She bakes a tart,
Breaks a trite;
And while she swirls, delicately, a dollop of whipped cream on her souffle,
She gently whips away the cliché.
This is what goes inside the kitchenette of celebrity chef Sneha Singhi Upadhaya each day. The BBC Pastry Chef of the Year and The East India Young Restaurateur of the Year, with her flair for fondant, is on a quest to revolutionize flavors. “Food runs in my blood” Sneha tells us today but she has known this for almost two and a half decades now because a seven-year-old Sneha knew it was her fate to be a chef. While studying at Le Cordon Bleu Paris glazed her culinary genius, working at Pierre Herme, Paris, and Laduree, London was like a torch to her creme brulee. From baking on screen for her own show Bake diaries which aired on Food Food to dicing and icing with famous chefs like Sanjeev Kapoor, David Rocco, Pierre Herme, Sneha has risen to a stage of rare eminence today. Baker, menu designer, food counselor, and celebrity chef, Singhi has brought France on wheels to Kolkata with Paris cafe and Le Studios. And while Paris cafe ventures with spinach crepes, Fit Meals, macaroons, and eclairs, Sneha never lets monotony run its course, for a new, audacious menu is designed each fortnight. Sneha’s pastry perfection has been plauded by stars like Ranbir Kapoor, Alia Bhatt, Varun Dhawan, Katrina Kaif, and Hrithik Roshan, but she had her own red-carpet moment when she recently flooded the headlines as the Dabang Dulhan while chauffeuring beau, Saugat Upadhyay, straight up from the Vidai ceremony. Although French fare is her forte, her heart lies with fur and with the Italian no-fuss cooking and its subtle ingredients. “Pizzas are my friends and dogs are my life”, she tells us with a smile on her face. Paris cafe has won various awards for its delectable and exquisite menu and has already gained due recognition, all of which has lead to Sneha’s ultimate tour de force, but she has no plans of stopping anytime soon. Fueled by her passion and love for her profession Sneha leaves a word of advice for fellow dreamers out there and says “Just believe in yourself, even in the moment of doubt. You will make it, and you will make it big”
