Anthony Bourdain was my hero, says Vikas Khanna

Reminscing about his time with Anthony Bourdain, Masterchef Vikas  Khanna says, “I’m so heartbroken. Anthony  was my hero. I looked up to him and was privileged to have  bonded with him. I had first met him when I was doing a tasting menu with mangoes at my midtown restaurant  Purnima. I did not get a chance to talk to him then. The second time we met  I cooked for him at the Rubin Museum. When he was hosting CNN’s Parts Unknown in India, he wanted me to travel to Punjab with him and show him my hometown.

“I could not travel to India at that time. But I was so happy that he started loving Indian food and asked me for recipes which were eventually used on the show. There are many pressures on  a chef’s life that could have  killed Anthony. There is a lot of drug usage, time management issues, small spaces to cook in, fire hazards, customer service issues, etc. People only see the food on the table, not the  fire in the kitchen. I have seen individuals of  great skill go down in a jiffy. I idolised Anthony. I can’t believe he’s gone.”