I know I might be a bit late in noticing but the opening title track of the show is really nice. It’s shot in the typical MasterChef way but the tune is catchy & it’s a great way to help us remember the names of the contestants. This show is something that I look forward to every single week because it goes without saying that the calibre is really top-notch. I thoroughly like the whole lot that has come to compete & the ideas they instil every single time they cook are praise worthy.
This was the very first team challenge of the season where Madiha once again had an upper hand because she won the last challenge so she was not only a captain but got to choose the menu she wanted her team to work with. I do feel that the judges should’ve left it on the contestants to come up with their own menu for the road-side food because the pre-decided menu didn’t help much in letting us know how creatively capable the team leaders were.
It was a typical street food that you get to eat everywhere in Pakistan available at all the times. It was again like a beautiful walk down the memory lane but apart from it, to see how the contestants competed was great too. The lot was divided into Red & Blue teams where Madiha was a captain of Blue team & Saad was appointed by the judges to lead the Red team. The contestants randomly picked the respective aprons. That’s how apart from Madiha, the Blue Team got Rayyan, Sidrah, Aneela, Maryam, Gulnaz & Amna. Along with Saad the Red Team members were Zain, Azam, Khurram, Ammarah, Iqra & Mudassir.
Madiha chose Bun Kababs & Jalebis for her team to create & Saad’s team got Roll Parathas & Gulab Jaman. Saad’s team had a very smooth start because it was Saad whose planning did the trick. He allotted the tasks to all the contestants & didn’t pressurize them much nor did he interfere. He believed in his team & allowed them to do whatever & however they wanted to do the work & later he focused on attracting the people towards his stalls. Madiha being too young to be a captain definitely had to deal with a lot things because her team mates weren’t properly following her instructions. Looking at how Maryam & Aneela were having difficulties in preparing the Kababs, showed they definitely might be having issues in taking orders from a 22 year old girl. Madiha herself was in a state of panic where instead of relying on others completely, she gave her input in everything, so for this right from the start till the end her team was suffering in communicating with each other.
The service began & the people flocked towards the stalls. I must say I was once again impressed by the choice of location & even the sitting arrangement done for the public. The food prep area was prefect as well where the special attention was given to the quality related to everything involved in the task.
It was great to see all the contestants work so hard to win the challenge. Iqra, Ammarah, Rayyan, Amna, Khurram & Saad stood out the most in this episode. To see how mechanically Rayyan worked was amazing. Amna definitely came up with some brilliantly tasty sauces to compliment the Bun Kababs chosen for her team. Iqra definitely had a rocky start but the way she grabbed all the compliments for Gulab Jamans showed how good she was. Ammarah was focused. Khurram’s a treat to watch, he brings in this positive energy & I like to see what & how’s he doing things. Saad was the one who stood out the most in the auditions but ever since he hasn’t been able to make a mark but I am glad the judges thought of him eligible of being a team leader & he certainly proved himself.
Red team won the challenge which by the end of the episode I was rooting for too. Their planning, co-ordination & eventually the taste of food paved the way for their success. Seeing frowning faces of the Blue team was a bit bad too but never mind I am sure the deserving contestants will come out strong after fighting hard.
It was good to see Chef Mehboob & Chef Khurram actually enjoy the challenge, mingling with the contestants, speaking to the people to get ideas of what they liked & in the end being open & comfortable in praising everything. However, I do feel that they are trying to sensationalize the non-existent rift between Madiha & Rayyan. I saw them both working just fine in the same team & even Madiha was happy to see Rayyan in her team but the judges were like ‘the enemies will work together’, I find it kind of unnecessary the way the judges are trying to bring in some sort of politics or are trying to fish for some kind of a reaction by either Rayyan or Madiha. Anyways, as expected, the only Chef who was in his typical mood was Chef Zakir. Seems like he was just there to nit-pick as to where things were going wrong & where the contestants were lacking so that he could comment on it. I actually laughed seeing him quiet especially when the other two judges were praising the contestants because it showed Chef Zakir had nothing good to say that’s why he wasn’t saying anything at all.
Anyways, it was a brilliant episode with a great energy. Can’t wait to see the black apron round to find out who goes this time. Share your thoughts on this episode.
Keep Supporting,
Cheers,
Zahra Mirza.