How Zorawar Kalra became a champion of modern Indian food?

Ekatmata Sharma

December 13, 2019
6 min read
Farzi Cafe Jiggs Kalra Leaders of India Punjab Grill Zorawar Kalra

Famed restaurateur ZORAWAR KALRA is not only successfully carrying forward his legendary father Jiggs Kalra’s culinary legacy but also creating one for himself. EKATMATA SHARMA talks to him about his flavoursome journey and vision

Waiting sometimes is constructive. It helps us comprehend the place and its essence, often missed in a fast-paced life. So, while I am educating myself at the wine library of Pa Pa Ya restaurant, waiting to meet the man behind it all, I recall beautiful lines written by George Bernard Shaw in Man and Superman, “There is no sincerer love than the love of food.” Once a man truly falls in this kind of love, his life becomes endlessly delicious (and successful). On a busy weekday afternoon, the restaurant is buzzing with kitty party chatter and suave business lunches.

Simply dressed in corporate attire, Zorawar Kalra enters with a calm persona, greets the guests and walks towards me. “Hi, I hope I haven’t made you wait for long,” asks Zorawar, as I nod by saying, “Not at all. This French wine is giving me great company.” He pauses, and gently pulls out a chair for me. I believe foodies are always the best people. While he requests for a mocktail for himself, he puts in a few suggestions, and simultaneously enquiries for the chef, technician and an electrician in one go. “The air conditioner isn’t cooling enough as the kitchen exhaust needs to be checked. There are issues every day. The life of a restaurateur is very hard. Restaurants have got the highest failure rate in the world. Around 90 per cent of the restaurants shut down in the first year and over 95 per cent in the second year. So, there is nearly five per cent chance, that’s a very slim margin. There are lot of travails and tribulations. Being rational and scientific has kept us going. This combination is rare where you think like an artist and also behave like a scientist. For every big step you take, there are one thousand reasons to not do it. There is only one good reason to go ahead,” shares the passionate restaurateur sipping his orange mocktail. His vigor, takes me back to the time I met his legendary father Jiggs Kalra at the launch of Punjab Grill in Delhi. Zorawar’s passion was quite evident even when he walked alongside his father like a shadow. Today, he is giving befitting ode to his father with each of his success.

After completing his MBA from Bentley University, the turning point in his life came when he pledged to change the game of Indian cuisine. “When I went to El Bulli, Spain in 2006, I realised molecular gastronomy is the future. I realised if Indian food wants to become a global super power it needs to be modernised. That’s when the seed was planted. In 2013, I opened my first restaurant, those six years of trial and error, resulted in Punjab Grill,” he elatedly tells, sitting in the confines of Select City Walk Mall, where he had set off with his first restaurant.

While he worked hard to position Indian food globally in his own capacity, he says he was very positive about his dream, “My vision was very simple, to put Indian cuisine on the global palate permanently, to make people realise the sophistication of the culinary depth and the sheer power of Indian food. Till today it remains my primary crusade. I have just touched the tip of the iceberg. Farzi Café in Dubai is breaking all records. There are other new restaurants opening overseas soon. I am going to take Indian food in a modern avatar all across the world,” says the confident Kalra, who is running with a breakneck speed of growth from 2013 to 2019. He is opening restaurants all over the Middle East, Europe and all over India in major cities.

With new outlets, also comes the challenge of innovating and experimenting while making the dishes upside down till they reach the table. He agrees, “True, for every dish that succeeds, there are about 10 that did not make it. If there 150 dishes on the menu, 1500 dishes are prepared. The ratio is 1/10.” While he passionately takes interest in tasting sessions, astoundingly, cooking is not Zorawar’s cup of tea. “I never had the inclination for cooking. I preferred to be a guy who runs the orchestra rather than a musician. And if not a restaurateur, I would be a race car driver. My father never pushed me into the restaurant business, as he thought it’s too difficult and stressful. He was a very supporting father. Somehow, he wanted me to be a marine biologist,” delves Zorawar into the endearing relationship with his father.

Close to his heart are the enriching childhood memories with his father that any child would wish. He reminisces quality time spent with him. “He gave me good work ethics, sense of responsibility and moral values. I have amazing memories of travelling around the world with him and tasting the best food. He gave that palate to me. He would make omelets for us on Sundays. He used to collect fresh oregano, herbs, best cheese and meats. I haven’t had an omelet like that in my life. He was away from home for long travels, so he would spend quality time with us at home. He pampered us, but we were disciplined.”

The legacy lives on today with Zorawar achieving milestones one after the other. “I get inspired from the food that I have grown-up eating, from my travels, exotic flavours and mundane things. The looks of bewilderment on my customer’s faces, puts a smile on my face and lets me keep experimenting. It’s like a drug to me,” signs off Zorawar, as we wish him luck for his future endeavors.