and successes

glitzy end of town at King Street Wharf, we learn more about the family.

Deep, the extroverted, people’s person type of professional, is perfectly suited to the events management role as he custom-designs celebration experiences for clients. Varun the chef is the happiest when he is experimenting in the kitchen. Manjit, good at both PR and the essential craft, keeps an eagle eye on his boys. Clashes are bound to happen, and it is up to the matriarch Kanwal to play peacemaker. In the end, it is she who is the ultimate secret in Manjit’s tandoor of secrets, anchoring the family as well as the entire enterprise in her trademark gentle fashion.

Was she responsible for the pivot that Manjit’s took as it struggled with COVIDcaused downturn? Probably. The new venture in heat-and-eat meals not only kept the wheels turning and the staff retained and occupied, but has now gone on to become a resounding commercial success. “It’s something that other businesses must emulate,” Cain observes.

Another thing that could be emulated, is the manner in which Manjit describes his staff as “my extended family.” Sometimes of course, members of his team become real family, such as manager Varun Kaur who Varun married recently, and Ash Reynolds (PR and design consultant) who might as well change his name to ‘Ashdeep Gujral’ because Manjit likes to introduce him as “my third son”.

What makes the various anecdotes in this book fascinating, whether elephant-themed weddings or guns at 15 paces at interfaith nuptials, is how they are described: with equal parts humour and drama. Not unlike the family itself.

“Batshit crazy” is the way Cain describes them. And yet by his own observations of their life at work, outside work, and in times long gone, he builds a picture of a solid firmament: aspirational, creative, pushing boundaries, and having each other’s backs in challenging times.

Not so batshit crazy as you peel away the layers.

If you want to know even more about the people behind the Manjit’s persona, all you need to do is check out the recipes they each present to Cain in the book. Read each recipe closely, and guess the identity of the Gujral family member responsible for it.

(For those reading that know the family, this should make perfect sense.)

Balmain bug curry. Mysterious. Experimental. Amalgamated. Not exactly traditional but with a distinctly Indian base. (It’s gotta be Varun.)

Goat Shoulder Curry. A Punjabi family’s Sunday ritual. Rustic preparation. Not overly spiced or marinated. (This one’s got Manjit written all over it).

Fish Amritsari. Just like the fish tikkas made by the street vendors outside the Golden Temple in Amritsar. (How can this not be Kanwal?)

South Indian Fish Curry. This is South Indian in style but it’s not spicy. You’ve got to try it… Ha, you loved it! (Yup. It’s Deep).

Rajni Anand Luthra