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India does not have a version of the Michelin Guide so a private investor is enlisting the help of chef Gaggan Anand to create their own restaurant ranking system for the subcontinent.
Sameer Sain, co-founder and CEO of Everstone Group, has founded Culinary Culture, a platform that aims to provide authoritative rankings for restaurants and chefs through 'Foodstars' the Indian equivalent of Michelin stars.
Sain is joined in the venture by food writer Vir Sanghvi and two Michelin star-chef Gaggan Anand and the Culinary Culture platform will publish its first Indian guide in April.
There have long been calls for the Michelin Guide to begin activity in India, with its vastly rich and ancient food culture remaining somewhat under-represented on the global stage of fine dining. The calls fell on deaf ears to date so this is an effort to fill the gap created by the red guide’s absence.
"This has not been created to get viewers nor get TRP. It is more to have fun, experiment and be a learning curve to unify India,” said Vir Sanghvi, at an event to announce the guide.
“We don't need Michelin Guide in India. Understand the fact that you have to pay the guide a million dollars to come review your city or country.
"There will be star ratings across restaurants in 15 Indian cities picked by an academy of 50 anonymous jury members. We will also have food referees to double-check the restaurants," added Sanghvi.
With street food such an integral part of the culinary landscape in India, Culinary Culture will also create a platform to celebrate street food vendors across the subcontinent.
