Globalisation of Indian Economy is bringing in many lucrative career options. With more and more MNC’s coming in, India has now become a landmark for tremendous growth. People migrating from one place to another for business, profession, commercial and personal follow a lifestyle and prefer to eat their favourite menu at their place of choice.

Food being the integral part of a human being, it becomes necessary for everyone to know about the concept of cooking, whether it is for one self or for others. So passion for cooking is something which is part of every one’s life. And those who excel sometimes take it up as a profession.

One may wonder, if one needs to turn pro, what he must do. Your guess may be to join a “HOTEL MANAGEMENT COURSE”. OOPS!!!! Sorry you are mistaken, if you want a CAREER in Cooking, then the course you should choose is CULINARY ARTS, the art of cooking and decorating the meal in a more pleasing and presentable way. So the next question is where should I do this course? What are the career prospects in this line?

All those who have PASSION FOR COOKING and want to make a career, pursue a course at CULINARY ACADEMY OF INDIA (CAI), Begumpet. 

Let’s know from the man behind the dream of CAI, Director, Chef N Sudhakar Rao about the Institute & CAREER IN COOKING and its prospects:

TCG: About Chef N Sudhakar Rao

Chef N.Sudhakar Rao: I did my hotel management course and worked in the US for almost six years and completed my certificate culinary educator’s course. When I came back to India, in 1996, I felt that the hotel management courses conducted across the country were not helping students strive for excellence in the culinary profession. So, taking the help of qualified chefs, culinarians and hoteliering professionals, I formed Paragon Educational Society, which is the moving force behind Culinary Academy of India.

I felt the need and started the culinary art course which was not available in India. CAI is the first institute which actually started culinary arts as a specialisation in hotel management.

Apart from that, I am a member of American Culinary Federation for the past five years - the world’s most prestigious chef organisation, which is a rare distinction for any Indian Culinary Professional. I am also a food stylist for many newspapers and magazines in India and a guest chef on TV9. I am also an active member of the world association of cook’s society and secretary for Culinary Association of Andhra Pradesh.
 
TCG: What made you choose this profession?

Rao: I am basically an artist from childhood and had interest in drawing, sculpting, and molding things. I only transformed that basic interest in art towards food decoration. Though I have done hotel management, I have always worked on food decoration. If you see my 25 years of track record, I have always tried to present food in a most decorative way. My interest is not preparing Biryani in one Handi and putting it, my interest is to make it more presentable in a decorative way. My food is always beautiful to look at.

For me if the food is not presented in a pleasing manner, I feel that the essence of the food item is lost. To present the food in a decorative manner is my specialisation, and a culinary art is the end or say apt thing for the entire food production process. Attractiveness can be non-acceptable also, the second sensory thing is taste always plays an important aspect. So maintaining both decorative and deliciousness are pre-requisites of culinary art.

TCG: What is the difference between Hotel Management and Culinary Arts?

Rao: I did hotel management, but I was never trained to be Chef. It is through interest I became Chef. If my interest would have been in services, I would have become a FNB guy, but a culinary art is one specialisation where it only makes you a chef. Once you do this course, one cannot say, that I am going to do service or be in the front office, you have to be in food production i.e. kitchen. It is a professional qualification to be a chef. For being a chef you definitely have to be a graduate in culinary arts and not a graduate in hotel management. If you are doing hotel management you have to be in services and a part of house keeping.

“PASSION FOR COOKING” One common thing shared among CHEFS in their profession

TCG: About CAI and its initiation…

Rao: The formation of CAI is the initiation of five professionals coming together and forming a Paragon Educational Society. Culinary Academy of India (Formerly known as Indian Academy of Catering Technology & Culinary Arts) was founded in the year 1996. The Culinary Academy of India is the first professional training school for culinary arts to be founded in India, matching the standards of top American and European culinary institutes.

We came together to impart culinary arts as separate specialised subject. Our goal was to promote an awareness of the food service industry and impart specialised skills in the Culinary Arts field to aspirants.

CAI encompasses 300 students every year from all over the country. We have got global recognition from the first year of inception it self, Andhra Pradesh State Council of higher education has accorded a Bachelor degree status for the course and Osmania University has introduced Bachelor of Catering Technology and Culinary Arts for the first time in India.

We are the pioneers in the culinary arts education as a specialisation in hotel management education in India.  We are also internationally recognised as many cruise line companies from abroad absorb most of the candidates and also India’s leading hotel chains like Taj, Oberoi’s, Marriott’s, Hyatt, Leela’s, Intercontinental, ITC Sheraton, and other major hotels conduct campus recruitment.

TCG: What courses are available?

Rao: CAI offers Bachelor of Catering Technology and Culinary Arts, Certificate course in Food Production and Patisserie, Diploma in Cruise Galley Operations, Galley Assistant Familiarisation Programme, and Costa Crociere Cruise Chef Course.

