Trends Men who enjoy stirring things up in the kitchen herald the entry of the gastrosexual male, a breed found here too. Super chefs on telly are the patron saints of the movement.
When the tough guy plunged into the world of manicures, makeovers, spa massages and retail therapy, he was called the metrosexual male.
Now, another kind of male has emerged. If you believe the way to a man's heart is through his stomach, it is time to do a rethink. The tables have turned. Enter: The gastrosexual male. He's the guy who has taken up cooking to impress his woman. He uses his culinary prowess as bait, as he does with his personality, looks or social status.
The report ‘Emergence of the Gastrosexual' (dailymail.co.uk) cites the popularity of superstar chefs Gordon Ramsay and Jamie Oliver as a factor in making cooking a macho pursuit. According to the study by food company PurAsia, 48 per cent of people said being able to cook made a person more attractive to them and 23 percent of 18 to 34 year old men said they cook to potentially seduce a partner.
The report also showed 60 percent of British men now regularly cook for friends and family, favouring complicated foreign dishes over traditional British food. The survey also indicated the number of families where men help in the kitchen has more than doubled in percentage.
Given that cookery shows like “MasterChef Australia”, “MasterChef India”, “Top Chef” and “Hell's Kitchen” have a huge male fan following in India, the gastrosexual male exists here as well.
Anubhav Singh, an entrepreneur says: “I've been fascinated by cooking from Sanjeev Kapoor's ‘Khana Khazana' days. I was able to impress a few of my sister's teenage friends then. I just didn't know men like that had a tag!”
MBA student and cooking enthusiast Timothy Balasingh states: “My fascination for this art stemmed from watching my parents cook. Though I watch cookery shows, I'm driven by my instincts when I'm in the kitchen. With experimentation comes new learning. I enjoy cooking any kind of meat in various styles. When I cook for others, I enjoy making it an elaborate affair and some of these dishes include honey fried chicken, lemon grass beef, banana truffle, pasta, biryani and chilly prawns.”
Timothy who has no professional education in the field helps in his mother's catering business and has cooked for as many as 1,000 people. He cooks at least three meals for his family each week and feels: “Girls are certainly attracted to men who can cook but I personally believe a woman does this best. The way she cooks and serves her family with love cannot be imitated by a man.”
Biren Panjabi, a collegian quips: “Though I enjoy cooking, I wouldn't like to impress the woman I marry with these skills simply because it will backfire and everyday after we get married, I will probably be expected to cook.”
And are the women actually getting allured by men who can roll perfectly round rotis and grill chicken to succulent perfection? “Of course, we find such men attractive. This has much to do with stereotypical roles. If a woman cooks well, it is considered normal but if a man can do the same, he's surely something!” says Meera Menon, a teacher.
Aarti Shetty who's married a chef admits: “When we were dating, he would cook for me sometimes. His culinary skills clearly set him apart from other men. And though that wasn't the reason I married him, this is a value-added benefit!”
With so many men cooking up a storm, ideally a woman would be happy to have some time off but interestingly the report also indicates that men's new found enthusiasm for the kitchen does not mean they are interested in other household chores. So apparently we've got to get on with the scrubbing already!
-Neeti Sarkar
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