Chef Manjit Gill

Managing Director-Eco Green Hospitality

His story is not a fancy one, but a great one! Chef Manjit Gill rose the ranks by pure merit and is today an inspiration for chefs the world over. He could very well be called the Indian Ambassador of the culinary world                
               

Text by Farzana Contractor

The Luminary Chef

There will be few in the world of food who may not have heard of Chef Manjit Gill. In spite of him not being in your face. You can’t, for example, call him a trailblazer, flashy and loud. The adage just doesn’t suit him, though he is not just that but far, far, more. What we mean is, here is a chef, who has in a dignified, slow and steady, staunch and strong manner, created a name for himself; which honestly defies the best of mundane adjectives.

Chef Manjit Gill is iconic. A luminary in the world of Indian gastronomy. A chef whose reputation precedes him wherever he goes. After all, we are talking about a career spanning almost five decades! Of a person who singularly dedicated himself to the task of putting traditional Indian food on the global map with unmatched passion.

So where did it all begin for Chef Manjit Gill? To be honest, there is no fancy story here. Just a simple one of a loving and concerned father sifting through various career options for his young and only son, who came along in 1950, after a string of four daughters and who was now on the threshold of his professional life. The father, Tara Singh, actually has his own dynamic story. He was captured and taken as Prisoner of War, not once but twice, during WWII. First by the Japanese and then the British, in Hong Kong and Singapore, to be eventually locked up in the prisons of The Red Fort in Delhi where he made friends with other notable prisoners, offering free legal services, the lawyer that he was. Post India’s independence on 15 Aug 1947, Tara Singh, an Amritsar man, joined the Ministry of Commerce and made Delhi his home.

“My father was a remarkable man. One in a million. It was thanks to him that I realised food could be an academic subject, too! I was pursuing my Bachelor of Science in New Delhi when he suggested I take up hotel management since he had learnt it had good prospects. My heart was actually set on joining the army, which my mother was against. So that did not happen,” says Chef Gill who prides himself on his knowledge and applicability of Physics, his favourite subject.

Destiny cannot be altered and young Manjit Gill soon found himself taking an entrance exam for the National Council for Hotel Management and Catering Technology. He cleared the exam in 1971 and was enrolled in the prestigious Institute of Hotel Management, Catering & Nutrition, Pusa (IHM), graduating from there in 1974.

It was when he was undergoing the course that Manjit Gill realised his strong desire was to work in the kitchen. “I never for a moment fancied working at the front desk or any other department, except the kitchen,” he says.

Well, thereafter, campus recruitment found Manjit being selected by The Oberoi School of Hotel Management as kitchen management trainee with a stipend of a princely sum of Rs 350 per month.

Once his three-year training was over, Manjit joined the hotel division of ITC, (then Indian Tobacco Company) in 1977, as sous chef. This is when the 5-star luxury hotel, Maurya Sheraton in New Delhi, had just opened. His starting salary was Rs.1250.

Here is when and where Chef Gill’s career begins. From this point there was no looking back. He applied himself to the task, honed his skills working under various international chefs and created waves.

To enhance his career he decided to do a summer course at the Ivy League, Cornell University, USA. While at Cornell, he studied Commercial Food Production Management, Food and Audit Control and Advanced Techniques in Food Production, which became pivotal in defining Manjit the Chef. This move certainly brightened his future even more. 

On his return, he rejoined Maurya Sheraton and worked with greater zeal. Cut to the chase, the powers that be recognised Manjit Gill’s sincerity and abilities and within eight years from being sous chef in 1977, he rose through the ranks and file and happily earned the title of Executive Chef in 1985. From then on, both Chef Manjit Gill and Sheraton Maurya were on a successful run. It was mutually beneficial. And the two were bonded, one could not think of one without the other.

From the end of the ‘80s, ITC’s Maurya Sheraton was viewed as a hotel which offered the best food. Restaurants which to this day remain successful. Bukhara being one which has attained iconic status and one where every visiting dignitary, political or royal, enjoys a meal. Chef Gill can certainly take a bow.

There has been much recognition that has come the chef’s way. In terms of the numerous awards, in terms of great praise from areas it matters most; those who have worked alongside him. Chef Gill’s style of working, his innovative approach and dedication to culinary excellence have made him a revered figure among his peers, as well as young and enthusiastic new entrants in the domain.

Currently, Chef Gill has his hands full not just serving as the President of the Indian Federation of Culinary Associations but also as Managing Director of Eco Green Hospitality – employing sustainable methods to hotel and resort operations that aim to minimise carbon footprints. Would that not be enough? Not for Chef Manjit Gill. He is now busy rustling up innovative recipes to bring out the versatility of soy sauce, as an Industry Advisor for Kikkoman India.

In conclusion, Chef Manjit Gill’s take is simple. “My philosophy on food and life are the same – both should be an experience of happiness, serenity and joyful living.”

UpperCrust blows the bugle for Chef Gill, picking him as the chef who made India proud in the world of food, in the 25 years of the magazine’s existence and 50 of his career.