When untrained cooks and not-so-successful restaurateurs try to change the tenets of cooking on Television, you are bound to watch every bit. But how do you react when the contestants, who were expected to impress us with their culinary skills, are least interested in whipping up meals and just concerned about chef Vikas Khanna's looks? You are mad at the makers, upset with the judges and you desperately look for the remote control to turn off the TV. That's precisely how we felt after watching the pilot episode of MasterChef India.
Agreed, reality TV covers virtually everything now - the talent hunts, game shows, cooking contests and just about everything that you can think of. But when emotional turning points, which are quite evidently included on the basis of what the makers want desperately from the contestants, are focused on you know how that is the only factor that will sell the show. So when Harman Singh Sawhney from Kuwait expressed his desire to be like the judges, we expected him to have worked as hard to convert his dream into reality. He prepared a dish which he had made for the first time and still managed to make an impression! Now, that's what you call luck! Even though he managed to win the MasterChef apron, those who have flair of food and craving to experiment wouldn't find winning judges approval for a dish he had never cooked before convincing. And yes, he did look a bit emotional while speaking to the judges. So now you know what helped him.
The show, which kicked off with a surprise selection, shocked the viewers with the desperate efforts of contestant Ashima Duggal to make it to the next round. Did she have the genuine talent? No. Was she driven by the dream to win the title? No. Did she just want to be a reality TV star? Yes. Her 'wow' factor? The way she approached judge Vikas Khanna! And most of the things she did were inane. Walking up to Vikas only to express her 'genuine' feelings, pulling faces, and announcing "Dil dil mei basein hain Vikas Khanna" in 'thaeth' Punjabi accent were just not needed. What helped Ashima win our hearts was the ease with which she accepted rejection from the show. Her expectations were simple, assumed the worst and hoped for the best. And that's why her encounter, even though it wasn't that successful, went smoothly.
Finally, we saw a genuine contestant Vijay Sharma who had a keen sense of taste and smell, was passionate about food. His desire to be perfect in everything he cooked and the determination to make it big with his participation in the show, could help him emerge winner.
Going by what we saw in the first episode, it is quite easy for the judges to get the best. The judges - are obviously not interested in how much the participants love cooking and food. They have heard that several times. All they looking for are the vegetarian dishes that are unique, luscious and simply the best.
The show hasn't set up a different narrative, the two changes it has incorporated are - new judge Ranveer Brar and making contestants prepare only vegetarian fare. Thankfully the 3 judges - Sanjeev Kapoor , Vikas and Ranveer have different styles, speak their mind. If you really have the patience to see the auditions, then watching the competition seems interesting.
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