Lunch for Mayor Memsaab!

John Slaytor’s portrait of Nilgiris’ chef Ajoy Joshi is a finalist in this year’s Shoot the Chef competition. RITAM MITRA reports

The word “art” evokes thoughts of intricately carved Greek sculptures, majestically painted chapel ceilings – or maybe even graceful ballerinas and talented musicians. However, there are a group of artists who practise a form of art not commonly referred to as one. These artists are chefs, and they do not only make dishes – they create masterpieces, just as Da Vinci did with his Mona Lisa. The Sydney Morning Herald’s Shoot the Chef competition seeks to capture the inspiration, emotion, and to a large degree, the eccentricities of Sydney ’s top chefs – all through another form of art: photography. We recently spoke to finalist John Slaytor as well as his subject, Ajoy Joshi, head chef and owner of Nilgiri’s restaurant.

The competition, in its 11th year, is one of the highlights of the Crave Sydney International Food Festival. 22 finalists were chosen to be on display from October 5-28 at Chifley Plaza in Sydney , with the winning photographer taking home two return flights to South America ; but for most of the participants, the competition is about a whole lot more than a holiday. For Ajoy and John, there is a lot more than meets the eye when it comes to their motivation behind their picture.

A concept is created

The shot itself is a sight many will barely even pay a second glance back home; a dabbawalla delivering lunch – albeit to the Sydney Lord Mayor in front of the Sydney Town Hall organ pipes!

“This idea was sitting in the background somewhere,” says Ajoy. “It’s a great opportunity because Cadel Evans won the Tour this year, and the Mayor (Moore) wants the city to be an all-green city, with no cars, no petrol – so a cycle is the best thing. I love cycling and John loves cycling, so we thought we’d give it a go.”

Dabbawallas (literally, ‘person with a box’) have been delivering lunches across India for 130 years. They collect and deliver fresh lunches to workers from their homes; and then take back the empty dabbas.

John recounts, “It all began because Ajoy wanted to take part in Shoot the Chef – he didn’t want a studio shot, because they’re too stale and too boring. So we thought, ‘Fine, let’s go out there.’ Dabbawallas, they’re extraordinary. They’ve been around since the 1880s, and it’s an extraordinary delivery system. Nothing seems to get lost, but there are no computers, just – another way of saying India is an amazing place. But it’s not your usual cliché Taj Mahal-sort of version of India . That’s why we chose the dabbawallas.”

Essential execution

Once the Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore agreed to take part in the shoot after a request from John’s wife, John and Ajoy were running to a very tight schedule. Ajoy recalls, “A photographer with a vision is the most important thing. The day the Lord Mayor was to come, we were practising for about half an hour to an hour, and then the PA came in and told us Clover didn’t have much time – there’s probably a maximum of 7-10 minutes she can give you. John said, ‘We’ll do it in two minutes’ – and he did!”

John’s philosophy seems simple: “As soon as Clover Moore came, I took 3 photos. Normally photographers spend hours and hours taking photos…but life’s too short for that! We knew we had the shot, so I stopped.”

Ajoy believes creativity is “a part of human nature”, and it is competitions like this that allow creative juices to flow. “The competition is great – it recognises both the artist and the subject. A food book is not a food book unless there are good pictures. It gives the photographers a chance to showcase their art and meanwhile, small-time chefs like me get recognised”.

It is this concept which seems to be the fundamental keystone of the competition – giving recognition to one artist through the very art form of another; even if they aren’t well known already.

Understanding Indian cuisine

As one the 22 finalists, Ajoy seeks to address what he believes is a glaring flaw in the way Indian cuisine is regarded in the public spectrum. “I’m pretty vocal about it – there are a lot of fantastic chefs in this country. We need to throw in a few lines about them. Indian chefs are not featured as chefs at all – we are just known as ‘curry boys’. Indian cuisine is not just about the curry – we don’t have rogan josh for breakfast, butter chicken for lunch and beef vindaloo for dinner. Nor are we Sachin Tendulkar – we don’t want recognition to a point where our private lives are scrutinised. But passion needs to be recognised,” he said vehemently.

John also enjoyed the experience, “I know Ajoy was thrilled, Clover Moore tweeted it to all her followers – I think it was all positive,” he said. John has been to Mumbai twice – but hasn’t yet seen the dabbawallas in action. However, he embraced his trips to India , because as John found out, “In India when you have a camera everyone rushes towards you, unlike here where if someone sees you taking a photo of them, they think you’re a pervert. When I was in India I took amazing photos – I was in an auto-rickshaw literally whizzing through the street, and I had a lot of candid images which no one expects.”

Even though he didn’t win this year, John takes heart from a successful debut entry in Shoot the Chef. “As Oscar Wilde said, every portrait painted with feelings is a portrait of the artist, not of the sitter. When I’m capturing tenderness between human beings, I’m really revealing that I’m a human being – it sounds a bit pretentious, but it’s what motivates me. Ultimately, it’s people that keep me going,” he said.

Art will always be ever-changing; that much is a certainty, as it will continue to reflect the context in which it originates. However, often art is right before us and we don’t recognise it for what it is. The next time you go out for a nice dinner – or maybe even when you sit down to a home-cooked meal from mum, take a moment to appreciate what is before you. Because it’s more than just a meal!