Hansal Mehta, the director of the then popular cookery show 'Khana Khazana' revealed the inspiring story of chef Sajeev Kapoor. Hansal Mehta revealed how the channel declined to take Sanjeev Kapoor as the host.
Famous host, chef
Sanjeev Kapoor, who got stardom through his first Khana Khazana, had never expected to be famous in the Indian cooking industry in the 1990s and 2000s.
In his recent interview, Hansal stated, “The channel had just started and I went in. I wrote a proposal, a flow chart actually, about what the show will be like. I thought I was so cool. Within three weeks, the channel gave me a cheque, saying ‘Yes, you make the show’. The start was phenomenal. You almost feel like ‘F*ck, you’ve arrived.' I got a show based on food! Both things together.”
Hansal further added how he met Sanjeev in a hotel. “I would go to the hotel, looking for chefs who would look presentable. I went to Centaur, now Tulip Star Banquet Hall. I asked the manager. He presented his four chefs like it was my swayamvar. ‘Choose the one you like,' he said. So we're all having coffee and another guy in a chef coat arrives. He tells me that I should let him know if he needs anything, ‘my name is Sanjeev Kapoor'. He was not invited by the FnB manager.”
Hansal reported that after going back home, he called up Sanjeev and asked him to meet for the shoot. Hansal added, after he had started shooting with Sanjeev, the channel rejected him. “Nahi, nahi (no, no) we want a woman. Housewives want someone relatable, a woman cooking, not a man,” said Hansal sharing the channel's initial reaction.
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