Kishwar Chowdhury – the Australian cook of Bangladeshi origin, who placed third in the most popular reality show on food, MasterChef Australia, and won the hearts of Bengalis worldwide for putting everyday Bangladeshi home-cooked food under the limelight – recently met Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her sister Sheikh Rehana, reports UNB.
Posting photos with the Bangladesh PM and her sister on her Facebook page on Wednesday, Kishwar shared the experience she called “one I’ll remember for years to come.”
“I had the immense privilege of being invited into the home of the Prime Minister of Bangladesh and creating some signature dishes that reflected my visits during winters in Bangladesh,” she wrote.
“What I thought would be a quick meet and greet, turned into long conversations over several cups of cha, ‘Tungipara Roshogolla’ and my first time trying ‘Mukhsolli Piththa’.
“It was an incredible experience sharing food, learning heritage family recipes and hearing stories of a bygone era of the lived history from two sisters who, despite having lived through so much, hold food, family and heritage at the very heart of their home,” Kishwar added.
“As I left with gifts of home grown varieties of Bangladeshi rice, mustard field honey, sesame oil and homemade ‘ghee’, I was told that ‘It’s always a proud moment to see our girls doing so well’,” reads the Facebook post.
“Coming from the longest serving female Prime Minister in history, I have to say, I felt quite humbled. My travels always bring me unexpected experiences that linger long after I’ve come home…and this short week in Dhaka has been one I’ll remember for years to come,” she wrote.
Bengalis worldwide cheered on when Kishwar served her interpretation of the quintessential Bangladeshi humble food “panta bhaat-aloo bhorta” to the judges in the MasterChef Australia grand finale. She may not have won the ultimate prize but for Bangladeshis, she had already won.
Bd-pratidin English/Tanvir Raihan
