Kolkata, 08 November 2022: ITC Ltd.’s Sunrise Pure, the market leader in the branded spices category in West Bengal, is back with Season 2 of Aajker Annapurna show, in association with Zee Bangla. As one of West Bengal’s fastest growing cooking platforms for women entrepreneurs, the aim of the campaign is to encourage and support cooking enthusiasts among the women in Kolkata who wish to open their own food business and fulfil their entrepreneurial dreams.
So far, the organizers have received tremendous response for registration and are looking forward to more entries. A jury comprising of Zee Bangla Rannaghar team will evaluate the contestants’ recipes based on parameters such as culinary competence, distinctiveness, innovation, commitment to build and expand their food business, in order to shortlist the top 50 entries.
For four weeks, the top 50 chosen candidates will receive culinary and entrepreneurial training from industry professionals to help develop their business and home delivery model. Following this, all nominated contestants will be trained on techniques of creating interesting cooking videos, which will be uploaded on Sunrise Pure’s YouTube account. The top 10 participants will be chosen based on the number of likes obtained on the platform and the uniqueness of their culinary offerings. These contestants will go on to participate in a cook-off as part of the grand finale. Three winners will receive prize money worth Rs 1 lakh each besides assistance to develop their own online profiles and enhance visibility on social media platforms of Zee Bangla and Sunrise Pure. In addition, the winners will have the opportunity to directly audition for Didi No. 1, a reality show in the channel where talented women from different parts of West Bengal compete against each other in a series of entertaining tasks to win various prizes.
Speaking about this initiative, Piyush Mishra, Business Head, Sunrise, ITC Ltd, said, “We are excited to bring back Season 2 of the much appreciated show Sunrise Aajker Annapurna. The show witnessed the display of tremendous talent amongst women from different walks of life, who presented many unique and innovative recipes in Season 1. In the new season, which is expected to be even larger and more grandeur than the last, we look forward to supporting more women in their entrepreneurial journey to pursue the passion of their lives.”
The successful Season 1 of Aajker Annapurna held last year received applications from over 4000 women of whom 50 shortlisted women were successfully trained by experts to pursue their respective businesses. The last season saw popular Chef Sushanta Sengupta and renowned actress, Ms. Aparajita Auddy judge the competition. After thorough screening and multiple rounds, Ms. Shahala Ahmed emerged as the winner of the contest. Apart from the cash prize, Sunrise Pure Spices revamped Ms. Shahla’s eatery with new merchandise and helped her register it with food delivery apps, to further expand its customer base.
For women willing to participate in the contest, a recipe along with their contact details, needs to be sent via WhatsApp. Details on how to register for the contest can be found on Sunrise’s (@sunrisepure) and Zee Bangla’s (@zeebanglaofficial) social media handles.
About ITC Sunrise Pure: Sunrise Pure, acquired by ITC Ltd. in 2020, is a market leader in West Bengal in the fast-growing spices category, with a strong heritage and legacy dating back over 100 years. Sunrise Pure has been enhancing the taste of meals in Bengali households with its high quality spices, including the quintessential Mustard Powder, Shorshe Posto, Shukto and Shahi Garam Masala. Today the brand has a variety of products under Basic Spices, Blended Spices, Whole Spices and Papad. It is available across retail outlets in West Bengal and is available digitally through leading E-commerce websites like ITCStore.in, Amazon, Flipkart and BigBasket.