An Event To Remember | FBAI Dialogues | A Sunday Well Spent

Sunday. One word that conjures up images of singing angels and dancing cherubs for us Mumbaikars. Because sunday is when we sleep. Till noon. Hoping that it would take care of those deep rooted dark circles (failing miserably but nonetheless trying!) and also,maybe,ahem,meeting Leonardo di Caprio in dreams where he proposes to marry me with a diamond ring ethically sourced from a conflict-free zone... 

So imagine leaving all this behind and waking up early on a Sunday morning. But of course that's what we do when FBAI invites us to FBAI Dialogues at J W Marriott Juhu, a day long foodie fest of sorts. A melange of who's who of Indian culinary scene- from chefs and restaurateurs to bloggers and critics. An array of intellectually stimulating discussions on current and evolving trends in the food and beverages industry. I am almost out of all big words from my thesaurus, so here is a glimpse of the scintillating schedule that awaited us on this beautiful Sunday. 

Thanks to FBAI for designing and fabulously organizing this smooth event and a huge admiration filled hug for the good folks at J W Marriott along with Vikhroli Cuchina, Soulflower and California Walnuts who ensured that all of us attendees were well-fed with some delicious & healthy grab, surrounded by sweet pot-pourri at all times and basically pampered like a baby throughout the day :)

Now having seen the schedule details already, you have seen the stalwarts who spoke on so many varied topics. If I go into details of each session, it would probably fill up a 500-page book (do notice how I am trolling myself for being verbose :P) Suffice to say,this day was designed to be a little nuclear bomb of food-related knowledge, with little nuggets of wisdom spread throughout. 

When Kunal Vijaykar and Vicky Ratnani share their views on upcoming food trends or when Rushina explains her love for Indian ingredients, when a discussion on modern baking trends makes everyone salivate or when Ranveer Brar talks about cultural sensitivity when it comes to food, what can a mere mortal like us do but take it all in and hope that about 10% of it is retained by our monkey brain at least (also note to self: Ranveer Brar can replace Leonardo anytime in my dreams) :D

Some of my personal favorite moments from the day-long extravaganza include-

• Saransh Goila, of the #GoilaButterChicken fame, revealing he comes from a pure vegetarian family and the way his relatives are both shocked and pleased with his booming chicken business 

• Nitin Tandon's succinct session on Food Photography & Styling, a comprehensive guide on taking care of color,lighting,mood and crafting a story with each photo!

• Varun Inamdar expanding the horizons of our creativity, talking about using ingredients such as Chikoo, Monkey Fruit, Sesame Seeds and Kashmiri Kahwa in chocolates & more (For those who might have caught me drooling like a buffoon, he is the one responsible, #JustSaying)

• Chef Ajay Chopra sharing his long and harsh yet oh-so-worthwhile journey from a cook to a Masterchef. Enough said.

Finally, the session that I related to the most, the first one that started the day on Ethics of Blogging. The need of the hour for every blogger to do fact-checking and research on different recipes and ingredients before calling oneself a critic/reviewer, the ability to learn from mistakes + rectify them, the disappointing trend of hankering for more 'likes' on social media, the acknowledgment of one's personal background and preferences coming to fore when blogging about food and the crucial part about being honest with one's blog readers by telling them upfront about sponsored posts or reviews one were invited for, oh these are the topics all us bloggers think about daily and this session brought all these (& more) points together in a compelling way. 

Needless to say,none of us wanted the day to end but all good things must come to an end sometime. FBAI is perhaps the only platform of its kind for anyone interested in food in India (blogger,chef,home chef et al) and FBAI Dialogues shall remain a much-awaited event in all foodies' calendars for years to come. 

Arrivederci FBAI Dialogues :)

All Photos Credit : Loud Frames Photography (check out all pictures here!)