Biography

Award-winning cookery writer, Mridula Baljekar is the best-selling author of many Indian cookery books, including the Low Fat Indian Vegetarian Cooking, Fat Free Indian Cooking and Real Fast Indian Food. She was born and raised in North East India and when she moved to England she turned her childhood passion for cooking into a highly successful career.

When Mridula moved to England, she qualified as a PA and worked for a Director of a Merchant bank in the heart of London’s financial institution. Mridula soon turned her attention to the subject she has always been passionate about and began teaching Indian cookery at the local Adult Education Institute. Her students were delighted with her recipes and encouraged her to write her own book. The result was ‘THE COMPLETE INDIAN COOKBOOK‘which sold nearly a million copies worldwide.

Mridula wrote many best-selling cookery books since then and her latest, GREAT INDIAN FEASTS, published in 2005 was voted the ‘Best Asian Cuisine Cookbook in the World’ by Gourmand World Cookbook Awards in May 2006. It also won ‘Cookery Book of the Year’ in the same year.

Mridula’s food is described in the media as ‘Heaven on Earth for the senses’, ‘Route to spice heaven’, and ‘traditional Indian cuisine with a brilliant modern twist’. Mridula’s food attracted the attention of politicians and celebrities alike. She catered to a garden party in No. 10 Downing Street and a private dinner party for Jerry Hall.

Forthcoming Books

Mridula has been commissioned by Anness Publishing to write two books on Regional Indian Cooking. The first volume will concentrate on regional classics and the second on classic vegetarian cooking from the sub-continent.

Mridula on Television

Mridula presented her own series ‘Mridula’s Indian Kitchen’ and the highly acclaimed ‘Spice Trail’ on Carlton Food Network. She has also appeared on Channel 4 (Gloria's Open House), BBC2 ( The Heaven and Earth Show) and Sky one. In India she appeared on the most mopular channel NDTV and also Door Darshan.

Mridula on Radio

She is regularly invited to present cookery shows on regional and national radio stations such as LBC Radio, BBC Southern Counties, BBC Berkshire, BBC Birmingham and the Food Programme on Radio 4.

Mridula's Restaurant Venture

She owned a contemporary Indian restaurant in Windsor, Berkshire, England, which won several prestigious awards (winner at the Best in Britain Awards 2002-2006). Mridula has now sold her award-winning restaurant in order to concentrate on her writing and media career. As well as running highly successful cookery classes, she is also developing a range of chutneys and ready meals which she hopes to put on the supermarket shelves very soon.

Consultancy

Mridula offers consultancy services to upmarket restaurants and is a consultant for Asian wedding menus for a prestigious British company . She is currently involved in developing a range of spice blends for McCormick-Schwartz Spice Company.

Mridula's first DVD

Mridula’s first DVD 'Indian cooking Made Easy' is now out and available from HMV or online from the production company Summersdale Media Group.

Photos on site by Matt Munro