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Join Madhur Jaffrey, acclaimed actor, food writer and author for her 80th birthday party. The evening will be a celebration of Jaffrey’s immense contribution to British culture. In the stunning setting of University College, guests will enjoy a champagne reception before moving into the gothic-style dining hall, undoubtedly one of the most impressive in Oxford, for a three-course dinner prepared by Michelin-starred chef Atul Kochhar. The evening will be hosted by comedian, food-writer and broadcaster Hardeep Singh Kohli.

Before dinner is served, Jaffrey will deliver a speech, in which she will reflect upon her childhood in India, and her fascinating and diverse career.

Jaffrey was born in Delhi and won a scholarship to the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London following a performance in Tennessee Williams’s Auto-da-Fe. From there her career took off. She appeared in various BBC TV and radio plays and enjoyed a spell in New York before her big success in Shakespeare Wallah.  She went on to star in further Merchant Ivory films and to win accolades for theatre performances on Broadway and in the West End, and continues to appear in movies and TV films today. She has also carved out a second career as a food writer and broadcaster and is regarded as a world authority on Indian cuisine. She has published many cookery books and a memoir Climbing the Mango Trees: A Memoir of a Childhood in India.

Atul Kochhar, who will prepare dinner, has changed the way that people perceive and experience Indian cuisine. He draws inspiration from his Indian heritage and his love of British ingredients to create truly distinctive modern Indian cuisine. At Benares, his renowned restaurant in Berkeley Square, he has held a Michelin star for eight years.

This event is one of a series organised by Oxford Gastronomica, Oxford Brookes University’s centre for food and cultural studies, of which Madhur Jaffrey is a founding patron.

Presented by Oxford Gastonomica