TCB: How did you start your cooking career?
Chef: I started my career at Lal Qila restaurant. Then Chef Farah Jahanzeb, who is no longer in this world, took me to TV One channel. There, I got to see how you can get money and fame by working on television.
TCB: You are a radio presenter as well. How does that mesh with your career as a Chef?
Chef: I have been working in the tv industry for a long time. I worked with PTV for four years, then I did some morning shows as well. And then I did my own TV shows, but radio has its own charm. The way people love and enjoy hearing your voice is something I really love.
TCB: What kind of food inspires you?
Chef: I love Italian food a lot. I enjoy eating pasta but I love biryani and tikka in desi food.
TCB: What are your future plans?
Chef: I always did what made me happy. I cooked whenever I felt like it, and then I did radio when I felt like it. I am someone who lives in the present and hopes that everything will work out in the future.
TCB: Which song or music do you listen to when cooking?
Chef: I like all kinds of music. A. R. Rehman and Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan are my favorites.
TCB: Among the chefs from Pakistan and all over the world, which one is your absolute favorite?
Chef: I liked Zubaida Apa a lot. The age at which she started teaching cooking is when others usually give up. And among international chefs, Gordon Ramsay is my favorite.
TCB: As an RJ, what are the things do you like to talk about the most? Chef: In every show, I mostly try to talk about things that can help people. But a lot of people are hopeless and sad which is why they like to listen to stuff about love and friendship.
TCB: Do you think it is true that taste is in the hands of who cooks or in the recipe itself?
Chef: The taste is in the hands of the one who cooks. If I cook something it would taste different than when another chef makes the same thing. But the taste that is in a mother’s hands.
Rapid Fire:
TCB: What would you make if these celebrities came to your house: Imran Khan?
Chef: Biryani.
TCB: Sheikh Rasheed?
Chef: Boneless tikka.
TCB: Who is your female celebrity crush?
Chef: Oprah Winfrey.
TCB: Sweet or sour?
Chef: Sour.
TCB: Favorite singer?
Chef: A R Rehman.
TCB: Which celebrity would you like to go on a dinner with?
Chef: Neelum Muneer because she’s one of my best friends.
TCB: Bilawal Bhutto?
Chef: Chinioti Kunna.
TCB: Tea or coffee?
Chef: Coffee.
TCB: Restaurant or dhaba?
Chef: Restaurant.
TCB: Favorite food?
Chef: Alfredo pasta.
TCB: Favorite restaurant?
Chef: Lal Qila.
TCB: Who would you like to cook for by yourself?
Chef: Shoaib Akhtar.
