Adila Shams - You Cannot Hope to Be Successful Unless You Are Passionate About It

My perspective stands that anyone can learn how to cook. Cooking isn’t difficult. Yet! There will always be a difference between someone who has learnt to cook in a school and someone who has the inborn talent to cook.

1. Tell us about your background and journey.

To begin with, who doesn’t love food? As a child I have always had a palate for trying various food items. Eventually, it’s become a part-time profession and something that drives me.

I am a teacher and I hail from Kolkata, the city of foodies. I belong to a nuclear family and being the middle child, I always had my bars set high to achieve something of my own.

My journey in food blogging started around a year back. I felt that food is one of the many topics that has never ending things to talk about.


2. Which is your favourite cuisine and dish?

Ahh! One of the toughest choice to be made while being a food-blogger is to choose a favourite cuisine. It’s too difficult to make a choice when you have so many delicacies laid out for you. 

Yet, if asked to narrow down the choice , I would say that Italian and Chinese food is something which I would prefer any day, anytime. It’s one of those food which gives me a kind of soul-satisfaction. I happen to be a huge pasta and noodle fan.


3. Should food blogging be just a passion or can it become a regular career?

In order to achieve something, one has to be passionate about it. I believe one must “Let passion drive your profession”. You cannot hope to be successful unless you are passionate about it.


4. Can cooking be learnt at culinary schools or a natural talent is required?

That’s a tricky one! Well my perspective stands that anyone can learn how to cook. Cooking isn’t difficult. Yet! There will always be a difference between someone who has learnt to cook in a school and someone who has the inborn talent to cook.


5. What makes you appreciate a particular dish or a restaurant and talk about it on your blog?

Visiting restaurant has become a ritual these days. Hence, the need to have new and unique place has become a highly desirable thing. For me, when visiting a restaurant, it’s ambiance and interiors matter. 

I have always loved places with unique ambiance. As for the food, the food presentation and hygiene are most important accompanied by the taste , quality and ofcourse the pocket pinch. Such places are interesting to talk about.


6. Is there a dish you particularly associate yourself with?

I think I would like to associate myself with pasta. Most people who know me well are aware of this that I can have pasta of any variant - macaroni, mixed sauce pasta, penne - arrabiata, pesto, aglio olio, cajun pasta, lasagna , raviolli and so on.


7. Which is your favourite book and why?

I have been a voracious reader throughout, inclined towards horror, thriller, mystery, romance. My favourite book is “Little Women”. It’s a romantic comedy. It speaks of family and lives at the time of war. 

The character Jo I admire the most. Very few women were given the freedom to voice their feelings and opinion but Jo’s character was very outspoken. I feel that’s something very important when today we talk about equality and women empowerment.

- Interviewed by - Suhitha Mahendran