Hunt for India’s First Food Photographer

Summary:

Participate for free In "India's First Food Photography Competition" and become First Food Photographer of India, win dine-in passes and opportunity to photograph at India’s Top Most Hotels, Cash Rs. 20K, Live Round at Delhi, Entry in Mega Kitchen of IRCTC & lots more....

Please Note: Totally free of cost, Anyone can upload multiple entries between 2 Mb - 5 Mb.

Description:

FPC is a contest to search for FIRST FOOD PHOTOGRAPHER OF INDIA. Food Photography Contest is one of its kind and is happening for the first time in India where we are hunting best food photographer who can blend the taste of food with its stunning decoration through his camera and style of imagery.

It is Online cum live round of photography contest where the participants are allowed to participate into the competition without paying any participating fees.

The online round will be conducted here and post online round, 5 selected winners from this city/ nearby city will get a chance to win dinner passes at respective state hotel. Now breaking the surprise for the winners, this is something which might excite all of them and that is when they get to know that they are going to get an opportunity to perform live at the respective hotels.

Get ready for the Mega news,

If you think that is all for the show, then hold your breathe because this can be a dream come true moment for the participants, 5 lucky winners from across India will also get a chance to celebrate dinner Mr. Montu Saini, Executive chef to President of India – Mr. Pranab Mukherjee and an opportunity never seen or heard before, selected winners will get a chance to click some cool and mouth slurping pictures inside the Mega Kitchen of IRCTC (India’s leading online railway ticket booking portal) and Taj SATS (India’s leading In-Flight Catering).

Last date to participate to the online round is 31st January, 2017. So photographers make yourself feel special and when you have the goal in front of you then why think about New year’s resolutions ;)

Judges:

Chef Ajay Chopra - Celebrity Chef, Consultant Chef , TV presenter , Restaurant professional

Chef Montu Saini - Executive chef to the President of India

Miss. Farzana Contractor - Editor & Photographer @ UpperCrust, (India's first and only food, wine and lifestyles magazine)

Nitin Tandom - Award winning Food Styling & Food Photography (Clients: ITC, Unilever, Cadbury, Pepsi, Amul etc)

Auditions Cities/ Hotel (Winner of respective state will win couple dinner & photography opportunity for Round 2)

Courtyard Marriott - Ahmedabad (Gujarat)
High Ultra Lounge - Bengaluru (Karnataka)
Lodi - The Garden Restaurant - Delhi
Cafe Mojo - Goa
Novotel – Hyderabad (Andhra Pradesh)
Lebua Resort – Jaipur (Rajasthan)
Swissotel – Kolkata (West Bengal)
Café Mojo – Mumbai (Maharashtra)

Rewards:

After Online Round: We will Select Top 5 participants from the city/ nearby city for free dining upto Rs. 5,000 and an opportunity to click exotic photograph at the India’s Top Most Hotels.

After Live Round: Winner of the competition from across India will be eligible for Cash prize of Rs. 20,000/- and will be known as First Food Photographer of India.

After Live Round: 5 photographers from across India will be eligible for free dinner with Mr. Montu Saini, Executive chef to President of India in Delhi.

After Live Round: Winner of the competition will be featured in Uppercrust Magazine.

Winning Criteria:

Online Round (Round 1): This is the first round of the competition where participant upload the photos clicked by them on our website and the winners will be selected on the basis of Online judges (60%) and number of votes received from public (40%).

Live Round (Round 2): We’ll select upto 5 best performers from the city/ nearby city from the Online Round and invite them for free dinner and Live photography at the restaurant and they have to click and submit their best 30 photographs each of that restaurant and food decoration. Based on the judges rating on photos clicked during the Live Round we’ll select the winner of the Round.

Mega Round (Round 3): This round is the final round of the competition where we will select Top 5 photographers from across India from all cities and they will have to perform Live inside the Mega Kitchen of IRCTC (India’s leading online railway ticket booking portal) and Taj SATS (India’s leading In-Flight Catering). Participants have to click and submit their best 30 photographs each of that restaurant and food decoration. Based on the judges rating on photos clicked during the Mega Round we’ll select the winner of the Round.

Live Round Details:

Live Round (Round 2): Top 5 participants from the city/ nearby city will be invited to dine for free at the restaurant upto Rs. 5,000. However Participants who were selected for Live round will have to come to the hotel by themselves.

