'Food is my only indulgence'

In a short interview with CS, Manoj talks about his love for food and cooking:

Shabana's the best
I am a slow learner when it comes to cooking. My wife, Shabana is a fabulous cook. You can say that she and her family are obsessed with food. They can talk about food for hour's altogether. Over the years, I have acquired some of her passion.

Health is wealth
My normal diet is a very healthy one. I finish all my meals before 7.30pm. On most days, I stick to vegetarian fare. Thankfully, I am not fond of sweets or fried food. This has helped me stay in shape without struggling much.

Unit ka khana
For me, lunch is the meal of the day. It can be only rotis and a sabzi, but it has to be to my liking. Whenever, I am shooting outdoors, I find out about the special dishes, vegetarian or non-vegetarian that are made in a particular place and get them tailor-made as per my preference. This is my only ‘demand' on a film set.

What's cooking?
I must say that I have learnt a bit about cooking from my female co-stars. Tia Bajpai, who was with me in Lanka makes some delicious pasta. Esha Gupta's hairdresser cooked up a wonderful fish curry when we were shooting in Panchmarhi, Madhya Pradesh. At home, my cook is supremely talented, and she's taught me how to make some excellent chicken curry. So, I'm learning by the day!u00a0