Aditya Raghavan. Pic/Pradeep Dhivar

"We've been planning to collaborate on making cheese together," says chef Manu Chandra as he smiles and greets Aditya Raghavan at Brooke Bond Taj Mahal Tea House in Bandra. Raghavan was a physicist before he decided he would rather make cheese. He now consults with farms and cheese businesses across India, while also foraging for local ingredients and hosting pop-up meals under The Danda Food Project at his Mumbai home. Cheese is on Chandra's mind because until he launches the Mumbai outpost of his restaurant Toast & Tonic this year, he is busy building a glass structure near his Bengaluru restaurant, one that he says will be a greenhouse "with a section for cheese."