If the world recognises and celebrates the rich variety of Indian cuisines, much of the credit goes to Jiggs Kalra, as J Inder Singh Kalra is known the world over. And again, if eating out and seeking new places and concepts has caught on in a big way with urban Indians, then it is Kalra who may be given credit.
For it’s his columns in the Times of India and Illustrated Weekly of India in the early 1970s – among the first of the genre in the Indian press – that created serious interest and fed awareness in the area. Later, Kalra began to work as a consultant with five stars, working with the top chefs of the time. That experience led to Prashad – Cooking with Indian Masters, a book of recipes culled from the finest chefs of the country, says Kalra in the introduction, written to refute the impression most Indians had of them as mere ‘bawarchis’.
(Ad for a wine-paired drunch at Masala Library; (Right) Zorawar Kalra, a judge on the competitive cooking show Masterchef India)
It was during this time, also, that he worked to develop several concept restaurants – the most popular and enduring being Dum Pukht at the ITC hotels, which purported to ‘revive’ the royal culinary traditions, primarily of Avadh, where food was slow cooked in sealed pots for long periods. It’s now a commonplace of Indian food, it’s Kalra, along with the hotel’s legendary chef Imtiaz Qureshi, who created the buzz first. Similarly, the galauti kabab, a staple of most meat platters, today is also said to have been popularised by Kalra.
Kalra was also the first to anchor a culinary show on Indian television – Daawat on Doordarshan and Zaike Ka Safar on Zee – besides conceiving of/curating gastronomic extravaganzas for royalty (Prince Charles and Diana, being the most foremost) and elected leaders (Bill Clinton, et al).
To the young generation of today, of course, Kalra’s name is recognisable by the many restaurants that his son Zorawar has opened and runs – Punjab Grill by Jiggs Kalra (the business was sold in 2011), Masala Library, Farzi Cafe, and Pa Pa Ya, among others. From fine dining to quick format to smart casual, these eateries encompass a range of formats, but retain one common trait – to expand the appeal of Indian cuisine among all sections and by every means, be it going back to the cooking techniques of yore, or using new age ones like molecular gastronomy.
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 "Jiggs and Zorawar Kalra")
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