Dilip Kumar tells you how to make aloo matar, John Abraham teaches you to dish out exotic veggies with almonds and Anoushka Shankar tutors you on an avocado and tofu dip — all this makes Anuradha Sawhney’s latest book on vegan food a must read. Deebashree Mohanty chats her up
It is shocking how many people in India are not aware of the basic difference between vegetarianism and being vegan. They think it is all about ‘not eating meat’. But being vegan is a completely different ball game. It also takes away dairy products and eggs from your diet. For me, this is the most healthy way of living. I realised this when I joined PETA 10 years back. Now, I practise this whole heartedly,” Pune-based Sawhney tells you. Currently she is the director of the vegan food service and wellness center, Back to the Basics in Pune.
She says that during the initial few years it was difficult to cook up something that was vegan yet tasty but once she figured that out there was no looking back. “Many people in India are taken in by the white revolution where they cannot do without milk, maida and white bread. I wanted to discover a healthy substitute to these foods. Once I had that sorted, I wanted to share my knowledge with the world and so I authored Vegan Kitchen — Bollywood style,” Sawhney says. She owns a bakery outlet in Pune that deals with vegan cakes and ice creams and also provides vegan tiffins to those who pre-order.
What makes her book different from others is that she has many Bollywood celebs vouching for the vegan style of living. “I feel blessed to have received around 80 vegan recipes by B-Wood biggies. Some of them have been featured in this edition and some others I will add in the second part to this book,” she says, adding that Yana Gupta is the most health conscious celebrity in B-town.
Apart from authoring this book, Sawhney also prepares vegan tiffins for clients. “It started with one tiffin that I prepared for a friend of mine. But I realised that there was a huge demand for it and so I took this up seriously. Now, I supply tiffins to at least 10 clients in a day. The menu is usually Indian for lunch and I try out different cuisines for dinner. It is a four-course meal that I provide in my tiffins,” a proud Sawhney tells you.