Bachelor of Catering Technology and Culinary Arts is different from other culinary programme in the world and it is specially designed to prepare the “future chefs” for food, hotel and cruise line industry with special and continuous practical inputs and an international outlook.

The course curriculum of BCT & CA are Gastronomy, Patisserie & Confectionery Arts, Bread Art, Advanced Garde-Manger Arts / Culinary Arts, Meat Fabrication and Charcuterie, Oriental & Far Eastern Cooking, Indian Regional Cuisine, Indian Confectionery, International Cuisine, Food and Beverage Matching, Drawings and Graphics, Management, French. Communication Skills, Personality Development, Industrial Labour & Hotel Laws, Kitchen Designing, Food & Beverage Costing form an integral part of their curriculum. The duration of the BCT & CA course structure is divided into one year and four Semesters.

The Craft Certificate Course in Food Production and Patisserie is designed for entry-level positions where in the trained student can join as a cook trainee in a professional kitchen. Students who successfully complete one year of college and six months of Industrial Exposure Training would have a solid understanding and mastery of basic principles and techniques of food production and would definitely get an edge to excel from where he/she starts.

The duration of the Certificate Course in Food Production and Patisserie is one and a half year.
Diploma in Cruise Galley Operations Candidates holding a degree / diploma in Hotel Management with a passion for cooking food would be given advanced inputs in Galley Operations. Hands on practical exposure would be provided where the candidate would be trained on the corporate menu cycles as followed by P&O Cruises and Princess Cruises onboard their ships. Since CAI is also the official training centre for galley personnel. Candidates desirous of a career on cruise liners can apply for the following programmes that are offered in association with various cruise companies like P&O Cruise Lines, UK, Princess Cruise Lines, USA and Costa Cruise Lines, Italy.

As this is the first professional chef training school in India, the students would have tremen-dous job opportunities as the hospitality industry in India has always faced an acute shortage of manpower having both skill and managerial qualities to handle senior positions in professional kitchens with determination and dynamism.

TCG: What is the intake for each course?

Rao:  Intake for BCT & CA is 60 seats in an academic year, for Certificate course in food production and patisserie is 30 seats, Diploma course in Cruise Galley Operations is 30 seats each.

The eligibility criteria, Selection procedure and Certification for Different Courses:

Bachelors Degree in Catering Technology and Culinary arts:

Eligibility Details:

Age: 17 years of age at the time of commencement of the course

Qualification: 10 + 2 or its equivalent with minimum of 50% aggregate marks in any stream.

Necessity: English as a medium of instruction in schooling. Incase of other languages, the candidate has to show his competency in English during selection process.

Selection Process:

A notification would be published in leading national newspapers; interested candidates can apply and based on their performances in over all selection process which includes Written Test, Group Discussion & Personal Interview.

The Craft Certificate Course in Food Production and Patisserie:

Eligibility Details:

Age: 16 years of age and not more than 25 years (30 years in case of SC & ST candidates) at the
time of commencement of the course.

Qualification: Experience in Food Culinary Industry is recommended but not necessary.

Necessity: English as a medium of instruction in schooling. In case of other languages, the candidate has to show his competency in English while selection process.

Selection Process:
 
Diploma in Cruise Galley Operations:

Eligibility Details:

Age: 21 years of age on or before the date of completion of the course.

Qualification: Bachelor of Hotel Management / Diploma in Hotel Management / Bachelor of Culinary Arts with a minimum of one year experience in professional food service operations.

Galley Assistant familiarisation programme:

Eligibility Details:

Age: 21 years of age on or before the date of completion of the course.

Qualification: A pass in Senior Secondary Certificate (SSC) with English as medium of instruction. Candidates completing SSC in language other than English should demonstrate competency in English.

Necessity: Minimum experience of six months in Food / Culinary Industry / Allied areas is necessary.

Selection process for Galley Operations Programme:

1. An admission notification is published in leading national dailies by the respective companies Princess Cruise Line – USA, P & O Cruises – UK and Costa Cruise Lines – Italy.
        
Princess Cruise Line – USA:  CAI is the training partner of Princess Cruise Lines USA and trains around 200 chefs for their on board operations. Most interesting thing here is that the three-year graduate is offered a direct third cook position and Princess Cruise Line visits the
campus every year for campus recruitment.

P & O Cruises- UK: CAI is an authorised training center for P & O Cruise for their pre-selected candidates and also our three-year graduates are selected through campus recruitment as Chef graduate trainees for two-year on board training programme. In this process students are absorbed once they complete their training. They earn while they learn.

Costa Cruise Lines – Italy: Costa Crociere S.p.A Italy has collaborated with CAI and they have made CAI its Costa Preparatory Campus. It is the training center & destination for Costa cruise lines for recruits from India.

