Prankur Kumar - First Impression Is the Last Impression, When It Comes to Dishes as Well as Restaurants (Food Blogger From India)

Prankur kumar

I love blogging as a passion, because it helps me stay relieved mentally, and it actually helps me stay sane most of the time. When we pursue our passion as a job, it becomes more stressful and we become money-minded, oftentimes. So, I am happy with having to share my stress with my passion rather than converting it into a full-time regular job.

1. Please tell us about your background and journey.

I am born and brought up in Lucknow, the city of nawabs which is absolutely famous for Mughal dishes. I am a lawyer currently. 

My Journey: I have been a foodie since my very childhood, but I attained a little more knowledge about taste and cuisines as I grew up and went to college, and that's when I decided to work on my page and build it better, I have been through different kind of dishes that have helped me in developing my choices for food. Though, it was a tough ride as I was not in my best shape back then, as I weighed 130kgs. 

But with the growth of my page, I went forward to work on myself as well, and I shredded down to 85kgs.  This journey of food and fitness helped me identify myself and attain confidence in plenty of fields. I started my page(@The__Marinated) in September 2019. I was not at par with my knowledge of photography much. But, I managed to get better at it, with the help of my family and friend's support, most importantly, the blogger community supported me a lot to work towards my betterment and skills. 

By the current time, I have discovered major famous places in Lucknow(food-wise). Due to the pandemic shut down, things have been a little slow, but as soon as we get free from the pandemic safely, I would love to work more with local and small vendors, as they have suffered the major loss and would work towards improving and developing my professional growth.

2. Which is your favorite cuisine and dish?

My all-time favorite cuisine will be Indian. As my tastebuds love Indian food more than any other. Mughlai food has also been one of most favorites. But, I don't ever withdraw myself from trying new cuisines, as it helps me know and explore more about food. Recently, before the shutdown, I tried Japanese cuisine, which was an experience worth trying. Those dishes were so different and light. The all-time favorite would be Paneer gravy of any kind, plus the naan, with salad on the side. This would really make my day!

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

This is a very tricky as well as an interesting question. It really depends on what someone wants from life. Food blogging is a difficult platform if one thinks of it to be a regular job, though it comes with many perks, advantages, one can get socially famous, can become a staple on social sites and everything. 

But, all that looks beautiful on the outside, isn't really always the same on the inside, right? I have been in this field for a long. Long enough to understand that food blogging is the most enjoyable passion, with less stress and more clarity. It can be a good job option if one wants to pursue it. 

But, personally, I love blogging as a passion, because it helps me stay relieved mentally, and it actually helps me stay sane most of the time. When we pursue our passion as a job, it becomes more stressful and we become money-minded, oftentimes. So, I am happy with having to share my stress with my passion rather than converting it into a full-time regular job.

4. Which restaurant/food joints would you recommend to food lovers? 

There are many shops, which are more than 100 years of age in my city. We have Tundey Kebabi, which is widely famous, not only in Lucknow but in other cities as well. 

Lucknowi Biryani is also a must-try whenever someone pays a visit to Lucknow.  
Royal Cafe's Basket chaat cannot be missed whenever someone visits Lucknow. 
For the sweet tooth people out there, 'Malai ki gilori' is yes-yes always. Please, sink your teeth into the softest sweet dish of all times. 
Prakash ki kulfi is also an amazing joint. 

Pandit Ji ki chaat, which is situated on the interiors of aminabad is extremely famous for its variety of chaat, for all the chapatey dish admirers out there. It is a shoo that belongs to a small vendor, but the taste is unbelievable and I bet, your stomach will be full, but your heart will definitely want more. 
Well, if I go on explaining more about my favorites and must-try, I bet the list is going to be endless and there will be no one to put a stop to it, so I would like to wrap it up here.

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

If I move on talking towards the particular restaurant, it would be a little less justice to the other restaurants that I have been in. But, to be precise, I always look forward to paying a visit to restaurants which are hygienic, have good food quality and fresh servings, have cleanliness in their kitchen and amongst their staffs, and treat their staff with utmost care hygiene wise, have a good team of members working towards making their place a better one, plus a reasonable and affordable place. 

The appreciation for a dish, comes from within, to be very honest. It is always the quote "First impression is the last impression" when it comes to dishes as well as restaurants, for me.

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

Yes, oftentimes, I connect myself with the dishes that involve me in the process of preparing them, one of the basic and most favorite of them would be 'Rajma Chawal' you know, life for me would have been impossible without rajma chawal in it. The essence, the flavors, the aroma, everything about this dish makes me drool over it and I instantly associate myself with it and I believe I always will do the same. So, yes, for me it will be Rajma chawal.

Prankur kumar

Prankur kumar - Food Blogger - The__marinated || lucknow ||

Interviwed By: Rudraksh Sharma