MasterChef India, one of the most well-liked culinary reality television shows in the country, has grown to be a significant platform for home chefs to turn their love of cooking into successful careers. As the ninth season premieres on January 5, previous champions whose successes have influenced their careers will once again be the focus of attention.
The ninth season of the popular cooking reality TV programme will debut on the Sony LIV platform and will be hosted by famous chefs Vikas Khanna, Ranveer Brar and Kunal Kapoor.
Here is a comprehensive list of MasterChef India winners along with their current positions, from the first champion to the most recent:
Season 1: Pankaj Bhadouria (2010)
Pankaj Bhadouria created history by becoming the first
MasterChef India champion in 2010, and went on to receive a monetary reward of Rs 1 crore. She was a former Lucknow schoolteacher who quit her job to follow her passion for cooking.
Since winning, Pankaj has established the Pankaj Bhadouria Culinary Academy, authored cookbooks, hosted a number of TV cooking shows, and established herself as a prominent culinary instructor and content creator.
Season 2: Shipra Khanna (2012)
Shipra Khanna, a Shimla single mother and season two champion, enthralled the judges with her creative food and zeal. Following her victory, she went on to become a celebrity chef, writing books, running a YouTube channel, creating podcasts, and hosting television shows in India and abroad.
Season 3: Ripudaman Handa (2013)
The winner in 2013 was Ripudaman Handa. A master of sophisticated and well-balanced cooking, Ripu is still active in the food industry and shares recipe videos, tips, and food-related content on social media. Apart from that, he features on television cooking shows and fans and aspiring chefs through the online platform.
Season 4: Nikita Gandhi (2015)
The Season 4 winner, Nikita Gandhi, has not only taken her love for cooking far beyond the show but is also now a content creator and the proprietor of The Veggie Fix Catering (TVF Catering), a brand that serves Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and other regions of the United Arab Emirates.
Season 5: Kirti Bhoutika (2016)
The Season 5 champion, Kirti Bhoutika, has transitioned into the role of a food content creator. She motivates home chefs throughout the nation by regularly posting culinary content online, conducting baking workshops in India, and running her own food show, Food Fiesta, on FoodXP.
Season 6: Abinas Nayak (2020)
After the sixth season triumph, Abinas Nayak has been a TEDx speaker, a restaurateur, and a food consultant, among other roles. He is still quite popular in the food industry and shares his expertise on his YouTube channel, ‘MasterChef Abinas Nayak’.
Season 7: Nayanjyoti Saikia (2023)
The winner of Season 7 was Nayanjyoti Saikia from Assam. Since winning, he has focused on producing interesting cooking videos as a content creator, often posting recipes and cooking advice for his expanding online fanbase.
Season 8: Mohammed Ashiq (2023)
Mohammed Ashiq, who won Season 8, was the most recent winner prior to Season 9.
Following his victory, Ashiq turned his MasterChef title into a successful culinary business by starting his restaurant Masara in Bangalore in late 2025.
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