Watch: In conversation with award-winning chef Vijay Kumar, of ‘Semma’, New York
| Video Credit:
Thamodharan B, Shikha Kumari
Vijay Kumar is arguably one of the world’s most celebrated chefs. His restaurant Semma, set in the heart of Manhattan has won a Michelin, and become the first Indian restaurant to top the New York Times’ 100 best restaurants list.
Most recently, he won the prestigious James Beard award. Backed by Roni Mazumdar and Chintan Pandya, who run the popular restaurants Dhamaka and Adda in New York, Vijay was given the freedom to not just cook the food he grew up eating, but also to celebrate it.
Vijay has come a long way from his home town of Natham in Tamil Nadu to New York City, where Semma stands out from other Indian restaurants for its “unapologetically South Indian menu”.
Read more: James Beard winning Chef Vijay Kumar of Semma in New York dreams of sambar, rice and paddy fields
Editing: Thamodharan B
Production: Shikha Kumari
Published – June 28, 2025 01:27 pm IST