Vikas Khanna

Current Company

Bungalow & Kinara — Chef & Founder

From Amritsar to Michelin Stars

Vikas Khanna grew up in Amritsar, India, cooking in his grandmother's kitchen and dreaming of culinary greatness despite being born with misaligned feet that required years of corrective treatment. He arrived in New York City in 2000 with $200 and no connections, sleeping in Penn Station and cooking wherever he could find work. He eventually became executive chef at Junoon in Manhattan, earning the restaurant a Michelin star and establishing himself as one of the most talented Indian chefs working outside India.

Khanna's cooking honors classical Indian techniques while embracing contemporary presentation and global influences. His restaurants — including Bungalow and Kinara — aim to elevate Indian cuisine beyond the stereotypes of buffet-style dining that dominate much of the Western restaurant landscape, proving that Indian food can operate at the highest levels of fine dining.

Feeding India from a Manhattan Apartment

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit India in 2020, Khanna organized one of the largest food relief operations in the country's history from his apartment in New York City. Working his phone and social media, he coordinated the distribution of millions of dry ration kits to migrant workers, elderly people, and communities cut off from food supply chains during India's devastating lockdown. The operation reached all 29 states and 7 union territories.

Khanna is also a prolific author and filmmaker, with over 30 published cookbooks and multiple documentary films exploring India's culinary diversity. His book 'Utsav,' a photographic celebration of Indian food festivals, was presented to President Obama and the Dalai Lama. Through cooking, writing, and humanitarian work, Khanna has become one of the most important cultural ambassadors for Indian cuisine and one of the most generous figures in the global culinary world.