Rishi Rao from Wembley, winner of the Rajah Masaledar Weekends competition on SONY MAX, expresses his gratitude for winning the competition of a lifetime.
Bollywood is one of the world’s biggest film industries, characterised by flamboyant dancing, extravagant locations and theatrical music. It’s no surprise that this should go hand-in-hand with authentic South Asian spices, especially since both were established in 1931- which marked the birth of Rajah Spices and the first ever Bollywood audio film, Alam Ara. As Bollywood inspiration journeyed through to the UK, so did the flavours. Every British kitchen saw influences from Bollywood culture; not only in South Asian homes, but throughout the nation, as Desi flavours brought cultures together through new experiences and that classic ‘taste of home’.
Rajah Spices partnered with SONY MAX to create a film festival from the 25th February to the 7th April. Participants were asked to vote for their favourite films from a list online, and if the playlist matched that of SONY MAX, one lucky winner would then be in the running to receive a once in a lifetime opportunity. Not only did they have the chance to take their family to the Bollywood film capital, Mumbai, but they were also gifted an exclusive pass to visit the sets of a SONY Network show, watch it being filmed live, and meet the celebrities!
The lucky winner was announced on 15th of March 2019: Rishi Rao from Wembley, who was thrilled to claim his prize alongside his wife. The couple embarked on an all-expenses paid journey to India including flight tickets and a luxury 5* star hotel stay. Along with the amazing trip, Rishi and his wife also won a Rajah Spice hamper and a Caravan Radio with over 5000 Bollywood hits. Just a few days after winning the competition, Rishi and his wife packed their bags, and before they knew it, were back to tell us about their experience.
Rishi – “When I saw the advert on Facebook I quickly entered. I thought the process was fairly straightforward and felt lucky that day! I am really into Bollywood films and I would say my top 3 are 3 idiots, Sholay and Naseeb – definitely a nice little mix of genres in there! My favourite actor is Salman Khan as I love his acting, his dance moves and, to me, he has really developed as an actor from when he first appeared on our film screens. When I won the competition, I was over the moon! The experience itself was absolutely amazing. Although it was a short visit, we tried to experience as much as we could. The hotel that was provided was incredible, with the food and service just excellent! When we went to Film City, I didn’t know what it would be like but that itself was something I would never forget, as we spent 8-9 hours there meeting all the celebrities of Super Dancer 3. Overall, I am still ecstatic that we won this competition as it really was a competition of a lifetime and one that we would have never dreamed of getting- but with competitions like these, you never know what will happen. Thanks to Rajah Spices, I will definitely be keeping my eye out for future competitions by SONY MAX!”
Rajah’s pure, authentic spices bring not only a taste of home to your cooking, but also a taste of Bollywood to your home. Why not explore home cooking in a different dimension, turning it into a cinematic experience with just a few spoonfuls of the Rajah magic.