Six batches per academic year would be enrolled by the P&O Princess Manning Office in Mumbai. Candidates fulfilling the entry criteria would be called for a written test/ group discussion and personal interview at Fleet Maritime Services office at Mumbai. Commencement of Batches is Batch I & II - June to August, Batch II & III - September to November, Batch III &IV - December to February.

TCG: Tell us about the Infrastructure?

Chef NSR: We are having nine technical labs. There are seven full fledged training kitchens where in students undergo training. The students will rotate in all the seven kitchens before completing the Three Year Program. Apart from the kitchens we have Computer Lab and Sophisticated audio visual class rooms and Library. They are all well maintained and always up to mark of the International culinary standards. The kitchens are Gastronomy, Individual Cruise Galley Kitchen, Ala Carte Kitchen, Cruise Galley, the Indian bounty kitchen, Bread Art Lab, Confectionary Arts Lab, and Larder.

TCG: About Faculty…

Chef NSR: We have a strong pool of 18 talented, enthusiastic and dedicated full time chef instructors. Our instructors are very responsive and are very well exposed to the Indian and international culinary profession. They come from the best hotels and are winners of prestigious competition at the international and national levels. Our faculties pass on their expertise to over 300 students each year. CAI has signed a memorandum of understanding with leading cruise line companies

TCG: What is the girl student’s percentage compared to Boys?

Chef NSR: Only 15% of total strength is girls in this professional course.  I will tell you why this is so less, girls think it is difficult and discomfort for them to be in this profession. 

More over in our institute I get people from all over the country but from Andhra the percentage is very less. Because, people here are very conservative, they don’t open their ways to new lines in career. It is mostly the parents who are very particular about their children’s career. They always want their children to be Doctor or Engineer, if a child is even interested in some other career also, they don’t allow them, more precisely this culinary arts profession.  Parents should make a note that there are other lines in career where their children can excel and be successful in life. They should not refuse or discourage children from doing professional courses.

I want to MAKE a clear NOTE:

People should stop giving biased views over hotel management and culinary arts profession. News papers and magazines generalize by saying that the profession demands LONG HOURS WORKING.  You tell me which profession does not demand more hours to work these days. Every profession is demanding a 10 – 12 hours work schedule. So, why only comment Hotel business? 

 The scenario should be changed to bring in more people coming into this lucrative career. The only industry where the machinery cannot take over is culinary arts and Hotel business which will always banks on human touch. More over, this is the highest employment Industry and it will be.

You get Employment, Money and Travelling all over the world. As a chef, I travelled 80 countries; I learned 14 languages and different cultures. Tell me which profession will have this opportunity. I don’t say that the culinary art is the most glamorous but there is lot to learn and share. Al over India some women chefs are our culinary arts academy professionals.

TCG: About Placements:

Chef NSR: We don’t have a separate placement wing; placements are a special part of the course program. CAI has produced till now 400 budding chefs for the Indian Hotel industry and around 800 chefs & cooks for the cruise line industry of USA and Europe. We have positioned ourselves as BRAND CAI which is a centre of excellence for culinary professionals both nationally and internationally.  Placement is a guarantee here who excel.

Exposure to cuisine Industry:

Our Bachelor students are placed for training in their II semester at hotels all over the country in the hoteliering month of the year, December. Their whole II Semester starts from December to ends in May. If the performance of the professional is well, they even get easily absorbed there.

About Pay Packages:

Coming to Indian Market, we have three categories of recruitments and pay types.
1. Kitchen Management Trainees will earn up   to Rs. 15,000/- to Rs. 18,000/-
2. Hotel Operations Management (Kitchen) will   earn upto to Rs. 10,000/- to Rs. 12,000/-
3. Common trainees will earn upto Rs 8,000/-   to Rs  10,000/-

Coming to Cruise Line:

Our one and a half cruise line course will earn upto Rs 32, 000/- to Rs. 33, 000/-. They don’t have to pay any amount; the company will hire them and provide them the tickets also.

TCG: Do you conduct workshops?

Chef NSR: Yes, it is part of the program, as per university norms we have to conduct three workshops in the academic year. This year we are planning to have one Center pieces workshop, Catering Trends workshop and three New Trends in Indian Food which will be in final year.

Apart form the regular academic workshops; we also conduct workshops for delegates. We conducted a workshop for people from Japan who were from Incredible India Program.

TCG speaks to future culinarians:

TCG: What made you choose this career?

Culinarians: Most of them where having a basic interest in cooking, for some it was making their family hotel business more professional. Some of them where having a passion for cooking and wanted to work on cruise lines.

TCG: About CAI

Culinarians: We are very lucky to be a part of this institute. Here the discipline is like a military, we studied in convents, but there also we did not find this kind of grooming which we get here. From day one you are groomed to be a professional. We get good support from our chef instructors and all staff.