Mother of three, and still chasing the food dream

Kohima, Dec. 7 (EMN): The only women finalist at the Naga Chef season 5, Vikhuli Achumi from Dimapur shared how she kept her family-responsibility on hold to chase her passion at Kisama.

Achumi, a mother of three, told Eastern Mirror that she left all her family priorities to focus on becoming the next Naga chef. “Nagas are good in cooking but we don’t have confidence,” she said.

Passionate about food, Achumi spoke about the challenges she had faced in the competition thus. “Every spice has to be a Naga exotic, and sometimes it’s difficult to get that particular flavour we want due to the miss-match spices,” she added.

When asked about how the business is doing, she said that there was no sale leaving her facing ‘lots of financial problem.’

This time around, the Naga chef venue was relocated to the amphitheatre, which, according to her is not a favourable spot. “People don’t really know where Naga chef is located ultimately resulting in low business,” she said. She also pointed out that due to scarcity, she had to fetch water for cooking at as early as 5 am daily.

Being the only women competitor left in the competition, the 36-year-old said despite the challenge, it was a proud moment for her. ‘The competition rounds were not easy but somehow I am here and happy and look forward to final,’ she shared.

Naga chef finale on Dec. 10

After the entrepreneur/business round, the four finalists–Lipok Longkumer, Vikhuli Achumi, Dennis Suohu, and Mhomo Ngullie will compete for the ultimate tile on Dec. 10 at Kisama. The Naga chef is being organised by the Synergy Group Enterprise in collaboration with the Tourism department.