Health coach and food writer Manjri Agarwal has influenced us all to opt for clean eating this 2020. Her Instagram page Big Plates Small Plate is a haven for those looking for a more conscious lifestyle, and we spoke to her about the challenges of leading the healthy eating charge
How did you get your start?
A few years ago, I had just given birth in Singapore and I didn’t want to go back to a regular job. I wanted something different. I started going to cooking classes in Singapore. They asked me if I knew how to make Indian food, and I started teaching there. Then of course, when I came back we hosted around 50 workshops in the city in some of the top-rated hotels who also supported us a lot. I also wrote two books.
What's your take on the conscious eating spectrum of Kolkata?
Of course, healthy eating is not a fad, it is an entire lifestyle. You can't pick and choose aspects of it. It's not temporary you have to keep working on it
The food scene is still male-dominated. Have you struggled to be taken seriously?
The scene is male-dominated yes. There are plenty of women who are coming up and doing newer things. There have been times when I've felt at a disadvantage in a room full of men, especially when you're speaking to someone who's older and has been in the profession for a while I have felt I am not being taken seriously.
Women who inspire you
Has to be my mum, she inspires me a lot of course, she runs her own translation business and works with languages. I also met Nigella Lawson in Delhi last year, who is someone who's had an obvious impact on me, but I was quite disheartened to meet her finally, because I she came across as someone who's a little too full of herself