By Sneha Kundu
Kriti Sharma started her journey in 2016 with a simple but ambitious goal: to highlight
Chhattisgarhi food online. Even though Chhattisgarh has a rich food culture, it wasn’t
well-represented on the internet. Frustrated by this and driven by her love for her
culture, Kriti, with her brother’s help, started a blog to show the unique dishes from her
home state.
Since she was young, Kriti loved different cuisines and cooking shows. This early
interest led to her mission. She noticed that many people from Chhattisgarh were not
proud of their food traditions, which were often overshadowed by more popular Indian
cuisines. Kriti wanted to change this by promoting Chhattisgarhi food and making
people proud of these unique dishes.
At first, Kriti pursued engineering but soon realized her true passion was elsewhere.
Engineering school taught her resilience and the importance of following what makes
one happy. Unlike her peers, she wasn’t interested in corporate jobs. Instead, she found
joy and fulfillment in her blog and Instagram activities, eventually deciding to focus on
them full-time.
Kriti’s journey had its challenges. The diversity in Chhattisgarh’s food meant many
different opinions on how traditional dishes should be prepared. This led to debates and
criticism, but Kriti stayed determined. She chose to blog in a language understood by a
wider audience, despite some followers wanting her to use Chhattisgarhi.
Her hard work soon paid off. Kriti was invited by India Today to discuss Chhattisgarhi
culture on a national stage, alongside well-known personalities. This was a big
milestone, showing her work to a larger audience. She also took part in local events,
like the first Chhattisgarh event at Sayaji in Raipur and a tourism promotion event in
Jashpur. Working with famous food vlogger Anubhav Sapra from Delhi Food Vlogs
further highlighted her achievements and broadened her reach.
Looking ahead, Kriti plans to bring Chhattisgarhi food to international locations with
large Chhattisgarhi communities, such as New York and Dubai, through special events
and pop-up cafes. While she has no plans to open a restaurant because of the risks,
she aims to promote Chhattisgarhi food globally.
Kriti Sharma’s journey from a passionate cook to a celebrated food blogger shows her
dedication and vision. By documenting and sharing Chhattisgarh’s rich food culture, she
has made her culture proud, giving Chhattisgarhi food the global stage it deserves. Her
story is an inspiration, showing the power of food to connect people and cultures, one
recipe at a time.
