When God has a plan…
From selling bhatura chole at Vivek Public School in 1989,
to opening Lawrence Garden Banquet from the back of my house in Amritsar in 1990.
In 1991, I chose culinary arts—
a decision that embarrassed almost everyone except my grandmother.
There were years of humiliation I rarely speak about.
Moments that nearly broke me.
In 2000, when my banquet was torn down, I almost gave up.
Instead, I moved to the United States and started over.
Cleaning homes.
Selling food on the streets of TriBeCa.
Sleeping at Grand Central.
Experiencing homelessness at NYC Rescue.
Sleepless nights.
Being called “Curry Boy” on the 7 train.
And still, I kept going.
From there…
8 Michelin stars.
Then losing myself again.
Then starting over—one last time as a promise to my sister—with Bungalow.
And now…
TIME100 Most Influential People in the World 2026.
I’m still trying to process it.
The journey continues.
His name is Ajay Katara.
In February 2002 he was at a wedding in Ghaziabad.
At midnight he saw his friend Nitish Katara being taken away in a white Tata Safari by Vikas Yadav and Vishal Yadav. Sons of sitting MP D.P. Yadav.
Nitish’s body was found the next morning. Skull fractured. Body burned with acid. Dumped in a canal.
Every witness turned hostile. Police witnesses changed their statements. Even Bharti Yadav changed her testimony.
But Not Ajay.
Vikas Yadav threatened to kill him directly. Ajay’s response was simple.
If I am going to die I might as well tell the truth.
His testimony alone put Vikas and Vishal behind bars for 25 years.
The Supreme Court said this in open court. Only this man recorded his statement against the accused. See the power you wielded.
Then his punishment began.
37 false cases. Rape. Kidnapping. Extortion. Shot at. Poisoned. His security guards were paid Rs 50 lakh to look away.
He now lives with armed guards 24 hours a day.
Not one case existed against him before 2003. The year he testified.
In January 2026 Vikas Yadav applied for furlough. Ajay’s lawyer stood in court and said there is a constant threat to this witness. Furlough denied.
All I did was tell the truth. I just want to be left alone.
India failed him. He never failed India.
Follow for real stories about people who chose truth when silence would have been easier.
I had taken a leaf out of Ummi Abdullah’s legendary cookbook ‘Malabar Muslim Cookery‘ (1981) to make this mutton curry.
She put Malabar Muslim cuisine on the map. Abdulla is not just a cookbook writer; she is a custodian of an entire culinary culture. #nsmeats
The Prime Minister's Office:
Pakistan Defence Minister’s call for Israel’s annihilation is outrageous. This is not a statement that can be tolerated from any government, especially not from one that claims to be a neutral arbiter for peace.
People should also acknowledge & celebrate the mind behind this heist.
Ranjit Bajaj (the mind behind Minerva) does not just run a club; he runs a football monastery. Bajaj invested his life. He sold his family & personal assets to fund Minerva Academy.
This is real Skin in the Game. In 2020, when he sold his I-League club (Punjab FC), he did not exit the sport. He took that money & built a biological incubator in Mohali. He realized that the only way to beat West is to start at age 7, not age 18.
There was a time when Indian sports followers had many sports to choose from.
There were many religions. And many gods. No marketing needed. Only skill.
And he was one of them.
The Indian hockey team was going through a rough phase in the 1980s. A nation that was once unbeatable was struggling to match others.
But there was a broad consensus that he was perhaps the best centre forward in the world. The opposition put 2 defenders to mark him every time. And almost always, he got away.
He would twist, turn and spin and swerve away, ball glued to his hockey stick. A dervish or a devil, depending on which team you were supporting. Unmatched, unparalleled.
Glided on the turf like a thread of fine silk. Flicked the ball with the menace and might of a cobra. Threaded passes with surgical precision.
A commentator (I think it was Cuckoo Walia) once called him “Hockey ka Maradona,” only for his colleague to say “Arre bhai, we should say Maradona is football ka Mohammad Shahid!”
He was THAT good.
I once saw him sitting on a cot outside his house, reading a newspaper. Unassuming. Quiet. He nodded at my father as he greeted him.
Mohammad Shahid.
Railways. India. Varanasi.
#India #Hockey #MohammadShahid #Nostalgia
(@Raja_Sw, @pradeepmagazine, @RVarmaMD, @g_rajaraman, @VatsMusings, @anandkumarn, @indranil9, @ushrit2020, @TheGrou75062162)
Never ever take a travel policy from @policybazaar
I took a @CareHealthIndia travel policy from Policybazaar.
My flight from Dubai got delayed by more than 4 hours (Jan 2026).
I put in a claim as > 4 hours delay, a compensation was to be paid as per policy document.
And then the nightmare started. They asked for some docs, which I sent. Policybazaar RM follows up. They keep calling that Care Insurance requires more docs. I tell them it is too much an hassle and I don't want to pursue the claim. But they pursue me to send the docs and they will do the followup with Care. Policybzaar keeps calling and I do give the docs. All that are required. As claim amount is not worth the docs they keep on asking everytime, I decide not to pursue.
Care keeps asking for already sent documents. Policybazaar has no clue. Each time different RM calls. I tell them don't call me. But I keep getting calls. And Care keeps sending mails and SMS asking for docs already submitted.
It seems Care doesn't want to pay. Fine, I have learnt my lession. I will never buy again from Care and Policybazaar.
I don't want the claim. Stop the harassment. Please don't call me again.
Personally found the gist of the arguments here persuasive on why India should cook with electricity, not imported LPG
Induction cooking powered by domestic renewables +coal could cut import dependence, lower costs for households, turn kitchens into strategic lever for energy security
“Lakshya Sen reaches men's singles final of All England Open with 21-16, 18-21, 21-15 win over Canada's Victor Lai”
That headline doesn’t even begin to describe his endurance of pain to get this win.
The Juggernaut rolls on.
💪🏽🇮🇳
Can’t believe my eyes.
Lakshya just upset defending champ & world no.1 Shi Yuqi!
Massive.
This is how to ‘achieve one’s Lakshya’
👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽 @lakshya_sen
As PM @narendramodi lands in Israel today, I explain in @Jerusalem_Post why #India has become central to Israel’s strategic doctrine. https://t.co/sSKKsd0h1t