Chef Nikhil Chib

Age?

Twenty-five.

Married?

No, but he seems to have very clear ideas about his ideal woman. Nikhil's perfect partner should be, "independent and doing her own thing". Does that mean he wants a strong-headed power woman? "No, there should be a balance. It's not that I am going to sit at home and chop onions while she goes to work," he says. So despite him being a chef, his wife will still be expected to do some cooking.

So, how did he cook up his `banker-turned-chef' tag?

He says he was a banker in New York only for one year. "I was just a rookey climbing the corporate ladder," admits the so-called former banker. So perhaps we should call him an unsuccessful-banker-turned chef.

How did cooking come in?

"I always had this romantic idea of running my own restaurant and bar. A cool place," he says. And in true romantic tradition, Nikhil had a `female' friend in the city of lovers -- Paris -- whom he used to visit when he was a student in Vienna. That's when he hit upon the idea of opening a Parisian-style crepe.

But doesn't he specialise in Burmese food?

Well, he does Burmese food as he has a grandmother from Burma. "I have no professional training except my grandma's secret recipes," he says. And starting his own business wasn't so difficult either, as Nikhil was born with a silver spoon in his mouth. The son of Delhi-based businessman Ranjit Chib (who also started MRAs, a market research company), Nikhil operates out of his pop's Colaba flat -- just down the road from his mom's place, where he lives.

So is he a child from privileged background?

Yes, his mom is well-known for her social work in Mumbai and has a PhD from the London School of Economics. His dad is Cambridge-educated and has just sold off his market research company. In fact, they were more than a bit shocked at Nikhil's career choice. "My father said my being a cook would be like being a servant," says the chef.

But there is nothing servile about a successful catering service. Is he finally happy?

No. Nikhil has higher aspirations and would like to run his own restaurant. "It will be a cafe. There is a gap in the market for a quality place serving quality food," he says.

And where will he get the moolah from for his venture?

He doesn't want mommy and daddy's help this time. Nikhil will return to his roots and get a hefty bank loan. "People are tired of the same thing," says our chef. And how different will this `different' cafe be?

Besides being a night hangout, "it will also serve breakfast". The morning market has a lot of opportunity according to Nikhil. "And I am in the business to make money," he says candidly.Is he a night bird?

You can often spot Nikhil at the Bombay Gym bar, The Ghetto, Copa Cabana and now Three Flights Up -- you know, all the hip and happening places in town where you go to be seen.

Any other hobbies?

He is doing a post-grad degree in psycho-analysis. "It's not my head that I want to look at, but others," he quickly adds.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.