by the smell and aromas which used to come from the kitchen – it was my first love”.
 
Sriram started his culinary studies in 1984, and by 1989 had joined the luxury hotel group Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces, becoming executive chef at Gateway Hotel Bangalore. By 1997, the Telegraph ranked him one of the top 5 chefs in India. In 1999, Sriram opened the Quilon Restaurant in Westminster which achieved a Michelin Star in 2008.
 
His vision about the food – like everything else in the world – is progressive. Progression is logical in this world and true with everything. Therefore, the Quilon’s menu is an amalgamation of Ethnic and Progressive dishes for example – Black Cod, Asparagus and Mange Tout and Lobster butter pepper.

After being crowned the winner of MasterChef 2012 Shelina Permalloo has been catapulted into the culinary world.  She wowed the audience and the judges with her creative Mauritian dishes, and is now embarking on her career combining her talent and passion as an up and coming chef.

Born in Southampton to her Mauritian parents, Shelina learned her skills and knowledge of Mauritian cooking from spending time in the kitchen with her mother and aunt.  She also used her cooking as a way of making herself feel closer to her culture and heritage, having never lived in Mauritius herself.  Along with this she was able to take some fundamental advice from her Italian husband, whom she met in 2007, about the art of European cooking, which is also reflected in her favourite dishes today.

Shelina lives in London with her husband, and has already received considerable interest from the TV and publishing world.

Sameer is Head Chef at Benares, where, as Atul Kochhar's right hand man, he serves Michelin starred modern Indian cuisine with a contemporary British twist.

Sameer has extensive experience in preparing both Indian and European cuisine, having started his career with a Taj Group apprenticeship in Mangalore. He then worked at the prestigious Oberoi Rajvilas in Jaipur, before moving to the UK in 2003 to develop his career further.

Sameer has worked at such notable establishments as the 3 Michelin starred Waterside Inn, Restaurant One-o-One, Brasserie Joël and Koffmann's, learning from notable culinary figures including Alain Roux and Pierre Koffmann. Sameer started in his role at Benares in April 2012.  

Anjum Anand is regarded as the queen of healthy, contemporary Indian cookery. Her first six-part prime-time BBC2 series Indian Food Made Easy aired in 2007 to a fanfare of positive publicity. Anjum was described as ‘the Indian Nigella’ and a wonderful advocate for simple, colourful, low-fat Indian food. She has written a number of successful cookbooks published by Quadrille Publishing, including her first television tie-in book, Indian Food Made Easy (2007), which remained in the bestseller list for eight weeks and has sold more than 275,000 copies. Anjum was voted Personality of the Year at the 2009 British Curry Awards and her first book Indian Every Day was published by Headline in 2003 and remains an Indian cookery ‘must have’. Anjum’s latest book, Anjum's Indian Vegetarian Feast, will be published by Quadrille in September 2012 and available for £19.99.

In spring 2011, Anjum and her husband, Adarsh Sethia, launched a new range of authentic and traditional Indian sauces called The Spice Tailor, which are currently sold throughout the UK in Waitrose stores. Anjum lives with Adarsh and their children, Mahi and Aditey, in North London but travels regularly to visit her family in India.

Far removed from the world of cooking, Abdul Yaseen was born into a family committed to working the railways. Abdul went from his first job at The Park group of hotels to the prestigious, Oberoi-owned Rajvilas hotel in Jaipur: it was here he met now-Cinnamon Club executive chef and CEO Vivek Singh. Landing a job with Vivek as he launched The Cinnamon Club in 2001, Abdul worked his way up to become a key member of the 20-strong team.

After seven years, Vivek threw open the doors to Cinnamon Kitchen and Anise – a more casual sister restaurant – announcing Abdul as its head chef. It is here that Abdul was tasked with championing modern Indian cuisine in the City. Always developing and reinterpreting dishes from the sub-continent, the menu at Cinnamon Kitchen is testament to Abdul’s bold experimentation and fearless innovation, and his menu is praised by critics and customers alike. Abdul has won Cinnamon Kitchen a host of accolades, and with an appearance on BBC2’s The Hairy Bikers’ Christmas Party last year, Abdul’s profile is deservedly on the rise.