Mega Round (Round 3): Top 5 cities from the across India will be invited to dine for free with Mr. Montu Saini, Executive chef to President of India in Delhi. However Participants who were selected for Live round will have to come to the hotel by themselves.

Read more about judges/ Terms & conditions at https://www.whatsurskill.com/active/contests

For any other queries, feel free to contact me (Mohit Jain) at +91 7667097350.

Get your home Festive ready with ‘Hit’ ways

It is the time of the year when the air smells of the upcoming festivity in Calcutta, the fragrance of the shiuli phool and the appearance of the kaash phool, all sing together that Puja is now very near. This is by far, the most awaited season as it brings along a string of festivals where everyone gets immersed right from the preparations to the festival celebrations. The entire city starts its preparations to get festive ready from shopping for new clothes and things for the house to planning out precise plans to spend the Puja with utmost fun and fervour. And after Puja’s where people are still enjoying the merrymaking during, the festival of lights, Diwali, follows soon which is another important festival where the entire house is cleaned well and ensured to be free from hiding insects.

Festivals in India have such a wonderful charm where everyone gets together to welcome it by ensuring that their surrounding s are spick and span. Cleanliness is given a lot of importance as it is believed that Gods and Goddesses visit only clean and well lit houses. Every household engages in dusting, cleaning, white washing and removing old and unwanted things. This serves as a beautiful excuse to maintain regular cleaning of all corners of the house and kitchen especially which is the favourite place for hidden cockroaches and other insects. The havoc caused by them can lead to upsetting spread of diseases like Food Poisoning, Typhoid, Cholera, Diarrhea, Dysentery and many stomach diseases.

Along with the other important preparations for Durga Puja, everyone focuses on maintaining hygiene in and around their house. Cleaning of the house and riddance from insects is of utmost importance. With the change in weather, cockroaches sneak out from their hiding and make their way into our homes, crawling in through the dirty drain pipes bringing in all the disease causing bacteria with them. They crawl on food and utensils and leave behind the germs that cause food poisoning. Cockroaches hide in hard to reach corners and thus escape from the regular cleaning products. The most easiest and sure shot way to get complete rid of them is Godrej LAL HIT, with its deep reach nozzle, it is able to get rid of the cockroaches hiding in your kitchen sink outlet, under the gas cylinder or under your fridge and around the dustbin. The unique deep reach nozzle is the only solution to get complete riddance from cockroaches. With the easy approach of using Godrej Lal Hit, you are rest assured that you can enjoy a safe, hygienic and happy Puja.

Welcome the season of festivity and enrich yourself in fun and fervour and a sense of relief that comes from regular usage of Godrej Lal Hit. Use it every month to enjoy your healthy, happy and hearty surroundings.

Wishing all our readers Happy Puja.

Read more on Godrej Lal Hit here : http://www.godrejhit.com/product-lal-hit.html

You can order the product from :

Amazon shop : http://www.amazon.in/HIT-Crawling-Insect-Killer-CIK/dp/B00XORDU9E/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1475222214&sr=8-2&keywords=hit

Big Basket shop

: http://www.bigbasket.com/pd/40007017/hit-kills-hidden-cockroaches-400-ml/

Disclaimer : This post has been written in association with Godrej Lal Hit

‘Raj Barir Khawa Dawa’ at the The Gateway Hotel, Kolkata

Kolkata, May 13, 2016: The Rajas or Nawabs were probably the original connoisseurs to wield major influence on Bengali society as well as their food. With their luxurious lifestyles, the rajas took immense interest not only in the foods they ate but also in the way food was prepared. Influenced by famous Rajbaris of West Bengal and in keeping with their culinary traditions, The Gateway Hotel, Kolkata, is set to celebrate “Raj Barir Khawa Dawa” from May 21^st onwards.

Historical trends have always influenced food. The influence of Rajbaris at the Raj Barir Khawa Dawa is evident from the different delicacies planned for festival. The “Gumo-aanch er mangsho” or meat cooked in slow fire by putting the dying charcoals on top, originated from Murshidabad, and is a classic example of food influenced by the “Dum Cooking”. Bardhaman’s Rajbari has influenced the “Lyangcha”, which is a deep fried sweetmeat dipped in sugar syrup.

