Chef Gaggan Anand wants to bring equality to the table. What does that mean for fine dining?

There is palpable tension in the air. Gaggan Anand, the ‘bad boy’ of Indian haute cuisine, is in town to host an exclusive pop-up. Born in Kolkata to Punjabi parents, Gaggan was once called “the most famous Indian chef in the world” by The New York Times. His restaurants in Bangkok include the eponymous Gaggan, a progressive Indian restaurant, Ms. Maria & Mr. Singh, and Gaggan at Louis Vuitton, a collaboration between him and the fashion house. With these bad times and COVID hitting us, I lost everything,” he says, adding with a cheeky grin, “So now I have the fire back.” The two-day pop-up was part of JW Marriott Bengaluru Golfshire’s Royal Homecoming series in which they plan to invite international Indian chefs.