Recipe for romance

Voice of India Debojit Saha writes about his “sins” in this exclusive column for The Telegraph...

So far I have written only about music, my first love.

Now, I want to share a secret, about the “sin” I love to indulge in again and again.

Any guesses?

Okay! Let me not stretch the suspense anymore.

It is my love for food, all kinds of food, be it traditional Bengali hilsa curry or Chinese chowmein or Italian pizzas.

Name any food and I am game for it. In fact, I am known as “petu” (foodie) among my friends and family members.

But although I love to eat, before I shifted to Mumbai with my wife Vandana, I had never tried my hand at cooking.

There, along with honing my skills in music, I learnt the art of cooking.

Actually, during our initial days in Mumbai, Vandana used to keep very long hours and hardly had any time to cook.

So, I decided to don the apron to help Vandana.

Soon I began to enjoy the process — chopping, marinating, mixing, frying.

Cooking is fun. Like music, it has its own high and low octaves. Add and mix the ingredients and don’t forget that dash of love. Voila! your masterpiece dish is ready.

Now I can cook a wide range of delicacies.

I love to experiment with food. I try out all sorts of dishes with the help of recipe books which I collect from different parts of the country. I now have a good collection of cook books.

I am not claiming to be a chef extraordinaire like the ones who whip up exotic dishes on TV. But I love to cook for my near and dear ones.

I delight in rustling up surprise dinners for Vandana. Sharing and enjoying a good meal with your beloved has its own romance. And Vandana just adores my cooking.

So, I would like to suggest that all men, married or engaged, should occasionally cook for their beloved ones. The result is always great.

This Valentine’s Day, pick up the ladle for your beloved and see the magic work.