Manjunath Mural: the unknown Michelin chef in Singapore

He is the first Michelin star recipient for Indian cuisine in Southeast Asia. Yet Manjunath Mural, Executive Chef of Song of India, is relatively unknown to the public. Let’s discover him and his cuisine.

The Chef is from a family of doctors

Nobody would have ever imagined that Manjunath Mural would have become a chef. Brought up in Mumbai, India, he lost his mother when his was very young. His father, his sister and his younger brother are all in the medical field. But he chose another path.

Food production interested him

At 20 years of age, Manjunath Mural decided that he wouldn’t become a doctor and opted for a hotel management course in Bangalore and specialized in food production at the Institute of Hotel Management, Catering Technology and Applied Nutrition. Three years later, a six-month training at the Taj President hotel gave a particular boost to his career. He was convinced that he would become a chef. After this work placement, he returned to the college for his last academic year. Winning the second place in a cooking competition at college was another turning point in his life as this allowed him to compete on the national level.

Manjunath Mural quickly climbed the ladder

After his studies, Manjunath Mural joined as commi-II level, The Resort on Madh Island in Mumbai. Due to his dedication, this five-star hotel decided to offer him training in Management at Centaur Hotel at Juhu Beach. There he met with some well-known Indian chefs like Sanjeev Kapor and celebrity chef Milind Sovani. Selected as chef de partie, he worked in various kitchens and pursued his specialization in Indian cuisine.

The Chef went to Singapore

Manjunath Mural has always dreamt to showcase Indian cuisine internationally. His move to Singapore in 2006 was like a dream come true. However, he took some time to discover their culinary lifestyles. “When I arrived in Singapore, I was wondering what I should have for my lunch. I am a rice eater, and I am not used to any international cuisine at that time. At a casual restaurant, the dish name “chicken rice” grabbed my attention. I was expecting it has some curry with it, but when they served the dish it was just rice and slices of chicken,” he wrote on his Blog. This prompted him to develop an Asian-Indian Gastronomy style. With what he learned from chefs like Vikas Khanna, Vineet Bhatia, and Atul Kochar, he delicately played with ingredients, colours, flavours, presentation, and garnishes to make his client satisfied and happy with their meal.

First Indian chef to score a Michelin star

His time of glory came as Executive Chef of Song of India, a state-of-the-art Indian restaurant that portrays regional flavours across India. For two consecutive years, in 2016 and 2017, the restaurant was awarded one Michelin star in Singapore. It is the only Indian restaurant in Southeast Asia to have this reputation. Another recognition for Manjunath Mural was at the World Gourmet Summit in 2012 where he was named Best Asian Chef in Singapore.

“I wanted to make Indian cuisine as popular and refined as French cuisine and with this Michelin star, it is just one way of working towards this dream,” the 44-year-old chef told.

h/t: hindustantimes
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