Meet the 12 talented finalist of Young Chef Young Waiter and Young Mixologist India

PUNE, India, July 21, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Young Chef Young Waiter and Young Mixologist India and Ajeenkya DY Patil University proudly announces the India finalists for inaugural year. Launched in January 2024, YYY India will hold its first competition this July. YYY India provides an incredible opportunity for emerging talents to showcase their skills on a global platform.

This prestigious event is set to take place at Taj Lands End Hotel Mumbai, July 29th, 2024, celebrating the rich heritage and culture of India. This competition supports the future of hospitality and nurtures young careers, the competition promotes local cuisines and businesses, highlighting India’s hospitality industry.

YYY India’s mission is to identify the most outstanding young talent in our industry and successfully retain their careers within it. This prestigious event aims to recognise, celebrate, and support the best young chefs, waiters, and mixologists in the hospitality industry, motivating and inspiring them to build successful careers.

YYY India is open to all young hospitality professionals aged 28 years old or under from any background and promises to showcase the brightest talents in the industry. The finalists have been meticulously selected by an esteemed judging panel, from a list of entries from the online application platform. Applicants had to answer a series of questions as well as submitting a video of themselves.

The Young Chef finalists are:

• Labdhi Chheda, The Corinthians Club and Resort
• Nimit Chouhan, Hyatt regency Delhi
• Alap Kurundkar, IHCL SeleQtions Blue Diamond
• Utkarsh Kumar, Hyatt place Gurugram

The Young Waiter Finalists are:

• R Paresh Singh
• Bhairavi Nirbhavane, Thyme and whisk restaurant
• Pragati Shaw, The Park hotel, Kolkata
• Harshada Kulkarni, The Ritz Carlton – Pune

The Young Mixologist Finalists are:

• Dev Mehra, Massive Restaurants Pvt Ltd
• Anamika Datta, The Corinthians Resort & Club Pune
• Yash Dangle, Mag st.
• Nikhil Kamalapure, Pune Blue Diamond hotel

The Judges for Online Process (L – R ) are: 

• Mario Perera, Executive Chef at The Dorchester
• Atul Kochhar, Ched and Restaurateur
• Cyrus Todiwala, Chef Owner of Café Spice Namaste

During the India finals, the panel of Judges will select one chef, one waiter, and one mixologist after they participate in a series of challenges, who will be titled YYY India Champions 2024. Following their triumph, the India winners will head to Singapore for the World Young Chef Young Waiter and Young Mixologist World Finals, where they will proudly represent India. They will compete against regional winners from 11 other countries. The winning Young Chef, Waiter and Mixologist team will receive a grand prize of $15,000.

Young Chef Young Waiter was established in 1979 and only operated in England for 42 years. Over the past years, the competition has expanded around the world and is now in its 45^th year and 3^rd year going global. As we continue to grow, these competitions will offer even greater opportunities for young talents in the culinary and hospitality industries, fostering international collaboration and providing an enriching platform for skill development and professional advancement.

Young Chef Young Waiter and Young Mixologist India are proudly supported by The Federation of Hotel & Restaurant Association of India and National Restaurant Association of India.

Quotations:

Robert Walton MBE, YYY Chairman said: “”As Chairman of the event, I am thrilled to witness the evolution of our competition, nurturing, and showcasing the passion, skills, and dedication of the next generation of hospitality professionals. This year I am looking forward to the YYY India competition and it’s taking place for the first time, and I wish all the talented finalist the best of luck.”

Taruna Maheshwari, CEO, Ajeenkya DY Patil Group, said: “As we eagerly anticipate the upcoming competition for Young Chef, Young Waiter, and Mixologist India, we are thrilled to witness the passion and innovation that each participant brings to the table. This event not only showcases the talent and dedication of aspiring culinary and hospitality professionals but also highlights our commitment to fostering excellence in the industry. At Ajeenkya DY Patil Group, we believe in empowering the next generation of chefs, waiters, and mixologists through platforms that encourage creativity and skill development. We look forward to celebrating their achievements and inspiring future leaders in hospitality.”

Andy Downton, Founder of Burnt Chocolate Constancy and YYY Competition director said: “I am really excited for the upcoming YYY India final 2024, I can’t wait to see what great talents we unearth this year, the standard seems to improve every year and it gets harder each year to crown the winners, this year we have included a few new challenges which will add further excitement to the competition, it’s going to be a very exciting final, so watch this space.

We  openly encourage anyone to enter, all entries have the opportunity to develop in areas such as personal growth, skill development, education & networking whilst also receiving exposure, recognition, motivation, inspiration, mentoring & heighten future career opportunities.

I’m extremely proud of being involved in WorldYYY as it allows me to give back to the industry that I love, it allows me to teach, support, guide & nurture the next…