Jitender Singh, the young chef at The Ashok (a flagship property of ITDC) has made food-art his medium of communication with the world and once again through this art he proved his skill set.In 14th edition of Culinary Art India on the sidelines of Aahar at Pragati Maidan, Chef Jitender carved out the face of IAF Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman on a watermelon as a tribute to his heroism. He was captured by Pakistan’s armed forces after his MiG-21 Bison was shot down in combat with opposing aircraft in Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (PoK). Pak government later released him.
He decided to pay a tribute to Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman while competing against four other chefs in the category of Fruit and Vegetable Carving at Culinary Art India. He deftly carved out Abhinandan’s distinct and ‘iconic’ moustache, on the watermelon, along with ‘Jai Hind’.
“What Abhinandan did for our country is beyond courage and bravery. Through this fruit carving, I wanted to pay a tribute to our brave pilot, our Army men and other defence forces. My carving is a mark of respect to our soldiers sacrifice, bravery and courage. Being a hotelier and a chef it’s not possible for me to go to the frontline but I can always contribute with the talent I have.
Through my carvings I wanted to depict Abhinandan’s bravery and pay homage to the bravery of our armed forces,” he said. Singh’s carving included a sketch of Wing Commander Abhinandan on Watermelon, Amar Jawan Jyoti on Pumpkin, MIG 21 on Yam and the highest honour for bravery, the Ashok Chakra on Honeydew Melon.