The impact of the two centuries of British Rule (1757–1947) over Bengali cuisine can never be overstated. Sovabazar Rajbari, a regular place for evening hang-outs of the British Officials back then, was famous for its “Fish Roll” that had a western touch to it. The Fish Roll features prominently in the Raj Barir Khawa Dawa fest. As do to the Safed Ilish and Lal-Mangsher Pulao from the Cooch-Bihar Rajbari that has Rajasthan leanings.

The Gateway Hotel, Kolkata, will take you back in time as you savour these and other Rajbari delicacies from times gone by. The Raj Barir Khawa Dawa culinary extravaganza will be hosted at the Buzz for Lunch (12:30PM-3:30PM) and Dinner (7:30PM-11:30PM) from May 21, 2016onwards.

Pizza Fiesta at Taj Bengal, Kolkata

Kolkata, May 13, 2016: ‘Those pizzas I ate were for medicinal purposes’-Amy Neftzger. What excuses people come up with to just have pizza!

For the Pizza lovers in Kolkata, Taj Bengal brings a specially crafted Pizza menu to savor the flavors from world’s most coveted delicacies from 13th May to 22nd May 2016 at The Hub.

The ingredients for the Pizza and Calzone are handpicked and is traditionally cooked by expert hands. The best thing is that the Pizza’s you order are customizable according to one’s preference - you can choose the base, the bread, the sauce as well as the toppings. What could be even better when one can have their favourite Pizzas with a beer! During this period, Taj Bengal shall be offering one pint of beer with every pizza.

Taj Bengal Special Pizza Menu

Choose Your Base

Thin crust refined flour/ Thin crust whole wheat/ Thin crust multi grain

Choose Your Sauce

Classical tomato/ Basil pesto/ Bianca (cheese sauce)

Choose Your Toppings (any four)

Green peppers

Sliced onions

Tomato

Jalapeno

Olives

Coloured peppers

Grilled corn

Roasted garlic

Green chilli

Button mushroom

Sundried tomato

Sautéed spinach

Choose Your Premium Toppings (any two)

Veg:

Cajun Artichokes

Roasted purple potatoes

Peruvian Asparagus

Portobello mushroom

Hon shimeji mushroom

Shitake mushroom

Non-Veg:

Parma ham

Hickory smoked pulled pork

Teriyaki grilled chicken

Pepperoni

Smoked salmon

Grilled prawns

Squids

So, hurry up and come to Taj Bengal to savour your favourite Pizza!

About Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces

Established in 1901, Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces is one of Asia's largest and finest group of hotels, comprising 111 hotels in 64 locations across India with an additional 15 international hotels in the Maldives, Malaysia, UK, USA, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Africa and the Middle East. From world-renowned landmarks to modern business hotels, idyllic beach resorts to authentic Grand Palaces, each Taj hotel offers an unrivalled fusion of warm Indian hospitality, world-class service and modern luxury. For over a century, The Taj Mahal Palace, Mumbai, the iconic flagship has set a benchmark for fine living with exquisite refinement, inventiveness and warmth. Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces is part of the Tata Group, India's premier business house.

For further information, please contact:

Taposova RChowdhury | Taposova.RChowdhury@edelman.com | +91 9830712124

Sreyashi Sircar | sreyashi.sircar@edelman.com | +91 9830485013

Ritu Basu | ritu.basu@edelman.com | +91 8017044001

Mango Mania at Taj Bengal, Kolkata

Kolkata, May 12, 2016: The Best thing about summer is Mango. And in spite of the scorching heat in summers, this ‘King of fruits’ is being cherished by almost everybody.

To celebrate this mango fever, Taj Bengal introduces varieties of delicious mango dishes in all the different restaurants from 16^thMay to 24^th June 2016. The mouthwatering dessert includes Mango almond gateaux, Mango coconut delice, Mango cheese cake, Mango pound cake, Mango berry dome, Mango chocolate opera and many more.

In addition to this, they are also offering various other mango delights such as diced mango, mango desserts, mango juice, mango smoothie and mango lassi in various outlets.

So let’s beat the heat this summer by celebrating Mango Mania with Taj Bengal and make the season all the more yummilicious with mangoes!!

About Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces