Date:24/02/2006 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/02/24/stories/2006022417770500.htm

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

It's fun, food and frolic for them

Staff Reporter

Chefs step in to provide sumptuous meal to orphaned and underprivileged children

SIZZLING THE DANCE FLOOR: Children from orphanages burn some calories before partaking in a gourmet meal during `Chef Amuthupadai' a scheme to provide meals to the children, on Thursday. — Photo: A. Muralitharan

CHENNAI: A sweat shop, a hotel, an association of chefs and engineering students came together to bring some moments of fun to a few hundred under privileged children at Chrompet on Thursday.

With a lot of time left for the formal inauguration of Chef Amuthupadai — a scheme to provide gourmet meals once a month to orphan and underprivileged children — the open air auditorium of the Madras Institute of Technology turned into a dance floor with the children dancing to the tunes of the latest blockbuster Tamil film hits.

Gourmet meal

Initiated last month, Chef Amuthupadai is supported by Sri Krishna Sweets and Indian Federation of Culinary Association to provide a sumptuous gourmet meal once a month to children from various orphanages. This month they selected children's homes in this region. Chefs and staff from The Rain Tree hotel descended on Madras Institute of Technology (MIT) with their huge vessels and stoves to prepare `children-friendly' gourmet delicacies.

Jugesh Arora, Executive Chef of the hotel said that the idea was to serve those dishes which children relished very much and which they did not get to eat very often.

So, on the menu were strawberry milk shake, noodles, ice creams, spring rolls apart from sugar candy and popcorn to serve the children as soon as they arrived.

Members of the Rotaract Club, MIT, participated in the event. About 500 children took part in today's event, they said.