The 6th CEOs Share a Smile Lunch fund raiser was held for the very first time in the garden city at the poolside of the ITC Windsor- Bengaluru on Saturday, September 04, 2010.
The morning started out being cloudy and showed signs of possible rain, the sun was nowhere to be seen. Suddenly at 11.45am just as the first CEO Chefs started to arrive, the golden rays of the sun touched the waters of the pool and slowly spread over the brightly decorated tables, each of which had a large bowl of white roses.
Our sponsors for the day were Kingfisher Airlines, CRI Events, ITC- Windsor Bengaluru, Bacardi Martini India and SABmiller India (Foster’s beer).
The CEO Chefs were punctual and were greeted on arrival by Prema who introduced them to each other. Our Chefs then set about donning their aprons and chefs hats, ready to put their culinary skills to the test. Armed with Bacardi cocktails and chilled Foster’s beer our Celebrity Chefs threw caution to the winds and got down to some serious cooking.
By 1pm hectic activity was seen at all food counters. Each of the CEOs were seen trying to entice the guests with their cooking. The guests enjoying the cocktails and chilled beer walked from counter to counter to check out the delicious food that was being cooked.
Gopichand Kattragadda, Sen General Manager, GE and Rekha Menon, Executive Director, Accenture ensured that the health conscious guests started their meal with a choice of Greek Salad or Caesar’s Salad with Smoked Salmon.
As we moved to the South Indian section Parvathy Omanakuttan, Genesis Foundation’s Good Will Ambassador (Miss India 2008 & 2nd runner up Miss World 2008) was seen putting together a spicy chicken, Mirapakai Kodi. Her partner Paolo Lanzarotti, Managing Director, SABmiller India was making an innovative Chapa Vepdu (grilled fish with spices) cooked with a dash of Foster’s beer his own innovation. The dish was so popular that many of the guests suggested the ITC Windsor may like to include this variation to the Chapa Vepdu on their menu.
The live band kept everyone entertained whilst the sun continued to shine. Bacardi cocktails and the chilled Foster’s beer kept in huge bowls of ice were doing the rounds.
At the continental section Rajesh Rao, CEO, Dhruva Interactive, who by the way loves cooking , was busy making Spaghetti Bolognaise. Kanwaljit Singh, Managing Director, Helion Ventures admitted that he never realized how much he enjoyed cooking. His Andaman Prawns & Bell Pepper Brochettes were being picked up as fast as he could get them plated.
Sajai Singh, Partner, J Sagar Associates and Sandhya Vasudevan, Managing Director, Thompson Reuters were looking extremely engrossed in their work at the Indian section. Their Pomegrate Chops and Paneer Khurchan took care of the guest’s veg and non-veg requirements.
The Oriental section had Himanshu Kohli, Founder & Partner, Client Associates cooking the broth required for the very popular Khao Suey; he made sure that all the 7 garnishes were added with each serving. B J Arun, Founder & Chairman, California Digital was effortlessly making an Oriental grill which was served with a choice of 3 sauces.
Madhu Atre, President & Managing Director, Applied Materials India and Giridhar G V, CEO, Ernst & Young assigned to the Dessert section, thought they had it easy earlier in the afternoon. Suddenly they found a long queue in front of their Dessert counter, as most everyone wanted Crepe Suzette flambéed with Bacardi which was a hot favorite.
The afternoon soon came to an end with Chef Parvathy giving away the lucky dip prizes from our support sponsors; 3M, Sennheiser, PepsiCo India, Taco Bell, SABmiller and lunch vouchers and wines from the ITC-Windsor- Bengaluru. For a job well done, Bacardi Martini presented a gift to all our courageous CEOs.
The funds raised from this event will go towards the treatment of the 4 children identified by Genesis Foundation who are in need of surgery. The children are Vinod (scoliosis), Naitik (thalassemia), Ansh (cancer) and Sumit (heart). Click here for details of the children.
Our special thanks to Anil Chadha, General Manager, ITC Windsor Hotel and his team for the excellent arrangements and cuisine at this fund raiser.
Click to see more pictures and media coverage of this event.
For more information contact Miecckey Bharrucha [miecckey.bharrucha@genesis-foundation.net]
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