Tickling taste buds: BIT-Mesra in Ranchi

As many as 80 students of BIT-Mesra will cook up a storm, in true Awadhi style, for three days.

The students of second, third and fourth years of the cradle’s hotel management and catering technology department will don the chef’s cap and rustle up delicacies during a food festival, Sham-E-Awadh, from October 4 to 6.

The students will work in the department’s state-of-the-art kitchen to prepare authentic Awadhi dishes like awadhi dum chicken and mutton biryani, yakhni biryani, dum aloo awadhi, succulent kebabs et al. They have done extensive research to not only master the Awadhi style of cooking, but also gather knowledge about ingredients that can be used to impart the authentic flavour to each dish.

Dinner will be served in buffet style from 6pm till 9pm. The pocket pinch is an affordable Rs 200 per person. The department will also invite special guests like dignitaries from city hotels, BIT students and teachers to taste the preparations.

“Every year, we organise a food festival on various themes so that our students get some hands-on experience. Our aim is also to groom them for the hospitality industry, where they will be ultimately absorbed,” Sitesh P. Srivastava, head of the department of hotel management and catering technology.

He pointed out that many students were assigned to cook in hotels’ kitchen after they bagged jobs during placement. “Until and unless, they get practical exposure, they will be unable to perform well,” he added.

Srivastava also said that their food festival would be different from those organised at city hotels on a regular basis. “Our students carried out extensive research to find out the finer nuances about Awadhi cuisine before taking the plunge as they are not trained chefs like the ones we find in hotels,” he added.

Faculty member of the department Gautam Shandilya, under whom the students worked round the clock for the festival, said: “We are also trying our best to rope in best singers from the music club of our institute for jazzing up the occasion. This will be one of the most celebrated events of our department.”

As for decor and costumes, the boys will wear bandhgala kurta-pyjama while girls will sport anarkali suits.

If preparations are in full swing, so are the students’ enthusiasm.

“Watch out, we will be at our best,” said Jayshree Choudhary, a final-year student.

Established in 2003, the department offers a four-year (eight semester) bachelor’s degree programme in hotel management and catering technology. Apart from laying stress on academics, the department also provides exposure to students by involving them in food festivals, projects and study tour.