5 facts about Kundan lal Gujral, the man who gave the world butter chicken&tandoori dishes

Originating in the Indian subcontinent, Tandoori chicken a mouthwatering dish which can create an appetite for many. Dating back to as early as the Mughal era, the dish is believed to be invented by Kundan Lal Gujral, a man who ran a restaurant called Moti Mahal in Peshawar.

Here are five facts about the man behind who introduced the Punjabi cuisine to the rest of the world and many famous dishes which include tandoori chicken, butter chicken and dal makhani.

1. Kundan Lal Gujral worked for Mokha Singh who started a small eatery at Moti Mahal in Peshawar, British India. Moti Mahal was the first to dig up a tandoor right in the middle of the eatery and since then Peshawar was introduced to the culinary art of tandoori chicken by them.

2. After the partition of India in 1947, Kundan Lal Gujral, a Punjabi Hindu, fled to Delhi with his family trying their luck. They chanced upon an abandoned thara in Daryaganj, and then considered a newer part of Old Delhi. Kundan Lal Gujral then started Moti Mahal, Daryaganj with another partner, Thakur Das Mago.

3.  In 1970`s Kundan Lal's son Mr Nand Lal 'Bila' Gujral, upon the exit of Thakur Das Mago from the partnership, expanded Moti Mahal Delux in south Delhi to establish Moti Mahal Delux Chain of Restaurants.

4. Indian leaders like Jawahar Lal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Zakir Hussain among various foreign dignitaries like Richard Nixon, John F. Kennedy and Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. have visited Moti Mahal to sample Kundan's innovations.

5. Gujral's grandsons Monish a graduate of Delhi University  and Ashim Gujral have significantly expanded the chain in the last decade via the franchisee model

Source: en.wikipedia.org

Featured image(courtesy): motimahal.in/monishgujral.com