Gaurav Sharma & Romi Purkayastha

The Radio One jockey goes by the name Sharma G while his better half, food personality, simply goes by Romi. Together, the fun-loving couple are a riot! Over a Mediterranean meal, they come undone

Text & Photographs: Farzana Contractor

Location: Rue du Liban, Mumbai

One of you represents all things food, the other is a boss in the world of entertainment, how have you found a balance?

Gaurav: Since music is the food of love, we just play on!

Romi: Also, there is love of food, a passion that we both share…

 

Yes, I believe you are out there dining and wining, most nights.

R: Goes with the premise, since my job is that of a food blogger.

G: And I am the plus one on the invitation!

R: But yes, we are out at least four times a week, if not more! We love going out, meeting people.

 

But Saturday is your Sunday, that’s your stay-at-home day, right?

G: Absolutely! We totally chill at home on that day. Romi cooks and I eat. Believe me, she is an excellent cook.

 

Really? How come Romi? And what do you cook?

R: Well, I am a Bengali, born in Assam, grew up in Calcutta, so that’s my favourite cuisine. I can cook a mean Kosha Mangsho! And tomato chutney. I first experimented in the kitchen when I was four. My dadima would give me dough balls to play with, make figures with, and I would go ahead and make real chappatis instead! The kitchen is my zen space.

 

Has travel honed your culinary skills?

R: Oh absolutely. It has influenced my cooking immensely.

G: Like we once ate a clam chowder in San Francisco which Romi started to make  at home and trust me, it’s the best in the world!

R: Thanks darling, that’s sweet of you.

G: She also makes the most amazing injera. She picked that up in her student days in Melbourne when she worked in an Ethiopian restaurant.

R: Including at the Crown Casino, where I was waitressing in the bar and learnt by default, to make the most amazing cocktails!

Ashmit Patel shares his food mantra

And you Gaurav, cooking a hidden talent of yours?

R: Oh no, don’t even ask him that! He can’t even boil water, and never entered a kitchen until we were married in 2004! But COVID times did teach him how to wash dishes, though.

Shame, shame, everyone ought to know how to cook!

G: But I do a good job at eating. I have excellent taste buds, seriously! Besides, I am a sous chef under Romi, I grate, squeeze, sprinkle, toss up things. I don’t handle a knife or go anywhere near a burner, but I am an expert with the microwave.

 

Okay, we can deal with that. Now tell me, what does travel mean to you?

R: Everything. We thrive on travel.

G: We love a good cruise and we love safaris.

 

Your best destinations, so far?

G: Has to be San Francisco, Marche, Bruges, Venice and Bermuda.

 

Bermuda, how come?

G: We do like to go offbeat. And Bermuda, if you check on Google, will have you expanding and expanding the screen multiple times to finally arrive at the island, it’s that obscure!

R: It was so much fun, we went beach-hopping only to find we were the only visitors!

 

What’s on your bucket list now?

R: Machu Picchu!

G: And the far east, Japan!

 

Romi, you work from your home office; you blog, are active on social media, post interesting stuff on food, chefs, menus, you make reels, how is it going for you?

R: Keeps me busy for sure. But I love my weekly radio show on Fever. It’s called Songs that Make you Hungry. So the song has to have a food element in its name, that I then expound upon. Like, if I play The Beatles’ Strawberry Fields Forever, I will talk about all things strawberries, including perhaps how to make a strawberry cheesecake!

 

Gaurav, you have been part of the music industry for over two decades, what gives?

G: Apart from good food, I eat, drink, and sleep music. It’s in my blood. I have my job cut out. I couldn’t be happier. And with a better half as talented, I couldn’t ask for more.

 

Tell me more…

G: Well, it’s been a journey from being a radio jockey to Chief Programming Digital Officer at HT Media which has four brands; Radio 1, Fever, Nasha and Punjabi Fever. I have also been instrumental at launching Star’s Radio City and TOI’s Planet M, under Arun Arora, my mentor. It’s been a great run.

 

A Bombay boy, theatre has also been part of your repertoire…

G: Yup. The route was Campion, Jai Hind, NM College (for MBA). Lintas, and then lots of theatre; SOS, Legend of Ram, Wizard of Oz, Blame it on Yashraj… As a child my parents always flaunted me for my singing and elocution prowess!

R: Even now he sings really well. And BTW he hosts a daily show at 9 pm on Radio One, called Nightshift, where he talks about nostalgia, stuff from the ‘70s, ‘80s and ‘90s.

 

I love the synchrony between you two. In conclusion, tell me about GNR.

G: Synchrony, that’s what GNR is about. Stands for Gaurav and Romi.

R: We do this Insta Live thing, GNR Canyon Brunch, every Sunday morning. We find a good place to chill at, to taste the food, talk about, shoot, make a nice reel. It’s fun and keeps us going and the adrenaline flowing...