Far and away from the world of conventional careers, only the brave would dare to master the art of food craft professionally. And the successful ones would be so not just because they have carved out a career for themselves, but also because they love and enjoy being in the world of food better than anything else.

Everyday is new. A five-star hotel environment can be heady with the inherent glamour in it. The food business is an important money-spinner for any hospitality facility. For this reason, more and more students are taking up cooking as a profession.

Day in and day out, standing on one's feet, undergoing the rigours of kitchen life, a cook is a combination of a labourer, artist and even a manager, as he has to work hard with large cooking vessels, create culinary masterpieces and as he goes on, might even be appointed to take charge.

To satisfy the customer, one needs a lot more than good food. Because a customer can be finicky, a chef has to be very sensitive and imaginative. It is a very demanding job and with no shortcuts in this profession, one might need an element of luck to reach the top.

Hard work is the only assurance and even that can go unnoticed for years. In such cases, and they are not rare, it can be frustrating. But in spite of this, one sees their numbers growing. More and more students are enrolling for the culinary courses available in many government and private institutions.