Ranveer Brar and Kunal Kapur say MasterChef India elevated home cooking by giving it respect and visibility. Brar credits the show for shaping today’s food media ecosystem, while Kapoor calls it a powerful learning platform. Brar also shared his interest in acting, and Kapoor expressed openness to films
A still from MasterChef India
Celebrity chefs Ranveer Brar and Kunal Kapur, who joined Vikas Khanna as judges on MasterChef India season 9, believe the popular cooking reality show has played a major role in elevating everyday cooking and giving home chefs long-overdue respect and recognition.
Ranveer Brar talks about his experience
Speaking about the show’s impact, Ranveer Brar highlighted how cooking at home was once largely overlooked. “Pre-MasterChef, if you were cooking at home, you weren't respected or recognised for it. I think that the beacon of respect and recognition to everyday cooking came through MasterChef,” he said. According to Brar, the show transformed home cooking into something far more significant. “It catapulted into something bigger, like bringing an entire industry together, the whole food media ecosystem, whether it is smaller channels doing stronger food media or food media on social media,” he added.
Brar further pointed out how deeply the show is woven into today’s food content landscape. “A lot of food creators, I'd say 50 per cent of them would be associated with MasterChef in some form. It's given recognition and respect to the home kitchen,” he said.
Kunal Kapur on returning with MasterChef India
For Kunal Kapur, MasterChef India represents a vast learning platform that goes far beyond traditional culinary education. “The moment the doors of MasterChef India opened, you found that there is so much more beyond what you were taught in a culinary college or in your hotels, that the knowledge is right out there, and one didn't have to travel, the knowledge is coming to you,” he shared.
Kapur also spoke about how the show sparks curiosity and deeper exploration of food cultures. “So, you had this curiosity of getting to understand what has come in front of you, the food, the people, the style of cooking, and then go back home and keep researching more, travel to that place, understand it a little more better, whether it's a custom, a certain food, which is driven by a certain festival or harvest,” he said.
Apart from his culinary journey and YouTube channel, Ranveer Brar has also ventured into acting, which he says helps him express himself better. “These are the two acting gigs that I've done, Ma Kaasam has been shot and Such Is Life is mostly going to be shot in the US starting spring. The idea is to do one or two projects every year as it allows me to express myself even better and have a clearer head. Acting clears my head, makes me a better chef as well, and I absolutely enjoy it,” Brar said.
When asked about exploring cinema, Kunal Kapur said he is open to the idea. “I'm somebody who likes to watch movies. I'm a little particular about which movie I watch; I wait for reviews, I wait who's the actor, director, what kind of story it is and everything.” He added with a smile, “I'm super keen to work in movies… I'm super open, I'm putting it out there in the universe, why not?”
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